Split Gear Syndrome

[kamerad47]

What size brass tube for 44 ton spilt axles??

[rogertra]

Athearn part number ATH60024 for gears.

[indian_hills_r_r]

thanks for the part number, rogertra

[WoundedBear]

Almost a perfect cut and paste from SDP/SI's page.

Not sure I understand your "torque" reference in Repair Technique #1. 20 ft-lbs is a lot for anything plastic to bear.

And BTW.......Loctite 271 is not an adhesive, and the manufacturer does not recommend it for use on any plastics. See splitting causes #2

http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/t_lkr_red/overview/Loctite-Threadlocker-Red-271.htm

You seem to contradict yourself on this point.

Care to clear things up?

Sid

[tlorey]

I've encountered this same split axle problem with a 4-8-4 steamer I have that had not been run for many years. From what I've gathered, the nylon used for the axle dries out over time and splits are very common. It was a poor design, a design isn't used anymore.
From everything I've tried and read, there is no easy fix for a split axle:   
Bachmann no longer carries replacement axles. Glues don't hold for very long. I don't know about how well the brass tubing works because I'm not that gifted when it comes to tooling. I even tried a plastic shrink sleeve method I saw on You Tube, but the sleeve wouldn't stick to the nylon.
I've heard that someone may start printing 3D copies of these axles and offering them for sale; that may be a future solution to the problem. Until that happens, those old locomotives will probably remain static models.
Since I was an original owner, I returned my locomotive to Bachmann for repair. I'm waiting to see how that goes.