Popped rivet on Mountain 4-8-2 Bachmann

[gfmucci]

I picked up my new Bachmann Spectrum 4-8-2 "Mountain" this past Saturday:thumb: and gave it a trial run on the Club layout this evening. It did fine initially untill I opened it up to about 3/4 throttle (perhaps about 45-50 scale mph) and a rivet popped in a part of its drive linkage.wall1 Two arms were bent as a result. :cry:

I took several close up photos to e-mail to Bachmann as well as my LHS 50 miles away to illustrate the failure and damage. I'm awaiting a reply from each to get an e-mail address that accepts photos.

How often does this sort of thing happen with HO steam engines? Both the long arm and the shorter arm it attaches two were bent by whatever malfunction caused the separation.

 

[Bones]

Looks like the valve gear bound up or was out of alignment and struck it's mount. Possibly improper installation, possibly a small bur. It could be almost anything.
Bachmann will probably tell you to send it to them, and in return you'll get a new loco. Pretty much their standard procedure. Rarelly do people get the same loco back.

 

[doctorwayne]

Bones is correct: if you send it back to Bachmann, they will most likely send you a new replacement. It looks to me as if the problem was caused by the valve gear connecting rod (the short piece connected to the top of the long bent piece (the eccentric rod) striking the upper crosshead guide, or, more likely, the crosshead itself. (the crosshead is the part that slides back and forth, right behind the cylinders) When I first ran my Bachmann Mountain, I could hear a clicking noise as it ran, and discovered this same problem, which was easy to correct by bending the lower end of the connecting rod out (away from the crosshead) slightly. Unfortunately, I broke one of the connecting rods, and had to fabricate a new one from brass. Most common problems like this can be fixed by the modeller using simple hand tools and small rivets can be purchased, or you can make your own.
Once I've modified my locomotives, I won't send them back (they might not accept them anyway ) so I had to learn how to do the repairs myself. Here's a shot of mine (I call it a Mohawk, as did the New York Central)

Wayne

 

[GN.2-6-8-0]

Ya know speaking of popped rivets i'm wondering if such a tool exists ,something on the order of a needle nose pliers for replacing rivets on valve gear thats already assembled and on a locomotive. normally we use a rivet tool and a small anvil and hammer which is fine for assembling valve gear parts at the workbench,but for instances such as this needed repair a specific tool would be great.

 

[woodone]

Pop rivet? I don't think that you can get pop rivets that small? I think that we are talking about just plain rivets. You could make a upseting type plier that would expand the tube end of the rivet. I use a small piece of paper between the parts for clearance- tear out the paper when you get the rivet set and you will have some clearance between the two parts. If you don't, you will have parts that will bind.ops:

 

[GN.2-6-8-0]

Exactly...by popped rivet i meant one that had been damaged/ came apart....popped out!

 

[Trainiac77]

Bachmann Customer Service

:thumb: I have had great success with sending back defective loco's to Bachmann. They replace them almost right away. Here is their service and Warranty information:

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Warranty Information[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Bachmann's Lifetime Limited Warranty covers motorized units only. Under the warranty, Bachmann can decide whether to repair or replace an item at their discretion.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Items less than a year old are fully covered and will be serviced or replaced at no charge when accompanied with warranty card or proof of purchase.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]For items more than one year old, there is a nominal service charge for repair or replacement:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• HO & N Diesel: $10.00[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• HO & N Steam: $15.00[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• Spectrum® HO, N, and On30: $20.00[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• Large Scale: $25.00[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]All accessories, power packs and speed controllers, and Plasticville USA® items are covered for 90 days only.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Contacting Service[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]To send us e-mail, click here: Online Service Form[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Orders, repair inquiries, or general inquiries may also be sent to:[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Bachmann Customer Service[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]1400 East Erie Avenue[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Philadelphia, PA 19124[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Fax: 215-744-4699[/FONT]​

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Bachmann's Service Department is available from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm Eastern. The Service Department is closed between Noon and 12:45 for lunch. [/FONT][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]Customer Service for all scales can be reached at 800-356-3910. Each department has its own extension.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• Parts: Ext. 11 and 17[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• Technical Support: Ext.12[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• Repair Status: Ext. 13[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Helvetica,Geneva,Swiss,SunSans-Regular]• Customer Service Manager: Ext.18[/FONT]

Hope this helps and no I don't work for Bachamann! :mrgreen:

 

[gfmucci]

The hole for this particular "mini-rivet" is smaller that the diameter of a straight pin. Plus the smaller linkage is also bent - didn't want to take the chance of breaking it off when trying to bend it back. I'm going to let Bachmann do whatever they do. They did request that I return it to them in original condition, e.g. remove the weights I installed in the tender.

 

[GN.2-6-8-0]

their Warranty is great but their a bit slo....6 to 8 weeks normally.....sign1

 

[gfmucci]

Grrrreeeaatttt. :| The Roundhouse I had doesn't run right on the club layout, so I spring for another $74 for the Bachmann replacement to have it in time for my grandson coming over next week, then the first time out the linkage gets tangled up and pops a rivet...and it takes six weeks to repair. Oh, well, I can take him over to the club anyway...let everyone else do all the work of running the trains.

 

[gfmucci]

What do they do with the "old" engines

If Bachmann (or anyone else) usually provides a "new" engine in place of the one sent in for repair, what do they do with the old engine? The one I sent in, besides the broken linkage, had some sticky tape residue in the tender after I removed the rim weights they told me to remove.

 

[Bones]

My guess would be they keep usable parts to repair other locos, and tosses anything too time consuming, beaten up, faded, out of production, or customized.

 

[Kanawha]

I bet they "refurbish" them like Apple does with Ipods. They say they're as good as new, but they never really are.

 

[Bones]

I bet they "refurbish" them like Apple does with Ipods. They say they're as good as new, but they never really are.

Not to change the subject, but I've had great experience in the past with refurbished items. In fact, I've never had a problem with anything I bought repaired and guaranteed by the company.
I own quite a few. The PC I'm using to type this for example: $3800 machine available new from Gateway with a 1 year warranty at the time I purchased it. My price: $450 refurbished, with the same warranty.
The only thing that really matters with refurbished items is the warranty the company applies to them. If they don't back up their repair work with the same warranty as the new item, don't go near it. If they do, it means they stand behind their work and, most likely, have a very thorough test process to verify the repair.