Athearn/Roundhouse 40' Hoppers

Hey guys, needing a little help,

I cannot get the "new" Athearn 3 bay hoppers to track correctly (ie stay on the track). I've tried to use MT trucks with couplers, the supplied trucks and couplers with Fox Valley wheelsets, I have added weight to NMRA standards. Just don't have a clue......If someone has a magic potion, please let me know.......

Thanks, ......

 

These cars do sit level, the trucks swing freely...But they will not stay on the track...which is Kato Untrack.....

 

Run your finger back and forth along the whole track. Make sure one rail of the Unitrack didnt get slid above the Unitrack connector somewhere. When I laid hundreds of pieces of Unitrack for THERR I had 2 places this happened at. As BulletProof as Unitrack is....operator error...will rear its ugly head from time to time

When I would run trains over the rail that was higher onto the the rail that was lower...the locomotives and rolling stock would almost always make the jump down to the lower track ok. When I ran trains the other way...and the wheels would hit the end of the higher rail...I almost always got a derail at that spot.

JMHO YMMV

 

This is where a little analysis comes in. If it's not your track (good suggestions by mtntrainman above), then start making careful note of each derailment. Where - exactly. Direction. Speed. Forward or backward (push or pull). Car number. Gather a little data and you'll see a pattern.

And something else to check. I learned to tighten one truck down fairly firmly, so that it will swivel but not rock, and to leave the other truck able to freely swivel *and* rock. This acts like a 3-point suspension. Since I tried that, my derailments have gone way down.

 

Well I use a variety of car manufacturers and basically I do the same thing either MT trucks (Fox Valley Wheelsets added) and couplers, NMRA weight added, or Fox Valley Wheelsets with the trucks that come with the car....I do check gauge, and the track has been gone over. This also happens on our clubs N-Track Layout. REALLY don't have a clue........

 

Planning on playing tonight, will come back after some research...This is really way to easy to be all this trouble.....THANKS for all your help, I really like these little hoppers......

 

Are you using Kato elevated curved pieces? If so, they require transition easement pieces from level to elevated track.

And they need to be connected in the right order - a left-handed easement won't work where a right-handed easement piece is required. When misaligned these track pieces will derail cars while others might negotiate the irregular transition successfully.

 

Funny story, back when they were new I did have them incorrectly installed, and wondered why my Kato E8's would always derail......No they are set up right....Thanks for the heads up....

 

This is a new one on me. I have a bunch of these cars. All were converted to MT trucks/couplers and never had any problems with them. There does seem to be two versions to these cars. The original cars came as a kit that you had to put together. These had a metal frame that added weight to the car. The later cars came assembled. Both were light weighing about .4 oz without load. I never had any derailment problems with them.

My advice would be to put the MT wheelsets back on them and see if the problem continues.

 

I've had a number of these cars that gave problems when I converted them to Micro-Trains trucks w/couplers. The problem on these cars was the metal tabs where you could supposedly body-mount couplers., It seems the tabs sat lower than other cars of the same type. Thus, the Micro-Trains coupler pockets would hit on it and cause the wheels of the truck to lift off the track slightly, just enough to cause derailments.

Check the body mounting tabs and see if they are flush with the hopper body (good), or slightly lower (bad).

 

I have converted all the MDC (Roundhouse) hoppers to MTL trucks/couplers, and found that I needed to use the spacer ring (washer) in order for the trucks to swivel. I have left the Athearn made hoppers with the Athearn trucks. Every time I run the hoppers it is a question of whether or not they will run that day. Some days 5-6 or more of my 64 hoppers will fall off the track everywhere, other days all run for the entire show. I never know. I have checked everything I can think of and still have this problem. Sometimes they run other times they do not run, so I always carry a back up train of MTL 2-bay and Bluford 2-bay hoppers, they seen to run no matter what. Or you can go to the MTL 40' box cars they also seem to run with no problems. Just relax and realize that some days the hoppers want to stay in the box and other days they want to show off. After 2-3 laps I know if they will run or not and save my frustration by changing trains if this is a not going to run today and you cannot make me day. YES, I know the hoppers are inanimate objects, but, they sure seem to have a mind of their own at times. later, Craig

 

One of the thngs I do not like about the Athearn 3-bay hoppers is the noticeably long coupling distance with the OEM couplers. So, I intend to convert them to Microtrains couplers with Fox Valley wheel sets. Thanks for the heads-up on some of the issues I may encounter - I thought it would be a piece of cake.

 

Okay so last night I tried a few options, checked track first.....Then installed OEM trucks and couplers.....mixed results...pulling was acceptable pushing was not......Now keep in mind I do have these weighted to NMRA standards....This includes trucks, car, load,......now MT trucks FV wheels...this is ALWAYS my first option.....after checking clearances, I found that 36" wheels preformed better than 33"......I do not have FV wheels for the OEM trucks, I did order some from BLW, the WIDE 36"version. And I do believe that they are Atlas trucks so I'll have to wait on those results...Now these trucks attach with tiny screws, should I drill and replace them with MT plugs????? I do have one bad frame I can experiment on......Again thanks for all the responses, I NEVER thought this would be this much of a hassle....

 

Screws? You said the trucks swing freely earlier - right? What if you back off the screws, say, just a ¼ turn. Any difference?

 

Yes I though of that too.....To keep the MT truck on you have to use the MT washer with the screw because the heads to small..... I backed it off, there is plenty of swing......But you have to be careful too much and the screw works it way out.....And I'm quite sure the prototype had 33" wheels correct????

 

I do not have any of the Athearn hoppers. Have several of the MDC cars. Had to remove coupler mount from frame. MT truck with couplers mounted like Kisatchie wrote. Could it be the screw is to small in diameter that the trucks are able to move around and causing the derailments. Hope you find the problem and let the rest of know .
Thank you Dan

 

dualgauge makes an excellent point about the diameter of the screws. If the screws are too small to fill the holes in the center of the trucks, they will allow lateral motion, and the trucks could wind up in a position where they will bind. A sleeve made of a short piece of tubing will cure that. Make sure it fits comfortably in the truck, and if you have to twist the screw through it, then you know it fits the screw snug enough.

As for preventing screws from unscrewing themselves, there is a product called 'threadlock'--though if your tubing sleeve is just the right length, you can tighten the screw enough to stay put without binding the truck at all. The screw tightens on the sleeve, and the truck still has room to tilt. But if you use plastic tubing, don't get carried away tightening the screws--you could squeeze the plastic enough to enlarge the diameter of the sleeve, and it will no longer fit properly in the hole in the truck.

Those sleeves can extend the life of your trucks, too. As the trucks swivel, the threads of the screws grind them down a bit. The sleeves protect the trucks from the screw threads.