# Backmann 2-6-0 mogul is not moving



## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

Hi;



I am new to model train and DCC. These are my setup:



NCE CS01 Command Center

NCE PB105 5Amp Booster

NCE ProCab

QSI Titan Bachmann Decoder

18V 10Amp Power Supply

LGB Track

Backmann 2-6-0 Mogul G-Scale locomotive



I have installed the Decoder on to the locomotive. When I try the light or the bell, they both turns on with no problem. When I try to get the train moving, it does not move. I hear sound coming from the motor, but the locomotive does not move. I checked the voltage on the rails and it is at 14.3v. The voltage should be 18v, and I know I can increase it to 18v by turning the DCC voltage adjustment pot on the PB105 booster. My question is: is the low voltage to the track the reason that the locomotive is not moving? Thank you


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

I think there is a switch to isolate the motor? Look behind the smokebox door.


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

Thank you for the feedback. I took everything out(including the pc board) and rewired everything from scratch. The motor wires, the wheel wires, the chauff wires, the speakers wire, the headlight wires and the firebox/cablight wires all were directly connected to the decoder.


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

Well. You might need somebody to look at it.


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## SD90WLMT (Feb 16, 2010)

What's that ..the motor makes noise..
..mmm check gear train....!!


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

Do you know if the low voltage would halt the locomotive from moving?


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

If you can hear sound of the motor turning, you most likely have a cracked gear on the drive axle. Did you buy it used or new? 

Chuck


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

I bought it new from trainworld.com. I was careful with the locomotive when I was working on it. So the problem is not the fact that the voltage is only 14.3v?


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

I do not have the Bachmann Mogul, but all of my Bachmann engines will move at a reasonable speed at 14v, unlike LGB.

Check the gears.

Chuck
PS Did you try running it before adding the DCC?


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

Thank you chuck. So, I need to open the gearbox and see if there are any gears broken or missing? I had to push a lot of wires in the boiler unit, do you think that the wires could have pressed on the axial and are preventing the locomotive from moving?


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## chuck n (Jan 2, 2008)

My suggestion is to open it up so that you can see the gear on the axle that connects with the motor. Once you can see that gear, gently turn the drive wheels. If the gear is cracked the wheels will rotate, but the drive gear will not.

Some Bachmann engines have had problems with the axle gear slipping on the axle. Some have found this on be and new engines and on others it has taken several years or more for the gear to crack. As I said earlier, I do not have a Bachmann mogul, but this has been a common problem with some of their steamers.

Chuck


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

thank you Chuck, I will get at it then.


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## Pete Thornton (Jan 2, 2008)

> So the problem is not the fact that the voltage is only 14.3v?


Not at all. These locos start to move at much lower voltages than that.

Sounds like you may have a mechanical problem if the motor is humming.


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

open it up and see if the motor is turning... it would be almost impossible to put wires in such a way that the motor could not turn the axle... 

double check your wiring, observe the motor shaft.

Greg


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## Mike Toney (Feb 25, 2009)

And if it gets over your head to fix, seek out someone that works on these. I myself work on any scale model train or Ross at Zionsville Train Depot is also awsome working on G scale stuff. Bachmann can be a pain in the arse to work on at times. Good Luck. Mike and Missy


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## Garratt (Sep 15, 2012)

14 volts is plenty to make a small locomotive move at a moderate speed.
Did you check if the locomotive worked prior to installing the DCC?
Can you hear the motor running or just humming? 
If you hear the motor running but no motion at the wheels I would guess you have something wrong in the gear train. A cracked gear that spins on the axle or stripped teeth. If it just hums it is probably jammed up somehow. It will burn out if that is the case so don't try it again until unjammed.

Andrew


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Try turning the wheels without power to the loco. If they turn, you've got a cracked gear. It's common on the 2-6-0. (I'm presuming you're talking about the large 2-6-0 with the fluted domes, c. 1876 style.) Order Northwest Shortline (NWSL) part # 2226-6. It's a 25-tooth replacement gear for the Bachmann 2-8-0 that is the same for the 2-6-0. It'll cost you about $14 plus shipping. It's a Delrin gear that holds up much better than the stock Bachmann gear.

Note: NWSL also sells a gear for the 2-6-0 and 4-4-0, part #2223-6. That's a 24-tooth gear as opposed to the 25-tooth gear for the 2-8-0. I've never seen a 24-tooth gear in that gearbox in all the 2-6-0 or 4-4-0 gearboxes I've changed; they've all been 25-tooth gears. Others have reported the same thing. You may want to count the teeth, though, just to make sure.

*Here's a link* to instructions for replacing the gear in that gearbox.

I've also seen where the hub of the gear is cracked but the outer edge is not. The axle will still tend to rotate within the gear like it's broken all the way through, but if the outer gear is still together, you can try using a little JB Weld to hold the gear onto the axle. The JB Weld actually does two things--it fixes the gear to the axle, and it also works into the cracks in the gear, helping to hold the gear in one piece. You can also try slicing a thin slice of 3/8" ID brass tubing and fitting it as a sleeve over the hub of the gear. (I think that's the size.) Attach that with a little JB Weld in the process. 

As for voltage, 14 volts is more than ample for most Bachmann locos to run at prototypical scale speeds (10 - 20 scale miles per hour). I run battery power, using 14.8 volt Li-Ion packs. I have very few locos that run at more than 70% on the throttle in order to reach a good prototypical speed.

Later,

K


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

Thanks guys, awesome tips. East Broad Top, thank you for the link and the info. My NCE pb105 booster burned today while I was increasing the track voltage. I will follow your suggestions and get back to guys. Thanks a lot for all the help.


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## TJH (Dec 27, 2007)

If it is a bad gear (a very common failure; ours had it and we are getting the NWSL replacement installed), you'll need to be mechanically inclined to do the replacement as it involves disassembling the side rods and valve gear, which is pretty intricate on that model. We had a semi pro guy do ours.


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## Scottychaos (Jan 2, 2008)

So what is the scoop on the NWSL delrin gear vs. the Bachmann brass replacement gear? I read something years ago about "the (something) gear needs to be softer than the (other) gear"..dont know which needs to be softer! I assume that if Bachmann offeres the brass gear it should be fine, but any thoughts on the two different replacement gear compositions?

Im going to need two Spectrum mogul gears, and one connie gear. Only one of the three has failed so far, but if im going to order, might as well order all three at once..I will need the other two eventually.

thanks,
Scot


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## SD90WLMT (Feb 16, 2010)

Ya...I dunno either....is it just an old wifes tail..

How many gear trains in the world are of "like materials"?
Why different for trainland??!

Dirk


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## Totalwrecker (Feb 26, 2009)

Like metals create higher frictions.
There's a reason brass is used for bearings, it lasts longer than a steel bearing would against a steel axle.
Usually the cheaper to make gear is the softer one sparing the more costly worm cut in brass... well that was the hobby explanation 50 years ago.....
John


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

In terms of bearings, I always thought it was because the bearing were easily replaceable, so you wanted them to be the "softer" material so they'd wear and not the axle/shaft/royal-pain-to-replace element. Don't know how that works with gears, as you don't really want _any_ of them to wear out. 

The biggest issue I've seen with gears on our trains is when you've got a metal worm whose edges are sharp turning a plastic gear. The sharp edges just chew right through the plastic teeth, and you've soon got a "U" shaped groove in a gear that no longer touches the worm. I don't think that the "cutting action" on a brass spur gear against a plastic one would be quite as much, so I don't see much of an issue with the plastic idler/reduction gears in the drive turing a brass final gear on the axle. At the very least, with sufficient lubrication, I don't see it creating a problem for the average user. 

In terms of the specific Bachmann brass gear, it comes already fitted onto the 2-8-0 axle, so if you wanted it for the 2-6-0/4-4-0, you'd have to press it off the old and onto the new. I've found the NWSL Delrin gears to hold up very well over the years in motor blocks I've got that use them, so I don't know that from a practical standpoint, there's much difference between the two.

Later,

K


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## pepelpue00 (Jul 6, 2014)

Thanks for all the help guys. The problem was the gear, it was broken in to three pieces. I replaced it and it is all fine now.


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Great to hear! I trust you got the electronics repaired/replaced as well?

Later,

K


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## hunteman (Dec 27, 2007)

If the locomotive is moving ok on straight track but not at switches or tight curves, you might check the pins next to the center drivers on the bottom of the frame. The motor in my mogul was running but the loco was not moving at very low speeds. The pins underneath were catching on my switches. Folks on this forum identified this problem and recommended the removal of the pins.


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