Some HO Scale Model Railroad Locomotives

A collection of old HO scale model railroad items came my way recently -- some track, three locomotives and some cars, and three power supplies. I've posted about the power supplies here. I thought I'd showcase the locomotives in their own post, so here we are.

HO scale is something completely new to me. I have some familiarity with Lionel's 027 gear, but I'm not a knowledgeable model railroader by any stretch of the imagination. So, I have much to learn, and I've learned a bit from the three locomotives that I'll be on about here. For openers, here's a view of my three locomotives.

I neglected to photograph my work as I went along, so this won't be much of a post. Getting the snap-fit bodies off their chassis is a daunting task, fraught with peril, so I'm not going to open up the units again. I'll just briefly summarize the condition of them, and what I did to them.

Tyco Durango No. 5628

This item dates back to about 1977. The Tyco Durango is modelled after the EMD GP20.

The Durango was inoperative at first. Some investigation revealed a broken wire connection at the rear truck. A bit of soldering fixed that, and the locomotive now runs nicely. That was an easy fix. (In this model, the front truck serves as the electrical connection to one side of the railroad, and also carries the motor and transmission. The rear truck serves as the electrical connection to the other side of the railroad. So, with the rear truck's electrical connection open, the locomotive wasn't going anywhere.)

Bachmann CP Rail No. 1412

I don't know the age of the unit -- it's quite likely from the 1970s like the Tyco Durango. The locomotive is apparently modelled after the EMD F7.

The locomotive ran right from the get-go, but it's growly -- quite a lot of noise from a little bit of gearing. I added some grease to the gearing to little, if any, effect.

Both trucks are meant to be drivers in this model, which makes it an excellent design for hauling long strings of cars. Unfortunately, the rear truck is missing the gear that enables its drive off the motor's worm gear, so the rear truck is just along for the ride. Also, the couplers are missing. So it goes with old, used gear that's been tinkered with.

Tyco Rock Island No. 4301

I don't know what prototype this unit is modelled after; it was in rough condition.

To make a long story short, I got it going with a good deal of blundering work on the motor and transmission. I'll know better in future how to deal with little HO train mechanisms. They're delightful little pieces of gear, to be approached with great care. Witless tinkering is not on, and I was guilty of doing some witless tinkering while I worked on the locomotive. Never again

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So there we have some HO locomotives from the 1970s. I don't have a circuit of track, only an open-ended straight stretch for testing, else I'd leave you with a video of operating trains.

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