Give Robby a call at RLD Hobbies, He may be able to help.  He has great service low prices and great packing & shipping.   I don't know any who do gift cards. 

Toll Free 877 753 4629

http://www.rldhobbies.com/

It is best to call.   

Look on the front of the boiler, there is a little latch that swings away allowing you to swing the boiler front to the side.  The switches are located right behind.

Enjoy your new Train!!!!

When I was six I managed to wreck(have accidentswith) just about every train I got.

I managed to wreck a real nice American Flyer Santa Fe Passenger train set.  Ruined the motor, got scratches and dents all over it, broke the couplers, bent the track, and lord only knows what else.  At eight my brother and I blew up a boxcar with firecrackers!  We really caught heck over that one. 

When my grandson turned four, we got him some Thomas trains with the wooden track. three years later he still enjoys it and loves to get new pieces.   He makes all kinds of track plans and switches cars, and now has some of the motorized engines.  It seems to me that it has had a great play value, is hard to break, and stands up to heavy use, but most of all is very educational.

Hmmmm, maybe I'll blow up another boxcar for my 68th birthday next year!!

Have a Great Christmas everyone and stay young at heart!!!!

Real Nice Work!

From you description it is very hard to diagnose your problem.   If the locomotives derail at the same spot every time I would suspect the problem is with the track.

Since you nailed down the track, it is possible that you nailed it down too hard. Sometimes when nailed too hard the track will bend enough to cause derailments.

If the derailments happen at the start of a grade, your transition from the level to the grade may be too sharp, and this could be the cause.

It would be best if your grades are limited to no more than 4% ( a rise of 4 inches in 100 inches of track length).   

It is also important to make sure your track is level from side to side.  If there are twists in the track this will definitely cause problems with the Big Hauler 4-6-0.   You say it happens on a curve,  if the track is not level from side to side along the entire curve you will have derailments with the 4-6-0

If it is not the track, check the front truck to be sure the tiny wires that feed power from the truck to the motor are not interfereing with the movement of the truck.  Turn the locomotive over and check the swing of the truck from side to side to make sure it swings freely.    The sharper your curves the more important this is. 

Hopefully some of this information will help. 

When I first got started I did not lay the track as well as I should have, and I had many derailments.  After redoing my track very carefully derailments were mostly eliminated. 

Kim,

I have seen new boxes of fifty straight track sell on Ebay for over $100, curves seem to sell for less. 

A lot will depend on the condition.   Best you look on Ebay for G Scale, then Bachmann, then track.  Then check out a few.   

Good luck.

Wilson.  I do not know if this will work.  I saw it on another website and copied it for reference.  I wish I could give proper credit, but I can't find the original again.  Perhaps it will help. 

"She had a definate hitch in her get-along. At slow speeds she would hesitate badly whenever the side rods reached the same spot in their rotation. I've experienced this problem with a number of 10 wheelers in the past and have a quick cure that has once again worked and she runs as slow and smooth as I would expect.
If your loco does the same, simply remove the side rods and use a reamer to slightly enlarge the holes in the rods. The little extra slack allows things to move without a hitch and compensates for wheels that are apparently slightly out of quartering."

Author unknown!!

Ben,
If the wheels don't turn by hand it is a Version 3.   Be sure to lube it every three months or so, if you use it a lot, more often if the weather is hot.

From my experience it is up to Bachmann how they go about repair.  Generally they will do the repair at the lowest possible labor cost.   They do not maintain a supply of parts for the older stuff, so chances are good that you would get the newer chassis.

Be sure to send in your warranty card and keep your receipt.  I suggest you make a copy of the warranty card and staple the receipt to it and put it in the set box.

Good luck with your outdoor railroad plans, and remember don't use the Bachmann set track outdoors.  

Ben,

This is the version identification scheme for the Bachmann Big Hauler 4-6-0.  It would appear you have either version 2 or 3.   From your description I believe your set may be the "Gold Rush"  Bachmann Item number 90022.  This set had a long production run.   If it is a version 2 please let me know as I have yet never seen this set with version 2

Version 2  1990-1994  Smooth Bottom Cover  You can turn wheels by hand and motor will turn                             
Version 3  1994-1998  Smooth Bottom Cover You cannot turn the drivers by hand                             
Version 4  1998-1999  Large wide hump dead center between the rear drivers on bottom cover                             
Version 5  2000-Pres  3/8th inch wide hump offset between the rear drivers and a plastic lubrication plug the size of a dime to the rear of the hump..                             
Note that the dates overlap and as of Nov 1, 2007 have not been fixed more precisely, but I believe all new sets introduced in 1999 with the VHS instructions were version 5                             
The following sets were Version 5 Chassis 90031, 90032, 90033, 90034, 90035 and 90037.  All NEW sets after 2000 also have the version 5 chassis.   

All 10 Anniversary 4-6-0's  have the version 5 chassis.

If you aquire more 4-6-0 locomotives be sure to get only the newer more reliable  Version 5 chassis.

Most of all enjoy your new train set!!

Hey JD, Great picture of version 5 Chassis!!  Thanks!!

Alan,   Glad you identified it!!

To all those in the EBay market for the Bachmann 4-6-0, it is best to ask the seller to describe the bottom plate, and be sure it has the plastic lube hole cover as shown in Jon' s photo.  If sellers won't describe it I wouldn't bid on it.  If you are selling and have a version 5 Chassis I would be sure to tell potential bidders that the loco you are selling has the latest smooth running version 5 Chassis. 

I did forget to mention that all Anniversary 4-6-0's have the version 5 Chassis. 

Also all NEW sets made after 2000 have the version 5 chassis!!

Cheers to all!!

Alan,

To find the version you have to check the bottom plate of your locomotive.  It should be one of the following

Version 2  1990-1994  Smooth Bottom Cover  You can turn wheels by hand and motor will turn                              
Version 3  1994-1998  Smooth Bottom Cover You cannot turn the drivers by hand                              
Version 4  1998-1999  Large wide hump dead center between the rear drivers on bottom cover                              
Version 5  2000-Pres  3/8th inch wide hump offset between the rear drivers and a plastic lubrication plug the size of a dime to the rear of the hump..                              
Note that the dates overlap and as of Nov 1, 2007 have not been fixed more precisely, but I believe all new sets introduced in 1999 with the VHS instructions were version 5                              
The following sets were Version 5 Chassis 90031, 90032, 90033, 90034, 90035 and 90037.

Hope this helps.                              

William, 

If you just don't like the way the Bachmann couplers look then I also recommend Kadee,   But I have to agree that I have no problems with my stock couplers and find they are greatly improved in operation and looks by painting them.  I use either
Krylon Camo Flat Brown, or the cheapest Red oxide flat primer.  The bite created by the paint seems to improve operation, and I get nice complements on how realistic the couplers look.  I remove them and hold the coupler with a needlenose pliers and spray them with a couple of light coats of the paint, when dry I check the movement of the working parts and reinstall them.  I like the red oxide best.

Happy Railroading

I think the Sierra sound units you are referring to are the newer Tsunami units rather than the older Sierra Soundtraxx Units.  The soundtraxx units also have the sound of shovelling coal, at least the ones I have do so they may not be suitable for you.  There is nothing wrong with the Phoenix system and my son uses them.  They just sound tinny to me, but I am an old guy and my ears aren't as good as they used to be.  Having said that, If I could only get a Phoenix I would, because any sound system is better than none.

Try going to the Sierra website.  Google on Soundtraxx and that should get it for you. Then check out the different locos available.  You can email them to see if they have anything for a woodburner. Or try this:http://soundtraxx.com/products/sierra/price.htm

Look down the list and you will see that they have a unit specifically for the Bachmann 4-4-0, 830121 is thier product number. 

I do not know if it is for a woodburner though, you will have to check with them.

Best of luck

Best thing to do is start by checking the output of the power pack.  It will require a cheap voltage tester.  Put the speed on full.  If the power pack is putting out 12 or more volts at the connection then check the voltage on the track, by touching the tester probes to the tracks at various spots.  if the voltage is the same and the loco runs slow the problem is with the loco.  If the voltage is good at the power pack, but low on the rails, then the rails may be dirty, or the connections from the power pack to the track is not good.  If the voltage is low at the powerpack aat full throttle then the problem is with the power pack. 

It is best not to take anything apart until you trouble shoot and are sure of the problem

If you are the original owner your loco is covered by the Bachmann Waranty then contact the service dept.  If it is the powerpack then see if you can find a new one at your local hobby shop, or on Ebay or by contacting Bachmann Service and buying a new one.

Hope this helps!!

TRy this:

https://www.micro-tools.com/store/item_detail.aspx?ItemCode=P-251-F

Paste it into your browser and go!