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Post by boxcarwilly on Feb 5, 2017 11:11:22 GMT -5
I know we've covered this topic over and over again, and as I have stated in this thread, I've had no end of problems with my new F3's after swapping out the front truck and coupler assembly, so much so that I had abandoned them, but this last week, I've been making more attempts to get these units to run properly and a few additional questions have come to mind. 1. How tight should the frame screws be after swapping out the truck? 2. How tight is too tight? 3. What could possibly be the cause of stalling on MTL turnouts, and also on curves from 30 to 45 degrees? This A unit repeatedly stalls on all my MTL turnouts regardless of which direction it's running and in reverse as well, but the B unit, not so much.
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Post by zscalehobo on Feb 5, 2017 11:34:28 GMT -5
Do you have a torque screwdriver? If no, the "how tight" question becomes impossible to answer. If so, I would try at various settings from 3in-lbs on up to 5 or 6 and then test the loco after each subsequent tightening. I might be stating the obvious here, but it sure sounds like a power pickup issue when the trucks rotate.
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Post by ztrack on Feb 5, 2017 12:14:04 GMT -5
I know we've covered this topic over and over again, and as I have stated in this thread, I've had no end of problems with my new F3's after swapping out the front truck and coupler assembly, so much so that I had abandoned them, but this last week, I've been making more attempts to get these units to run properly and a few additional questions have come to mind. 1. How tight should the frame screws be after swapping out the truck? 2. How tight is too tight? 3. What could possibly be the cause of stalling on MTL turnouts, and also on curves from 30 to 45 degrees? This A unit repeatedly stalls on all my MTL turnouts regardless of which direction it's running and in reverse as well, but the B unit, not so much. The answer is simple, it is the MTL turnouts. The issues with the MTL turnouts are well documented. This very topic was just covered over at Trainboard. Here is a link: www.trainboard.com/highball/index.php?threads/z-track-switch-causing-stalls-w-azl-locomotives.102303/As for the how tight, too tight is not good. A simple 1/4 turn on the screw can make a huge difference. I want the trucks to rotate freely and show no tightness when they try to rotate. It can be a little trial and error to get it right. Rob
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Post by boxcarwilly on Feb 5, 2017 17:10:35 GMT -5
Rob, this is difficult to grasp. I'm just not sure how far in to put them. Like you say, trial and error, but I don't want to strip the screw. The trucks rotate quite freely now and they are a bit floppy as well. Should they be that way. As for the turnouts, I don't have a problem with any of my other AZL engines, just the F3. Is it possible the bottom of the truck is scraping the turnout tracks and causing it to lose traction? And what about the curves? I've examined these things under a magnifying glass, and I can't see any visual problem although I do notice that the frame on the replacement truck is slightly bent outward at both ends. The others appear to be straight. Could that have something to do with it?
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Post by boxcarwilly on Feb 5, 2017 17:23:07 GMT -5
I know the problems with MTL turnouts and I have been changing them out with Marklin when I can find them cheap enough and as an aside, Marklin turnouts tend to work far better. As for Rokuhan, I've investigated them and they look far superior to MTL but all my electrics for turnouts are three wire and Rokuhan is 2. It would be a monumental undertaking to convert to 2 wire and just not cost effective. In the new section of my layout that I am currently building, I intend on using Marklin turnouts almost exclusively. As for the original section of my layout, I have already replace two MTL turnouts with Marklin and they do perform better, but I would still have to replace 14 and that's a huge expense at 50 bucks a turnout. I'd rather spend that money elsewhere.
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