# GizmoG is back, with sick Connie



## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

This last fall my wife and I took a CruiseTour up the inland passage thru Alaska and Canada, (something we have long wanted to do). It was a fantastic experience. One of the highlights was the 108mile trip from Skagway, AK to Carcross, YK on the 3 foot gauge *White Pass and Yukon Railway*. My *WP&R* passenger consist now has 3 Bachman Jackson Sharp cars and the* WP&Y* 2-8-0 outside frame Consolidation. The Connie has problems. When I tried it out on a 4 foot length of track it moved forward fine and slow but reverse was jerky. The sound chuff (aftermarket PH Hobbies unit) didn't work either. I opened the tender and the battery was loose and the speaker was also unsecured. A gray jacketed wire from the sound board had been torn from whatever it had been attached, The original owner stated he bought the loco several years ago, had the sound unit installed, tried it out and put it a way. He sold it on Dec 16, 2009 to an individual who put it up for sale on Jan 7 of this year. It stated in the auction, “no returns accepted.” Perhaps the seller knew exactly why he didn’t want it back. 
The *ISLSMR* (International Society of Large Scale Model Railroaders (_http://islsmr.homestead.com/ISLSMR_Tips.html_) has a website with tips on fixing problems with some common equipment including the motor of the 2-8-0 Bachman Connie. The problem addressed there was a motor that was loose on the gear box. My motor was tight on the gear box but with the boiler removed, the drive unit flopped back and forth. The Gear on the driving axle was not damaged but there was a lot of slop inside the gear box. Inspection revealed a worn idler gear which allowed too much play. In the normal operating position gravity more or less held the gear train in place, but when flipped with the wheels-up the drive was free wheeling.
So now I know one fixable problem: new gears from Bachman or a BBT drive unit. The sound system is more problematic. PH Hobbies is no longer in business and I don’t see any numbers on the circuit board that would identify it as a specific mode and “loose gray wire” isn’t very informative either. Is it worth messing with or should I just get something else if I want sound?
I have had an unlettered Connie since shortly after they came out and my original unit has never given me any grief. Every year I have the mostly HO modeling members of our Bitterroot Valley Model Railroad club over for an outdoor meeting while Connie pulls 15 or so four axle cars up the 3% of “Glissando Grade” on my 100' over and under Humble Pile and Pacific RR. with no complaint. I was certainly surprised when this new unit turned out to be so anemic.
Any suggestions? Glenn


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Personally, I'd opt for a new sound system. It's been a while since I've heard a PH sound system, but to my memory they weren't all that great shakes; certainly not when compared to today's systems. The cheaper units from Dallee and MyLocoSound have been getting some fairly good reviews here, if you didn't want to go with Phoenix. (You didn't mention how you're controlling your trains, so I'm making the assumption that you're running "traditional" analog track power.) If you're going to be installing R/C or DCC, by all means go with Phoenix or QSI sound. 

Later, 

K


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## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

Does anyone know if Barry carries replacements for this Loco, not the 4-6-0-conversion to a 2-8-0? I see Bachman carries the replacement grears and motors, but I wonder if Barry has a heavy duty replacement.


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## Gary Armitstead (Jan 2, 2008)

I believe Barry has a new chassis for the Connie. It very nice and smooth. Dave Goodson and Barry have worked together on this.


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## steam5 (Jun 22, 2008)

Posted By gary Armitstead on 02 Feb 2010 06:31 PM 
I believe Barry has a new chassis for the Connie. 

BBT has a new gear box and motor.

Also NWSL make a replacement axel gear (the one that generally breaks)

Alan


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## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

It looks like the cheapest fix is to replace the three gears in the gearbox. The question is how long will it last. I will ask Barry how much his replacement costs. I have a question about the Dallee sound board. Can it use the chuff signal inputt from the sound axle switch on the Bachman unit? There is a lot of information on this board and I can spend hours reading the posts. Thanks in advance for any insights you can give me. 
Glenn


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## BarrysBigTrains (Sep 4, 2008)

GizmoG,

The first production run is nearly finished. I will be starting a new run in a week or two.

The kit includes the Pittman motor and the gearbox. It goes for $200.00 and warranted for life.

The units are being installed and I am waiting for feedback, so far, so good.

Send me an email, and I will send you the order form.

[email protected]

Barry - BBT


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## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

Thanks for the heads up Barry. I have already sent you a request for a catalog from your website. For now I think I will just get the replacement gears and driver from B'man but if these turn out to be as cheesy as the last, it won't be long before I order from you. I don't know what kind of feedback I should leave the guy who sold me this. It had fresh grease on the gears so perhaps he was covering up for running it dry when he got it. He couldn't have had it more than 2 weeks before he put it up for resale so he may have just been a "flipper" and the previous owner was the actual culpable perp. At least the flipper lost money on the deal-, that may be some consolation. I really think the Connie is a great loco and I expect to get a lot of use out of it. 
I use the TE radio controll. Can I use that to blow the whistle, etc on the Dallee unit or do I need the way more expensive units for that?


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Which TE? With the Revolution, it's got 6 trigger functions which can control bells, whistles, etc. The older 75 mHz TE has accessory controls (The A through E keys), but I've not used it in such a long time to know if it's got integrated accessory controls on the receiver, or if you have to use a separate receiver for that. 

Later, 

K


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## Michael Glavin (Jan 2, 2009)

You need the accesorry relay board for the TE to fire whistle/horn/cab talk, etc. 

Michael


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## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

That is were it gets a little more complicated that I am comfortable with or confident of solving. Does the accessory board mount with the sound card and have to be hard-wired or is there some electromagnetic magic that does the trick automatically. I am good at pushing buttons but not so hot when it comes to convincing them to do what I think they should do. Unfortunately, the ability to read instructions doesn"t guarantee the understanding. 
Glenn


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## altterrain (Jan 2, 2008)

GizmoG and sick Connie? Sounds like a bad Vaudeville act like the "Arisocrats". 

-Brian


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## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

Of the three gears in the gear box, two were damaged and that is what caused the erratic jumping. I replaced all three and carefully stood the pins in the three cast holes and added well lubed rears. Two of the old gears in the block were stripped. one pretty badly, which accounted for the loose fit and jerky performance. The small gear on the middle idler was really chewed up. I am surprised it engaged the drive at all. Someone wrote about tiny brass bushing on the pins/axles, I didn't see any on mine. 
Now I have a question about the sound suppression board on top of the can motor. Some people advocate getting rid of it and soldering the power leads directly to the terminals. What is the reason for doing this? Will it work o.k if I leave it on? I was surprised to read that. My other Connie which has been a faithful performer for several years has never had a problem or even been apart. Of course that doesn't mean that it DIDN'T burn up the sound suppression board and not tell me. I haven't got to the the sound card yet. From what I have read, the chuff rate on the PH Hobbies card is straight voltage dependent. About how much do I have to spend to get the basic sound effects, Chuff, Blow down, Whistle, Bells and Start up? I don't like the idea of tower talk or cab chat but tooting the whistle would be nice. 
Thanks Glenn.


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## GizmoG (Dec 27, 2007)

OK, I am slower than a glacier but I have been working on this thing more or less steadily. I got the PH Hobbies sound card to work, sort of, by touching the ripped off wire end to a black wire contact. I was not very impressed with the mandatory toots hisses and clanks it insisted on performing every time the contact was momentarily lost so I just pulled the whole thing out. A new sound card is in my future but I need to make sure the engine will perform its main job of pulling the Bachman White Pass passenger consist up glissando grade first. I have the new gears and motor in place and have the boiler and cab assembly more or less attached. Some of the sheet metal screws that attach the cab to the frame hogged out their holes and now just flop out into the ashpan when I put the loco back upright. I am thinking of sticking some soft but not too gooey plastic stuff into the holes under the cab to give the screws something to bite into but I don't want to overdo it and end up splitting the part. Should I try to stuff some plastic shavings into the hole or is there a better fix? Is it OK to run it without hocking up the Johnson bar? That job is a real PITA and I would like to be sure I am done with this repair before I spend another 30 minutes trying to line up the screw with the elusive hole. I am planning to give it a test run today and see how the good the electric pickups work and if it at least has enough guts to push the Aristo track cleaning caboose up the hill. 
Glenn


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