I'm sharing a picture a fellow sent to me of his AZL GP38 loco that shows broken tabs that hold the circuit board in place. He is wondering if this can be repaired to working condition? I'm asking for him as I don't see any way to salvage this chassis.
I recommend the fellow contact Rob Kluz immediately. AZL should be held to account for these manufacturing defects.
I think it can be fixed to run, but you might not get the board working. Just take some bare wire and run it through the tabs of the motor contacts where that little hole is and tape the wire to the frame with scotch tape. at least it will make the loco run, and who knows maybe if the other two tabs are sufficient you could put the board in place and get lights.
It is my understanding that AZL will be happy to replace the frame of this loco. Contact Rob Kluz for a replacement.
That is the beginning of a condition known as "Zinc Pest", an impurity in the Zamac, a Zinc, Aluminum, Magnesium, and Copper alloy that causes it to swell and crystallize so any repairs would be short lived, since it's a chain reaction. It is usually caused by trace amounts of lead, which got into the mix. Another cause can be too quick of cooling of the casting, which causes the allow to crystallize. New frame is the only solution.
Great information guys. I will make sure the owner of defective chassis reads this thread. Thanks to all.
Also known as "Zamac rot". It has been around for a long, long time. Tinplate train collectors know it well for disintegrating chassis, wheels, etc. Apparently no other process has ever come along to replace it, so Zamac continues to be used, despite it's well known potential for headaches.
And..........I've heard (no proof) that the US maritime museum will not accept models with white metal parts because some of the model will slowly 'disappear' over time. Sure wouldn't want to use white metal doors on the space station. )
Epoxy putty.... It will literally stick to just about anything and sets hard as steel. You can shape it (before it sets up), sand it, even machine it. In fact it will be a lot stronger then the original casting. But you have to be able to work and shape your repair part fast (you have about 5 minutes). And realize once you epoxy putty the board back in place and create new mounts with the putty, its never coming out a again unless the chassis breaks else ware... Also keep in mind its a catalyst putty, you have to knead it really well to make sure you have a good mix so your fingers are going to get messy. So be mindful of what you touch like the trucks or the tank. this stuff will anchor on to the textured surface of the broken casting quite well. You can get it at any hardware store.
Please follow the following instructions: 1) DO NOT PANIC! 2) Contact Rob Kluz at Ztrack (ztrack@aol.com) 3) AZL *will* replace it. 4) We are aware that SOME of the GP38-2 chassis have this problem. It appears to be a very small minority of GP38-2 that have this problem. 5) We apologize for the inconvenience. These were produced at a factory that we no longer do business with for obvious reasons. Thanks for your continued support -Rob(A) AZL