Bachman Climax....Again!

[trailrider]

Several years ago, I purchased a 3-truck Bachman Climax. It ran for awhile but I got busy with other things and let it sit on a siding. Apparently, the plastic gears shrank around the axles and cracked. I sent it back to Bachman and they replaced the plastic gears with metal ones. Fine. I didn't run it for a few months, and when I went to run it this afternoon...plenty of choo-choo-choo, but no movement! I have a nice place for it on my display shelf...where an old Roundhouse 0-6-0 that I built as a kid, adding a lead and trailing truck for a 2-6-2. Aside from the wheels needing cleaning, it runs pretty well for a direct drive, open-frame motor. No, it doesn't have sound, and I have no plans to convert it. It appears to pull two small open-platform passenger cars up my ruling 3 percent (?) grade to the ski resort.
No plastic gears to fool with.

OTOH, I finally got around to painting the sideframes on my Burlington E-5A and B. I had left these black, fearing to gum up the wheel bearings with paint. Finally got some other things finished. Upon examining the trucks, I realized the bearings don't move with the axles. There is no connection between the axles and the sideframes! So, using some old Floquil Bright Silver, I finally painted them as was correct for Burlington E's. (My E=3A and its B unit (either an E-5B or E-7B, take your choice, were lightly kitbashed out of P2K E-6's, to which I attached thin corregated panels. While I did not mess with the side windows of the E-6 shell, which are somewhat differently placed compared to the E-5, the results are close enough for my purposes. This lashup pulls my Denver Zephyr or Texas Zephyr (take your pick, depending on the origin, either Galesburg, Illinois to Denver, or Denver to (imaginary) Dallas. My layout is a folded dogbone, and the train usually sits on Track 2 in Denver. (I think it's Denver...never have quite made up my mind! )

 

[NP2626]

I had a DCC Bachmann Climax. I loved the model. However, it developed problems similar to what your's has. I started out with a two truck and returned for the three truck, via warrentee protection. The tree truck developed the same problem, sent it back and it was replaced by the two truck! Again, this model developed the same problems and was returned. It was replaced by a three truck, and again, it developed problems. Now Bachmann wanted $45.00 to replace, sent the money and got a two truck replacement which developed the same problem even though I was told that the plastic gears had been replaced with metal ones on this model. I was done with this "Fiasco" and asked Bachmann to replace the Climax with their Porter 0-6-0. The Porter was a much less expensive locomotive; but, it works and has not had any problems, so far.

If you want steam locomotives and don't want to spend and arm and a leg. I believe Bachmann's rod engines are an O.K. Choice and there warrentee is good as they stand behind their products even though it cost money to use. My guess is the Shay they developed 5-10 years ago also had problems that caused them to stop producing it. If your unwilling to part with $45.00 to replace your Climax, than a shelf to display it on is your next best bet!

 

[trailrider]

Yup! Life's too short to fool with stuff like this. The Climax now resides where the Roundhouse "kid-built/bashed" 2-6-2 used to be on the display shelf. I've got two more of those Roundhouse 0-6-0's that I added lead trucks, that probably can be put in operating shape just by some cleaning, although the one does have some spotty contact issues in the scratchbuilt tender. Not sure I'll spend the time as I'd like to convert one of my 'bashed Mantua 2-10-4's to DCC/Sound. I've got the Soundtrax parts...just have to get a round tuit.

 

[NP2626]

Round Tuits are my problem, also! I have 4 locos on the bench waiting for decoder installations. I have a Roundhouse 0-6-0 too, that I wouldn't mind putting back on the rails with a decoder along with a Roundhouse Shay that also needs a decoder.