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The chassis from the left side. Not the delicate
contact strips - the one behind the middle drive wheel slot is bent.
It should point straight down. |
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The chassis from above - gearbox and fluff still
in place. Note the delicate contact strips. |
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Chassis from the front looking underneath. Note
the brass washer and insulating washer on the threaded boss which
holds the front bogie. I suggest that you don't, but if you feel the
need to remove the contact strips from the chassis, take a good look
at how this is positioned, and how it is isolated from the chassis by
plastic and by air gaps. |
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A better view of the front bogie connection -
soldered to the right hand side contact strip. The chassis is upside
down. Front is to the left. |
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All contact strips cleaned and straightened -
then bent out to ensure a good spring contact against the wheels. |
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Fitting the centre wheel. The gears have been
greased and fitted - too much, but after partial assembly and a push
back and forth, the grease will be well distributed and the surplus
wiped away. Note the flimsy contact on the far side wheel. |
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Centre wheel from above. |
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Fitting the front wheel. Fiddly because the
contact strip keeps poking out. Note the alignment of the holes -
both at 6 o'clock. Hold the front wheel in place and adjust the
centre wheel to match the front wheel's position. Its easier - the
centre wheel's contact strips stay in place more readily when you
lift the wheel past the teeth in the cogs. |
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The back wheel is much more of a problem. I
resorted to making a tool to hold the contact strips in place. Here
it is. A folded bit of card.... |
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...with 2 slots to allow the axles to pass. The
card is about 1cm x 3cm. |
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And here it is in place. This allows the back
wheel to be lifted away from the cogs so that its position relative
to the front and centre wheels can be adjusted. The springs are held
in place by the card. The wheels hold the card against the springs. |
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And at last, I think I have all 3 axles facing
the same way. I didnt take photos of the number of times the front
wheel popped out while I was doing this. But you cant rush. Any
carelessness and you risk destroying the contact strips. |
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The front and rear bogies are identical - shown
from above and from below in this photo. The front bogie carries
power from the right hand track through the little brass strip. The
rear bogie faces the other way, so the same arrangement carries power
from the left hand wheel. Note the contact strip springing against
the top side of the bogie axle. |
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The fully assembled gears, axles and bogies.
Everything loosely placed in position. Not the best time for the cat
to show herself. |
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Don't place the loco this way up until you have
fitted the baseplate !!! Note that the plate will fit either way
around. The correct way is to have the brake mouldings placed in
front of their respective wheels. The carboard tool can be gently
removed after the baseplate is fitted. Be careful not to drag the
contacts out of position. |
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The copper contacts at the rear are important.
The stick out with a little bit of upward tilt. Note that the strips
at the side should slot into the recess behind the wheel flange. It
helps if these contacts are clean. |
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The front of the loco with the wheels and motor
in place. And as I write this, I notice that the front wheel has a
crack in it. Maybe this was why the valve gear fell apart soon after
I bought it - the wheel must have been in the centre, and the pin has
fallen out. The conrod hit the track and the result was a broken
slider pin. Hmm. It seems to be running Ok though, and if nothing
else, I will have a nice set of spares ! I've replaced this wheel in
the centre, and some superglue will hold it together. |