Mikado woes

[jmarksbery]

I just bought a brand new, in box Mikado. Now before you all start I know it is an out of production model. I had one before and loved it but had the same problem I have with this one. I sent it to Bachmann and they replaced it with a different model ($15.00)

This one I want to keep as they are my favorite so here's the thing. The gear train cracks on all of them, I thought I would try again but this one has the same problem. Why can't Bachman replace the gears to correct this problem?

Does anyone have a fix for the problem that is simple? I know of one fix but it involves a good bit of work. Is there any replacement gears available in metal? I have found this same problem in other steamers as well such as the 4-8-4's. I have a few Bachmann steamers and it scares me thinking this will happen to them all because of bad plastic gears.

Thanks for any help,
Jim

[Conrail Quality]

If you want brass gears, be aware that they have a reputation for being VERY noisy. In fact, for that reason alone, I am not aware of any manufacturer or aftermarket gear-maker that makes brass gears; there's simply no demand. Most plastic gears can withstand decades of use with no problem. Northwest Shortline (http://www.nwsl.com/) might have replacement plastic gears to fit your Mikado (the Mikado has the same mechanism as the old Bachmann 2-8-0 Consolidation, so any gears for those should work on your Mikado). As for Bachmann replacing the gears, the new Consolidation has a completely different mechanism, so those parts wouldn't help you.

Timothy

[jmarksbery]

Thanks Tim, I appreciate that info.
Jim

[James in FL]

It would appear that during those days (Pre-Light Mountain) Bachmann was either unwilling or unable to make a running change to avoid this problem. It's doubtful they could have been unaware of this gear cracking as surely hundreds maybe thousands of these early steamers would have, and continue to be, returned for replacement.
It appears though Bachmann, for whatever reasons, chose to rather replace the entire loco with another rather than expend the resources to correct the root cause of the problem.
Cracked gears are what earned Bachmann the unfavorable reputation they created with N scalers many moons ago.

The earlier reference to "Pre-Light Mountain" would appear, to this poster, where Bachmann, maybe/hopefully, has turned the corner to produce a quality Steamer and begin to win back the loyalty of the N scale market.
All the Steamer models produced since then, so far, do not seem to exhibit this gear failure.
This is my own speculation as the N scale communities I belong to have no complaints of this occurrence.
Early reports (past 5 years) lead me to believe Bachmann's efforts on this matter have been successful and some of their latest offerings are among the finest quality Steamers available on the market today such as the "Connie", the "J", and the "Heavy Mountain". The "new" re-tooled Northern is a gem as well.

Now, that said,

Ray's fix is the only one I am aware of, MAJOR surgery indeed.

Other than that, perhaps you might find replacement gears at Northwest Short Line.

You will need ID/OD Calipers and a tooth count.

http://www.nwsl.com/pdf%20products.htm

Good Luck.

See you at home Sheriff.   

[jmarksbery]

Your probably right about that James, about the Ray fix. I am all the way down to the grears but don't have the brass tubeing to do it right now and thought the Bachmann folks may have another idea. Yeah, see ya back home.
Sheriff Jim

[brokemoto]

B-mann actually did address the gear cracking problem on the PLUS F-7s; they upgraded it to SPECTRUM and did put better gears on it.  The SPECTRUM Fs are mediocre runners, but they are not bad.  They do not meet my 'steady twenty-five SMPH' standard, but at least the things will run without giving the problems that the PLUS did.  The SPECTRUM Fs are one of the best candidates for that proverbial 'entry level F-unit', the other one would be the Model Power FP-7.  The SPECTRUM Fs are also good pullers.  Overall, they are very good for N-TRAK and pulling long trains, such as reefer blocks or fast manifests.

NWSL did sell replacement geared wheelsets for the PLUS Fs.

Funny thing about the old Standard Line gears, was that the gearing was not all that bad.  I had problems with the motors; they seemed to have a half-life that was only slightly longer than that of the worst of all possible N scale motors, the Rivarossi three pole can motor.  After frying the motors on a few of these, I took out the motor, and found, to my surprise, that they did not roll too badly.  I put a little weight into one, and found that it tracked well and freewheeled. Most depowered N scale steam locomotives will bind if you try to push them.  Now I use them as switchers.  I keep them permanently coupled to cheater boxcars that I made from LL metal frame FA-2s and old Atlas fifty foot boxcars.

Other than what other posters have mentioned, there is not much help for this thing.  This is one that Bachpersonn might want to consider for an upgrade.  It is a road specific model,  based on a Reading Company I-9 (or is it an I-10?), which is a 2-8-0, not a 2-8-2.  Bachmann simply added trailing trucks to the model to make it into a mikado, it has done similar things with other models, as well.  Still, I have little doubt that Reading Company fans would love to see it reappear in upgraded form.

If you must have a mikado, there are two out there that are real mikados, not consolidateds with a trailing truck added.  Model Power sells a USRA light 2-8-2.  It is a pretty good runner, despite its suffering from 1970s construction methods.  The slow speed control on it is excellent.  If you get one without a traction tyre, it is not the best puller; traction tyres improve the pulling power.

Kato sells a USRA heavy 2-8-2.  The Kato mikado is the standard by which all N scale steam is measured.  If you get an older release, be sure to get the traction tyre retrofit.  It is a swap out/drop in replacement and should take a rookie no more than thirty minutes; experienced modellers will be able to do it more quickly.  There used to be a tutorial on it on the Kato website, as well as other places on the WWW.  The chief complaint on the Kato is putting the handrail stanchions onto the boiler.  I used a pair of average sized needlnosed pliers and a light grip to hold the stanchions.  The last releases of these have the details in place and the traction tyre as well as the Kato knuckle couplers.  If you get an older release, MT makes a conversion kit specifically for this locomotive; it is simple to install, just follow the directions to the letter .  Finally, you might want to put a fourteen gram weight into the tender to ensure optimum electrical contact.  The tender shell is a friction fit onto the chassis.  Only add the weight if you have the traction tyre (either retrofit or factory installed).

If it is an oil burner that you want (B-personn sold some of these with oil Vanderbilts), there are several oil bunkers out there that are designed specifically for the Kato mikado.  The coal load will pop out of the tender on the Kato.  It will also pop out on the MP, but you must sand down the oil bunker to fit it (I have converted more than one tender to oil).  This means that If you do buy the MP, buy a resin oil bunker, not a metal one. MP also sells theirs with a Vanderbilt or USRA Standard tender; the Kato comes only with the USRA Standard.

The Kato can be had for ninety to one-hundred-ten bananas on FeePay, on sale  or at shows, the MP for seventy to one-hundred.

[jmarksbery]

I do have other Mikado's and like them very much also. However I like the looks of the Backmann's for it's stocky fat boy looks. The tenders on those need pickups which is no big deal to make. The main thing is to make sure you quarter them corectly to get a smooth running machine. The big problem being the gears that crack, there is a fix but I believe Bachmann should make replacement gears for these locos as thousands were produced and then dropped.
Jim