Have a Kato F9A, which runs perfectly. Picked up a box of stuff this weekend, 25 cars and 4 engines. All from early 70's. The Model Power GP-40 lights up but wont budge. The Arnold Rapido FP9A , the Con-Cor SD50 and the Atlas F-M C, all stutter if nudged, but dont run. Hoping its just dirty wheels and dry gears.I am fairly new to this and need advice to open them and repair or tune.
Used engines N scale
- Thread starter Syncman
- Start date
Trainiac77
Member
First thing I do after a careful visual inspection is to take the cover off and put current directly to the motor. That way you know if it's just dirty wheels or a wire needs to be soldered or something like that.
Tuner cleaner
at an electrical store or the electrical section of a big box store yous should be able to find an aresol can labeled tuner cleaner, or contact cleaner. a can of that stuff and a can of canned air, like used to blow dust bunnies out of computer equipment are handy.
remove the engine shell and blast the motor's commutator area with the tuner cleaner, then give it a blast of air to dry it out. (the cleaner is flammable, and it is a good idea to have it dry before you give it any juice least a spark catch the mechanism on fire and melt irreplaceable parts.
the tuner cleaner also helps with wheels. this will revive a lot of old motors, there may be other causes of non-operation, but they will be in the minority. after a cleaning, oil the mechanism lightly, staying way clear of the commutator area
My experience is in HO but should apply (the mechanism I set on fire was an HOn2.5 mechanism from the 70's N gauge, if not scale.
good luck let us know how this works. the stuff is an invaluable tool for me as I have a lot of old brass locomotives with open frame motors that need routine cleaning of the commutator to operate well.
Bill Nelson
at an electrical store or the electrical section of a big box store yous should be able to find an aresol can labeled tuner cleaner, or contact cleaner. a can of that stuff and a can of canned air, like used to blow dust bunnies out of computer equipment are handy.
remove the engine shell and blast the motor's commutator area with the tuner cleaner, then give it a blast of air to dry it out. (the cleaner is flammable, and it is a good idea to have it dry before you give it any juice least a spark catch the mechanism on fire and melt irreplaceable parts.
the tuner cleaner also helps with wheels. this will revive a lot of old motors, there may be other causes of non-operation, but they will be in the minority. after a cleaning, oil the mechanism lightly, staying way clear of the commutator area
My experience is in HO but should apply (the mechanism I set on fire was an HOn2.5 mechanism from the 70's N gauge, if not scale.
good luck let us know how this works. the stuff is an invaluable tool for me as I have a lot of old brass locomotives with open frame motors that need routine cleaning of the commutator to operate well.
Bill Nelson