Hi - my son (OK, I!) has a 9 month old 9V Express train. The engine is now
unable to pull the trucks - the motor runs fine but the wheels slip. I have
given all the truck axles a wipe with a cotton bud dipped in WD40 which has
improved things a bit. Any other tips? How about replacing the "tires" on
the loco - can I get spares from anywhere?
there you can buy all lego you can think of in parts.
and look at the photo on the #115 photo, the locomotiv has extra rubbers for
grip, those might help too, so try find them on bricklink (under train
probably? :)
WD40 will make everything slippery.
I use an alcohol dampened cotton wipe to clean the track. Do Not use this on
the Motor wheels as it might react with the rubber on the wheels. Try to
wipe the WD40 off the wheels with dry cotton swabs
Bob--
Thanks, All
I've paid a quick visit to bricklink.com - haven't found any engine tires
there yet but I could probably pick up something similar at a plumbing
supply shop. As for the rails, I have wiped them all down with isopropyl
alcohol which has removed some gunk. I dismantled the axles before applying
a tiny spot of Wd40 - didn't squirt it stright out of the can and everything
runs more smoothly.
I should have mentioned that the reason the engine couldn't pull the trucks
was because the wheels on the trucks weren't spinning freely. No carpet
fluff or anything wrapped around the axles & no corrosion. I took the axles
out of the blocks to give them their skimpy wipe with WD40 and they have
freed up nicely.
Clean out the WD40 quickly before it dries out. Once it does, the lacquer
like substance it leaves behind will freeze up the axels as if they were
glued in. Water Displacement formula 40 was developed to remove and seal
out water from the tiles and grout in Minuteman missle silos. Once the
volatile components evaporate, what is left is hard as a rock.
I've seem more equipment ruined by WD40 than I can shake a stick at, both
irreplacable teletypes and other printers. Whomever decided to advertise
it as a lubricant should be drawn and quartered.
Bob McConnell
N2SPP
I hope you are referring to some other WD40. The WD40 that I know and love
is an amazing lubricant that was developed to safeguard photographic
equipment used in the jungle. Once dry, it is a near permanent protector and
lubricant.
Bob
Thanks, Wouter
I guess it helps to know that name of the part you're looking for - I was
looking for "tires". I can't find any 9V rims but I can live without for
now.
Well..
I see, the 9V needs conduction trough the wheels.
In my 12V time, the recommondation was;
use a "potlood" (pencil) the normal gray one that you give to your children
to write with the first times.
And then just go over the metal contact points.. and wonders will happen.
Well... that's what they told me, and to me back then it worked.
Maybe this simple sollution works for you too?
You are both wrong. According to the WD-40 web page:
In 1953, a fledgling company called Rocket Chemical Company and its staff of
three set out to create a line of rust-prevention solvents and degreasers for
use in the aerospace industry, in a small lab in San Diego, California.
It took them 40 attempts to get the water displacing formula worked out. But
they must have been really good, because the original secret formula for
WD-40, which stands for Water Displacement perfected on the 40th try, is still
in use today.
Convair, an aerospace contractor, first used WD-40 to protect the outer skin of
the Atlas Missile from rust and corrosion. The product actually worked so well
that several employees snuck some WD-40 cans out of the plant to use at home.
More WD-40 history at:
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