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Atlas: #%^&*+!!!

Bought a pair of Atlas SD-35s a few years ago, mainly to use them as helpers on my S.P. ore train because it happened that they ran at the same speeds as my Overland locos that are usually the primary power. Except for wearing the plating off some of the drivers in record time, I didn't have any problems with them until last week when one of them sustained a drive-line failure and one of it's trucks ceased to function.

So I disassembled it, discovered that one of the Delrin universal joints next to the motor had snapped in half, dug out the parts list so I could order a new one from Atlas, and dialed their 800 number.

The nice man there told me that (A) the universals in those locos broke on a regular basis, so they had redesigned them, (B) they were out of replacement parts *because* the universals broke on a regular basis, and, (C) they were not going to be getting in any more of these parts at any time in the future.

I asked him if their updated drive line components could be adapted to the ones with the bad universals, and he told me that they didn't interchange as far as he knew. End of exchange.

This brings up a few questions:

  1. Whatever happened to supporting your products?

  1. Does Atlas seriously expect everyone who bought one or more of their SD-35s to throw them away like a used Kleenex when a simple part fails?

  2. Anybody out there need a nicely weathered Southern Pacific SD-35 paperweight?

-Pete

Reply to
P. Roehling
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Pete, If you are real quick Northwest Short Line may be able to help you, but be advised they plan to close down this month. Fred is retireing after

Reply to
Malcolm Donaldson

This is certainly bad news. You meant to type "50 years", of course. There's nothing on the web site mentioning this. Is there no chance that someone else will take the business over?

Dale

Reply to
Dale Carlson

interchange as

Any chance the universal joints in the A-Line/PPW 12030 or 12031 kits could be adapted to your Atlas loco?

Len

Reply to
Len
[...snip tale of woe...]

ROTFLMAO.

You could put them on your display shelf, or gut them and use them as dummies. Actually, you have a better idea, as your next question shows:

Hey, that's an idea -- mount the ting on a nice bit of oak or cherry, attach nicely weathered track, and mount the loco with a screw/bolt from underneath into the fuel tank. Sell it for a pretty penny at your next craft show, and offer to custom-build similar stuff for exorbitant prices. ;-)

Reply to
Wolf Kirchmeir

Good morning Pete;

Did they do a complete design overhaul in the sense an air cooled engine now resides in place of an indirect air cooled engine?

Cheers, John

Reply to
John Fraser

Micro Mark has a drive shaft and universals - not sure they would fit, but they're pretty much the same as a Stewart drive shaft.

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Jack

Reply to
Jack

"Len" wrote

Dunno. This just happened Tuesday, and I haven't yet had a chance to look into potential substitutes. But thanks for the suggestion.

-Pete

Reply to
P. Roehling

"Jack" wrote

Yeah, I've seen those and may give them a try. I've yet to measure the Atlas motor's drive shaft, but I suspect it's probably 2mm., and if it is it would probably work.

Thanks for the suggestion,

-Pete

Reply to
P. Roehling

That sounds like something they should have a recall for.

I have four of those engines, but I don't use them much so they haven't failed.

Maybe I'll offer them for sale at the next train show.

Reply to
Ken Rice

"Ken Rice" wrote

If so, try to sell them to someone who you dislike and are never going to see again. ;-P

-Pete

Reply to
P. Roehling

Pete replied...

*** If so, try to sell them to someone who you dislike and are never going to see again. ;-P

----------------------------------------------------

I like that!

Bill

Reply to
Bill

"Bill" wrote

It's the same advise I give to customers of mine who've bought a bad guitar on eBay and are wondering what to do with it. (Hey, it's better than painting it white and using it for an ivy planter!)

-Pete

Reply to
P. Roehling

Substitute Athearn Genisis 4-6-2 and 2-8-2 for Atlas SD-35s and quitcha whining.

Serriously, you have a good point but nobody these days, except Bachmann Spectrum, offer full support for their products.

You can send back a 20 year old Botchmann 2-8-0 and for $20.00, they'll send you their latest DCC ready Spectrum 2-8-0, probably the finest North American steam model ever built.

Who else offers that support?

-- Cheers

Roger T. Home of the Great Eastern Railway at:-

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48° 25' North Longitude: 123° 21' West

Reply to
Roger T.

"Roger T." wrote

Dunno, but you're right about Bachmann. I bought one of their 3-truck shays a few years ago, and as soon as I got it out of the box I discovered that one of the universal joints was broken.

I called Bachmann that same day, and two days later got a padded envelope that contained not just a replacement universal joint, but enough parts to essentially rebuild the entire drive train! When I called to tell them that they'd apparently sent me someone else's order, they said "No, those are for you. We want you to be happy with your purchase".

I am.

-Pete

Reply to
P. Roehling

Sure as hell not Mickeysoft!

I mean, that diseasel cost a lot less than a copy of Vista, and at least it didn't break any of his other engines.

Reply to
Steve Caple

Keeping in mind that Micro-soft paid for the development of its first IBM PC product (MS-DOS 1), and didn't invent it. While Bill Gates was a programmer, he wasn't an engineer. In the case of Atlas and not unlike Microsoft, they're gambling on your loyalty.

Cheers, John

Reply to
John Fraser

Or, rather, bought it and re-sold it (or rights to it) for a big markup. But Gates and Ballmer are, as far as I know, completely responsible for Fistula - er, uh, the gaping wound known as Vista.

PS - I just finished reading a thread in another group where a fellow had his Vista broken - or many of his programs that had been running, miraculously, and after a fashion at that, under Vista - after he installed some Sony-Ericsson phone software. Remember the Sony music CD's with DRM software that installed a rootkit virus - er, uh, application - the first time you played them?

Reply to
Steve Caple

Any thought to posting this on the Atlas Forum? You might get more than a few ideas...

Paul A. Cutler III

************* Weather Or No Go New Haven *************
Reply to
Pac Man

Good for you, good for Bachmann; and good for model railroading as a whole that Bachmann does this.

Reply to
Mark Mathu

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