[SquiddlyDiddly]

Hello.

Can anybody point me in the right direction please?

I want to purchase a brass worm to fit on to a motor I have. If possible I do not want to replace the brass gear on the locomotive axle. This is not a standard size as none of the old triang / Hornby worms actually fit. Believe me I have tried them all.

I looked at the Ultrascale site and was rather put off by the complexity and their 6 months to produce anything sort of attitude. I am not an engineer and couldn't see if any of the sizes on their web site would actually have done the trick. The measurements need to be so precise that I don't think I am capable of providing them so I want to find some help.

What I need is a supplier of brass worms - if there is such a thing - who I could send the motor and locomotive chassis to, with a view to see if they could supply a worm that fits the business.

I have over 300 motors so in theory the supply could be as many as 300 worms.

Any idea as to who I could contact would be most appreciated.

Andy

 

[John Webb]

Welcome to the forum.

There are several people who supply either spare parts or can undertake repairs and servicing of locos. They advertise in the various model railway mags. A few recent advertisers follow:
www.modelspares.com based in Burnley, Lancs, Specialists in Hornby spares in particular.
Locorepair in Patchway, Bristol email (no website) [email protected]
www.scalespeed.co.uk[/url based in ...you will get. Hope this is of help, John Webb

 

[mikeg]

If you are replacing the existing motors, can you not take the worm of the motor and put it on the new shaft. If the size is different you might be able to shim the shaft with K&S brass tube of suitable size.

You could try ABC who make gearboxes, they may be able to help their email address is [email protected]

hope the above helps

mike g

 

[John Webb]

Sorry, it should be www.scalespeed.co.uk - amazing what leaving off one bracket can do!

Regards,
John

 

[Makemineadouble]

If you can find the worm you want, I would think it would be easy to machine a bush to take the size shaft you have no matter how non standard it is.

 

[Nick Holliday]

You could try contacting Andrew Mullins of Branchlines (adverts every month in Railway Modeller). He has an encyclopaedic knowledge of gear sets, as he sells a wide range of combinations and gearboxes. Although he is hoping to retire soon I beleive he is trying to keep the business running until he gets a purchaser. He has a blog at http://branchlines.blogspot.com/ which probably has his contact email address.

 

[SquiddlyDiddly]

Thanks everybody for the replies. I think my use of English must be wanting as I clearly didn't really explain myself properly.

The motors I have are to replace the old Hornby Triang X03/X04 motors. Unfortunately the height of the shaft from the base of the motor is higher by 1.5mm on these new motors so the existing worm will not do. I need a larger worm. I don't think the shaft diameter is a problem, I just need a supplier of a larger worm so I can find one that fits with the new motor firmly seated.

Does this make things clearer? I hope so.

Andy

 

[John Webb]

Hornby also moved away from the X04 motor, so it's possible they had to do something similar themselves, so Modelspares at Burnley may be worth trying in case a later Triang/Hornby worm can do the trick for you.
Regards,
John Webb

 

[Richard Johnson]

[quote name='SquiddlyDiddly' date='15 Nov 2007, 21:54' post='39618']
Thanks everybody for the replies. I think my use of English must be wanting as I clearly didn't really explain myself properly.

The motors I have are to replace the old Hornby Triang X03/X04 motors. Unfortunately the height of the shaft from the base of the motor is higher by 1.5mm on these new motors so the existing worm will not do. I need a larger worm. I don't think the shaft diameter is a problem, I just need a supplier of a larger worm so I can find one that fits with the new motor firmly seated.

Does this make things clearer? I hope so.

Andy

****Hi Andy

you are looking for a worm that is 3mm larger in diameter then the original Triang Worm. That is far bigger than ANY stock worm I have seen in the last 20 +++ years of scratchbuilding / kitbuilding and reworking/re-powering loco's of every brand except the BACHMANN worm that is used on their split-chassis loco's.

It may fit BUT it will almost certainly have the wrong pitch and tooth angle - a worm and axle gear require accurate matching to work effectively so if they are not perfectly ight, you will have a problem.

I think you will have to find a machine shop that will make them specially for you. Make sure you specify the length of the worm such that it positions centrally on the drive gear). It would be better to give the machine shop the chassis and motor so they can create accordingly.

To be honest my instincts say that a new axle gear (slightly larger) will be a better and safer bet - try Markits for a combined set as they DO make the gears to fit triang/hornby knurled axles as part of their range. You'll have to be specific in sizes though......

No matter which way you go, it won't be cheap.

ALSO: if the motor is 1.5mm higher at centreline than the XO-4 then you will have problems getting the body back on some loco's - not all have a lot of clearance above the original motor. (Given the height, width may also need checking...)

Perhaps you've already covered this then you'll be OK of course, but if not, its Worth checking this thoroughly before you spend too much.

Regards

Richard

 

[SquiddlyDiddly]

Thanks for your comments Richard.

I will revisit the height of the spindle as that was just an estimate at this stage. It is difficult to assess as it is within the wall of the chassis. It maybe less but the original worm doesn't touch the axle gear at all at the moment.

I will look at Markits.

I was hoping to find some Company who would take the chassis, an existing X04 for comparison and my motor and come up with a plan. This might have been new off the shelg gear and worm or specially made worm or both. My problem is not wanting to get the sizes wrong before I dive in and invest some money.

Once again, thanks for the 'heads up'

Andy

 

[mikeg]

Andy, have you thought about filing the chasis down to allow the new motor to fit, if it is narrow enough. I once replaced an XO4 motor with a flat can that was 13mm wide and just fitted. The chasis required about .75mm taking out if memory serves and I used araldite to fix the motor (not a good idea) but it seemed easy at the time. It worked for a while but the motor ran hot and the glue joint broke never did repair it as I moved back to O.

Though the above might help

regards

mike g

 

[Petal]

If you do decide to get a new worm, make sure it has the same number of "starts" as the original.

Many worms have two starts (in other words, two "threads")

 

[SquiddlyDiddly]

Mike,

I am trying to sell 300 motors with an easy - hopefully quick - method of deploying the motor. My motor mount covers the attachment to the chassis problem as long as I can overcome worm / gear ratio size.

Andy

QUOTE (mikeg @ 17 Nov 2007, 11:09) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Andy, have you thought about filing the chasis down to allow the new motor to fit, if it is narrow enough. I once replaced an XO4 motor with a flat can that was 13mm wide and just fitted. The chasis required about .75mm taking out if memory serves and I used araldite to fix the motor (not a good idea) but it seemed easy at the time. It worked for a while but the motor ran hot and the glue joint broke never did repair it as I moved back to O.

Though the above might help

regards

mike g