Arnold/Hornby GE U25C

I own three, two CB&Q and one NP, they are great running locos, all three run together without speed matching and are super quiet. I did replace the traction tire wheel sets with regular wheel sets, and they still pull very well for there size/weight.

 

Here are my observations after receiving my first unit.
Pros;
-Probably the quietest mechanism I have come across. The drive train is very well designed. Quality parts.
-Nice speed range. Gearing in the truck assembly is very well done.
-Easy to disassemble although you need to take care with the couplers as you remove them. They can fall apart. After careful removal I welded the coupler box together with a soldering iron in a similar fashion to some of the MTL couplers. The removal of the trucks from the body is not so easy. For me it required the removal of the top cap of the truck tower and the worm drive.
-Nice looking couplers although I have not tested them on a string of cars as yet.
-The light PCB is easy to remove (4 screws) once the body is off. And the 6 pin socket for a Euro type decoder is nice.
-The separately lighted, and controlled, number boards is a nice touch. This is something other manufacturers could look at. If you set-up Mars light function on most Atlas locos the number boards flash as well!!

Cons;
-Probably the worst loco as far as wheel gauge is concerned. All axles were significantly under gauge. Once disassembled though they were easy to re-gauge with my NWSL wheel puller.
-The contact wipers attached to the light board are a bit of an issue. In my case some were were misaligned so needed adjustment to ensure consistent contact with the conductive extensions from the trucks. And it can be quite tricky to get this just right.
-The method of electrical contact from the wheels is very old fashioned. Reassembly of the trucks after wheel removal is quite tricky. Patience is a virtue along with good vision.
-Traction tyres! It should not need these. I will replace the culprits if I can get hold of some spare parts.
-The handrail attachment method is rather flimsy. They come apart from the body very easily. A dab of Super Glue fixes this problem although this is rather disappointing considering the price of this loco.

Overall a very nice loco. After the adjustments all seems to run well. Waiting on TCS decoder to convert to DCC..............George.

 

The only locos that I own that will pull more than my U25Cs are the newer Life Like E8s.

 

Will let you know once I get the parts.