Hi, Here is how the story goes... Ok so i was running my Bachman G-4 4-8-4 daylight in the i think Black War Baby scheme I was running it on a passenger train at about the scale speed of 60mph it came around a bend and i dont know if the switch was messed up or if one of the front 2 axles were off or what but all i heard was the sound of a heavy HO scale locomotive derailing at a good speed it looked like it came off and the frog went underneath the loco so one side of the drivers would want to go one way and the other side would want to go straight so i put it back on the track and turnd the controller up and all i could hear is a humm but the lights were still on and it was still smoking So i figured that a gear could be off and congesting it up so i took it apart and nothing was wrong so i put ti back together and discover that it was the siderods the side rods were messed up what should i do get a new drivers assembly or should i send it back to bachman to get fixed thanks!!!:tb-rolleyes:
If they are really messed up and beyond your ability to repair, or anyone else's locally, then contact Bachmann and explain your circumstances. Ask if they will repair it and what it is likely to cost. They may ship you a new engine, or send you parts, depending on your abilities and confidence. If the engine is defective on their account, they would normally fix it for nothing under their warranty, but otherwise it is likely to cost you some money....not sure since I have never sent anything in to Bachmannn. But do contact them via their site with an email and go from there.
Check the rod linkages to make sure none of them where knocked out of alignment and are now binding. This would give you a motor hum, but no movement. Look at the engine from the bottom and see if any of the connecting rods were bent during the derailment. You should be able to see clearance between the various rods. If one side looks different from the other, bent rods are likely the culprit. If they are, you can gently pry them back into position. If not, call Bachmann. On a side note, I did have a similar incident with a Mantua 4-6-4. Decidied to do a "header" off one curve and onto the floor. It seemed to defy the laws of gravity, falling at a heart breakingly slow pace. yet, it managed to impact just as I reached it's landing area. Lost the PRR pilot..which was going to go anyway. A few rods on the left side were bent, and I had to CAREFULLY bend them back to their original shape using a fine, flat screw driver. -Mark
I played with the rods and it started to run very jumpy and it stopped and i am going to keep trying some of the rods are bent so does anyone have a safe way of bending them without ripping them off
Be very careful when bending your side rods. Sometimes if the side rods are bent the wrong way, you can throw the wheels out of time, lock up the motor, or strip the gears. Carefully use a small flat head screwdriver and a pair of needlenose pliers to fix the siderods. If the siderods are too messed up to be fixed, try checking on eBay to see if there are any corresponding parts. Good Luck!
