Bachmann B1 issues

Hi Tomtank,
I too recently bought a Bachmann B1, but was 2nd hand on ebay OZ. I only bought it because there were no other bidders and I only paid A$75 incl postage, about GDP30. I would not have bought it otherwise. Mine runs okay, but the centre driving wheel on left side has a slight wobble. I would not normally recommend them as I have heard the same thing and someone bought a new one at our local shop and the next week I saw it on a mates workbench being repaired. Yes you are right, it has to do with the split chassis, the plastic sleeve around the axle can break and how they have quatered the wheels. Sometimes it's eithertoo much or not enough white gease. All that does not help a good model.

I think you have several options; persist with it and try and rectify it yourself, and risk using it as a static model on your layout or the bin, or take it back to the shop where you bought it and replace it. I suggest the later and don't buy another until Bachmann do a complete new chassis for the B1, and buy a K3 or another eastern region loco, much better and newer style chassis. If you decide to keep it, I would suggest thinking about a complete new Chassis Kit from Comet, available from Mainly Trains @ around GDP25, wheels, motor and gearbox will be extra. Once this one goes, thats what I will be doing.

Also when I go to exhibitions, swapmeets, I always take a 9volt battery, like those used in smoke detectors, with me to test the locos. Works a treat.

I hope this helps.
MArk

It would be nice to have a separate 'Horror Stories' thread so that we can be forewarned. My dread is ordering stuff that turns out to be a complete dog, and then having to wait / pay postage etc.
Actually, I'm still reeling from the pictures of the Royal Scot in the review on this site. Does it really have a bendy running-plate?

QUOTE (billericaybill @ 4 Feb 2009, 13:54) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>.. I have had the odd UK steam loco that has not disappointed but have given up trying to put a UK steam era layout together. The latest steam efforts although nice looking seem also to have disappointed people. The diesel era is much better catered for, at least they glide away when I turn the knob. My German steam creeps off so quietly it can sneak of the scenic section unnoticed. But this quality costs, perhaps more than UK modelers want to pay. I would have thought that their technology could be imitated at reasonable price but it seems to have escaped H & B's attention. ..
On balance, I am happy enough with the past decade's UK steam model introductions. From an appearance perspective the models are just so much better than what went before; and more significantly, better than what I can routinely achieve from a kit, and make a good basis for further small improvements. I do regret Bachmann dropping the Buhler and Mashima five pole motors they were using for a three pole motor of their own manufacture, and some of Hornby's mechanical and electrical arrangements have been a bit flaky. Would I pay 10% more for improvement in these areas - yes - or in Hornby's case I would trade largely invisible painted detail inside cabs for mechanism improvements. But these manufacturers presumably know what our notoriously price sensitive market will bear, and what it prioritises for the money...

But that said, the basic components are sufficiently good that there has been no problem obtaining satisfactory mechanical performance out of any purchase. But with a few notable exceptions (Bachmann's 9F and Fairburn tank, Hornby's Britannia) most have needed some adjustment or modification to obtain the performance I want. Pick up wipers almost always need a tweak or two, and then there is specific stuff by model.

QUOTE (PeterPug @ 4 Feb 2009, 19:09) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>.. I'm still reeling from the pictures of the Royal Scot in the review on this site. Does it really have a bendy running-plate? ..
Not a general fault as far as I know, but I've only seen a couple of these rebuilt Scots that friend's own; and have a rebuilt Patriot (fundamentally the same loco) which is fine. But what I did notice on the Pate is how tight a fit the brackets on the footplate are over the pivots for the expansion link. The first attempt to replace the body after decoder fitting, was obstructed by these brackets fouling. I reduced their thickness to make them an easy fit. Had one remained fouled, and the body screw been tightened, I should think the footplate would have assumed a bend similar to that in the photograph.