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These are probably dumb questions. I know very little about DC motors, and have never taken one apart. At least not since taking HO slot cars apart in 5th grade
I have an old LGB 0-4-0 steamer in American profile--model #2117 D
It ran marginally well but sometimes needed a nudge to start. Then it fell into a pond--kids!--and after that ran poorly and then not at all. I finally took it apart today--power pickup was fine, but when I hooked the motor directly to the transformer I got nothing. The worm gear and driveshaft turn freely with no apparent binding. It's a Buhler motor.
So I sprayed a whole bunch of contact cleaner in there. Now it runs, but it still needs a nudge to start--just a little tiny twist of the worm gear. And it seems to run a bit unevenly--if the motor is rotated, it seems to hesitate a bit in some planes but not in others, It seems to run better in ne direction than in another.
So what am I looking at--internal corrosion? Maybe some of the contact cleaner hasn't evaporated yet? Does it need to be lubed, and if so how? It can obviously be taken apart, but I'm not sure at all that I want to go there. Maybe it's just shot? Any suggestions?
I have some other LGB 0-4-0s--two "stainz" engines--I could cannibalize. But obviously I'd rather fix this if I could. I assum an LGB replacement is going to be hard to find
I have an old LGB 0-4-0 steamer in American profile--model #2117 D
It ran marginally well but sometimes needed a nudge to start. Then it fell into a pond--kids!--and after that ran poorly and then not at all. I finally took it apart today--power pickup was fine, but when I hooked the motor directly to the transformer I got nothing. The worm gear and driveshaft turn freely with no apparent binding. It's a Buhler motor.
So I sprayed a whole bunch of contact cleaner in there. Now it runs, but it still needs a nudge to start--just a little tiny twist of the worm gear. And it seems to run a bit unevenly--if the motor is rotated, it seems to hesitate a bit in some planes but not in others, It seems to run better in ne direction than in another.
So what am I looking at--internal corrosion? Maybe some of the contact cleaner hasn't evaporated yet? Does it need to be lubed, and if so how? It can obviously be taken apart, but I'm not sure at all that I want to go there. Maybe it's just shot? Any suggestions?
I have some other LGB 0-4-0s--two "stainz" engines--I could cannibalize. But obviously I'd rather fix this if I could. I assum an LGB replacement is going to be hard to find