How good are Hornby type 7 motors?

Surely at the end of the day its all down to pick up and gearing and would I be right in saying it is better to question this rather than the motor?.

If you want slow running then appropriate pick up and gearing are essential. Manufacturers must be aware of this. And wheels also are critical if you are running on code 75. You are probably going to have to change the proprietory wheels as they may not work on Peco Streamline points and then the workmanship is down to you and not the manufacturer as you will be tampering with pick up and possibly gearing if the wheels fitted are of a different diameter.

And the quality of the track laying is a key factor when operating locomotives. Too many people jump up and down and blame the running qualities of the loco on the manufacturer when it may well be down to the track.

Even so called poor motors mentioned here seem to run perfectly well when using my old H & M Duette controller which has a variable resistance switch and a current wave switch. No motor is poor (in my view). It is the contoller that is poor and a good one with plenty of adjustments for resistance (helping with fine control) and wave cycles (pulse to stop motor stalling) is all that you need. The issue here is that DCC does not appear to be able to replicate these features and you cannot operate electrical track cleaners with DCC suggesting DCC will never be able to replicate these features that are a big benefit of analogue control. I don't buy this "motor is critical" type discussion. If anything older motors are probably better engineered. And the old Hornby 0-6-0 chassis complete with central traction tyres introduced in the 1980's had such a good pick up due to its design that Hornby patented the design and the design is still in use to this day. Now for some reason Hornby did not use this patented design in the Class 08 and I blame the rivet counting mob for that. Notwithstanding this retro (money saving?) move by Hornby the little Class 08 shunter is a very good DCC runner and never stalls.

To answer the question about the Class 58 the gearing may be a little high for slow running with DCC however the motor and pick up are sound. You may need to change the wheels though for running on code 75 track and this may affect pick and performance as you might be forced to abandon the traction tyres (another DCC horror) which will impact pulling performance. However plenty of room to add weight.

So how would you adjust the gearing and what about the wheels?

Happy modelling
Gary

Thanks for the comprehensive reply Gary.

The current situation is that I have laid a running length of about 12 feet either side of a pair of large radius points. Another path includes a scissors crossover. In so far as I can get a loco up to full speed and back to a halt before running out of line, my 6 coach Northumbrian train pack has so far behaved perfectly, forwards and reverse - there's nothing quite like reversing a 6 coach train at full speed for finding faults. I can propel a current generation Hornby Pullman and Bachmann Thompson through the scissors without mishap. The A4 continues to run until the last two wheels of the tender leave the wired area.

Of my older stock only the Lima Mk1s are definitely not going to work, I can hear and feel them running on the chairs. There is a hint of impedance with a Wrenn class 08 shunter through the frogs, probably because of tight back to back clearances. My original 1966 Britannia and short Pullman coaches don't appear to be objecting, but the wheels are wee bit dirty and there are few pickups.

Like you, my current controller is a Duette, but I want the freedom of control that DCC provides.

I think I will hold out of the type 7 motors and check again in the Bachmann 3F in non-DCC on board form; or maybe a Hornby Fowler tank.

David