Just received my four brand new SD-40's from Internet Trains today, boy are they gorgeous and run smooth. What I'm wondering as I'm brand new to this is if there is some recommended break in procedure you should use on new locos. I just ran them slowly around my little loop a couple times to make sure they worked. Russ
These days, quality locos seem to run very well right out of the box. Be certain they aren't running on dry gears. IF lube is needed, use one that is intended for model RR use. And do so very sparingly. Then just run them around a few times at varying speeds to see how they do. Boxcab E50
Pretty good advice there. Break-in used to be about an hour, with varying speeds and directions. As stated, most new locos are very good out of the box, and usually no more than 10 minutes is required. I would check the lube, because some locos are either over or under lubed out of the box, and both can cause problems.
