An N Scale funny story with a happy ending

Andrew Hamilton Oct 31, 2015

  1. Andrew Hamilton

    Andrew Hamilton TrainBoard Member

    36
    18
    7
    Sorry for the length of this story but I though some might get a kick out of it.


    Several years ago I was looking through Halifax Kijiji (about 150+ miles from me here) and came across an ad for a box lot of N scale trains. It seems the fellow had tried N Scale and got discouraged or lost interest and just wanted out. Unfortunately this happens and it makes me wish I could have been there to help and give encouragement to give him a better start.

    Anyway, in the listing was a number of different rolling stock and engines. What really caught my eye was a pair of Atlas GP7s. I have a soft spot for Geeps and I decided to purchase the lot mainly for these two engines.

    A deal was made and the seller and he agreed to meet me in New Minas which is about half way. I met with the gentleman and after looking at the lot I bought it all. The GP7s were there but had the couplers broken off but looked OK otherwise. It seems that he had a 5 year old granddaughter that likes to look at the trains etc.

    As we were getting ready to leave and I was thanking him one last time he said: Oh by the way, You can have this too but it was dropped to the floor by my granddaughter and doesn't work anymore. He the handed me a Bachmann Light Mountain Steam Engine in the box with a price tag showing $224.99 still on the box. He said I was welcome if I could fix it.

    Well at home I started to look at the rolling stock and engines I had acquired in the lot. Most of the rolling stock was quickly refurbished and put back in running condition. The GP7s were repaired and new MT couplers were installed on both ends. To tell you the truth I was pleased.

    then I remembered the Light Mountain...

    Well upon inspection things looked bleak. One of the drive rods was bent and disconnected on one end and both valve rods lay in pieces in the bottom of the box. The couplers were broken off and the boiler was askew. It could have been set up there and then as a train wreck display.

    Well I repaired and reconnected the drive rods enough I could try the engine on the track at least. Well the headlight worked fine! Unfortunately nothing else happened.

    I removed the Boiler and made a quick inspection. It is very hard to get at the motor in these and I didn't relish the thought of a complete tear down of this complicated mechanism. The motor didn't look to be in line quite right. I pried gently with a jewelers screw driver. It made a little click and looked aligned once more. I checked the connections and tried it on the track again. Well the idea was if it ran OK at this point I would attempt repairing and installing the valve rods and couplers.

    The engine ran when tried but made a horrible squeeling, howling sound. It was also drawing too much current. I tried everything to get lube down into the motor bearings without a complete tear down. I finally gave up and set it aside for a while.

    Later I got a crazy idea. I am a great fan of Rust Check and up here with our very harsh winter driving conditions with constant salt, a vehicle needs all the help it can get to last any time at all.

    Rust Check penetrates and is actually good for your electrical connections. Maybe it would reach the dry bearing without a complete teardown. I sprayed some Rust Check down between the two halves of the split chassis and after sopping up the excess I put her on the track to try. Same ole howling.

    Again I set it aside until a day I felt brave enough to tackle a full tear down.

    Several weeks later I noticed that I had to clean the Rust Check off the bottom of my Ranger doors as it never stops creeping around inside the metal work.

    Wait a minute, Rust check keeps seeping around... Could it be possible that it penetrated the bearing in the Light Mountain?

    I dug out the Light Mountain and placed it on the track.

    Voila!! The engine ran quietly in both directions with normal looking current draw!!

    I then filled the broken out section where the tender coupler had been with 5 minute epoxy and filed flat and smooth. After drilling the mounting hole I mounted a MT coupler and tested for height. So far so good!

    After quite a period of time I was able to repair an reinstall the valve rods.

    So far I have a very nice working Light Mountain Steam Engine!

    The moral is not to give up too easily I guess.

    IMG_0412.jpg

    And the GP7s doing switching duties on my layout.

    IMG_0413.jpg IMG_0414.jpg
     
    Last edited: Oct 31, 2015
  2. RBrodzinsky

    RBrodzinsky November 18, 2022 Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter In Memoriam

    5,685
    2,780
    98
    That is a great story, and great moral. And, sounds like, a fantastic bargain for you.
     
  3. Andrew Hamilton

    Andrew Hamilton TrainBoard Member

    36
    18
    7
    Yes the price was definitely right. It runs pretty well but of coarse will never run as smooth as my Kato Mikados. It is a very detailed engine though.

    Glad you liked the story! :)
     
  4. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

    67,560
    22,735
    653
    And it appears the steamer is done up as NYO&W. Don't see a lot of folks modeling that RR. Nice.
     
  5. Andrew Hamilton

    Andrew Hamilton TrainBoard Member

    36
    18
    7
    Yes, that is one advantage to having a totally fictitious layout. I don't have to stick to any one roadname. I tend to lean toward Canadian National but I have motive power and rolling stock from many different railroads including a lovely collectors set of a British A4 Steam Loco named Sir Nigel Gresley ( a sister to Mallard) and matching passenger cars. I have a Class 55 Deltic and a 4-6-2 Exeter. ( My mother was a war bride from London England, hence the British influence) My roster is approaching 300 in number now.

    Thanks again for your interest and comments.
     
  6. badlandnp

    badlandnp TrainBoard Member

    4,587
    16,153
    90
    Excellent! Just love to see persistence pay off! And you end up with a decent steam engine.

    To improve it's performance, use a bit of bullfrog snot to hold in the traction tires. Put it upside down in a cradle and run it about half speed then apply a very light coat to the tires, working it in to the sides especially. Then let it continue to run until it dries. Do not apply a second coat until it is dry. This will help to keep the tires in place. Mine pulled off immediately when I was trying to see how many cars it could pull.

    Then, pull the boiler back off and add weight in every nook and cranny. Try to balance it so that the loco center balance is just behind the second driver.

    Enjoy!
     
  7. Andrew Hamilton

    Andrew Hamilton TrainBoard Member

    36
    18
    7
    Thanks for the advice! It actually runs fine now. My layout is built on a hollow core door so I don't run long trains anyway. It hauls more than I need now but I still appreciate the great advice! Thanks again!
     
  8. Point353

    Point353 TrainBoard Member

    2,879
    7,585
    71
    O&W is/was one of the factory-painted roadnames on the Bachmann light mountain - and is still available from some dealers.
    Given that about half of the O&W Y/Y-1 class 4-8-2 were sold off, rather than scrapped, it's not much of a stretch to propose that one of them might have made its way to the OP's pike.
     

Share This Page