USA trains gear

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mymodeltrain
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USA trains gear

Post by mymodeltrain » Sat Sep 04, 2021 11:28 pm

My locomotive's gear broke; I notice 2 teeth are in bad condition, and this is the third time I encounter this problem. I wonder if there is any service to create brass gears? I hope the lifetime will be longer than the plastic counterparts.
USA train gear_1.png
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Old Man Aaron
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by Old Man Aaron » Sun Sep 12, 2021 11:44 am

NorthWest ShortLine might have a suitable replacement?
Regards,
Aaron - Scum Class Works

Tingewickmax
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by Tingewickmax » Sun Sep 12, 2021 12:12 pm

These people, a regular stop off for gears to fit US products, in the US might have a drop in replacement https://nwsl.com/. Perhaps try USA Trains direct http://www.usatrains.com/usatrainspartsmenu.html . In the UK Markits could be a starting point http://www.markits.com/ or some other finesacle specialist but likely to be expensive if a bespoke gear.

Trying to replace with a brass gear could be problematic - you are fitting to splined axle and if that axle is turned down to accept a metal gear there may be no room to fit a grub screw and the tolerances needed for sweating on the gear to the turned down axle may be unachievable. Better a decent Delrin material type, most likely from NWSl, and get some spares. Or, you get lucky and USAT has the exact part or assembly for your particular loco or they can point you in the direction of someone who makes an aftermarket product, outside of NWSL. Max

mymodeltrain
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by mymodeltrain » Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:40 am

Tingewickmax wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 12:12 pm These people, a regular stop off for gears to fit US products, in the US might have a drop in replacement https://nwsl.com/. Perhaps try USA Trains direct http://www.usatrains.com/usatrainspartsmenu.html . In the UK Markits could be a starting point http://www.markits.com/ or some other finesacle specialist but likely to be expensive if a bespoke gear.

Trying to replace with a brass gear could be problematic - you are fitting to splined axle and if that axle is turned down to accept a metal gear there may be no room to fit a grub screw and the tolerances needed for sweating on the gear to the turned down axle may be unachievable. Better a decent Delrin material type, most likely from NWSl, and get some spares. Or, you get lucky and USAT has the exact part or assembly for your particular loco or they can point you in the direction of someone who makes an aftermarket product, outside of NWSL. Max
Thanks all, for the information. I looked into NWSL and it seems it has similar gears that I need. I just contacted them for the potential match so I can order. USA Trains usually does not sell the gears but they sell the whole 3 axels-wheels as a complete set. But unfortunately, they even don't have that this time. Therefore, I decided to remove the gear and asked around for the information. Thanks again.

mymodeltrain
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by mymodeltrain » Tue Sep 14, 2021 10:58 pm

mymodeltrain wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:40 am
Tingewickmax wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 12:12 pm These people, a regular stop off for gears to fit US products, in the US might have a drop in replacement https://nwsl.com/. Perhaps try USA Trains direct http://www.usatrains.com/usatrainspartsmenu.html . In the UK Markits could be a starting point http://www.markits.com/ or some other finesacle specialist but likely to be expensive if a bespoke gear.

Trying to replace with a brass gear could be problematic - you are fitting to splined axle and if that axle is turned down to accept a metal gear there may be no room to fit a grub screw and the tolerances needed for sweating on the gear to the turned down axle may be unachievable. Better a decent Delrin material type, most likely from NWSl, and get some spares. Or, you get lucky and USAT has the exact part or assembly for your particular loco or they can point you in the direction of someone who makes an aftermarket product, outside of NWSL. Max
Thanks all, for the information. I looked into NWSL and it seems it has similar gears that I need. I just contacted them for the potential match so I can order. USA Trains usually does not sell the gears but they sell the whole 3 axels-wheels as a complete set. But unfortunately, they even don't have that this time. Therefore, I decided to remove the gear and asked around for the information. Thanks again.
It turned out NWSL does not have the right gear for the model. They said this is the first time they heard of gears for USA trains dockside. So my next approach is trying to find a matching pair gear/worm gear with similar dimensions to those I am going to replace.

mymodeltrain
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by mymodeltrain » Mon Oct 04, 2021 2:11 am

mymodeltrain wrote: Tue Sep 14, 2021 10:58 pm
mymodeltrain wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:40 am
Tingewickmax wrote: Sun Sep 12, 2021 12:12 pm These people, a regular stop off for gears to fit US products, in the US might have a drop in replacement https://nwsl.com/. Perhaps try USA Trains direct http://www.usatrains.com/usatrainspartsmenu.html . In the UK Markits could be a starting point http://www.markits.com/ or some other finesacle specialist but likely to be expensive if a bespoke gear.

Trying to replace with a brass gear could be problematic - you are fitting to splined axle and if that axle is turned down to accept a metal gear there may be no room to fit a grub screw and the tolerances needed for sweating on the gear to the turned down axle may be unachievable. Better a decent Delrin material type, most likely from NWSl, and get some spares. Or, you get lucky and USAT has the exact part or assembly for your particular loco or they can point you in the direction of someone who makes an aftermarket product, outside of NWSL. Max
Thanks all, for the information. I looked into NWSL and it seems it has similar gears that I need. I just contacted them for the potential match so I can order. USA Trains usually does not sell the gears but they sell the whole 3 axels-wheels as a complete set. But unfortunately, they even don't have that this time. Therefore, I decided to remove the gear and asked around for the information. Thanks again.
It turned out NWSL does not have the right gear for the model. They said this is the first time they heard of gears for USA trains dockside. So my next approach is trying to find a matching pair gear/worm gear with similar dimensions to those I am going to replace.

After searching for the gears unfruitfully, one of my friends made one for me using 3D printing. It turns out the gear (which was printed using onyx, if I am correct) is even stronger than to original plastic version. I tested the run today, it is perfect. Thank you all for those who help me searching for the gear.

mymodeltrain
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by mymodeltrain » Tue Oct 05, 2021 6:47 pm

mymodeltrain wrote: Mon Oct 04, 2021 2:11 am
mymodeltrain wrote: Tue Sep 14, 2021 10:58 pm
mymodeltrain wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:40 am

Thanks all, for the information. I looked into NWSL and it seems it has similar gears that I need. I just contacted them for the potential match so I can order. USA Trains usually does not sell the gears but they sell the whole 3 axels-wheels as a complete set. But unfortunately, they even don't have that this time. Therefore, I decided to remove the gear and asked around for the information. Thanks again.
It turned out NWSL does not have the right gear for the model. They said this is the first time they heard of gears for USA trains dockside. So my next approach is trying to find a matching pair gear/worm gear with similar dimensions to those I am going to replace.

After searching for the gears unfruitfully, one of my friends made one for me using 3D printing. It turns out the gear (which was printed using onyx, if I am correct) is even stronger than to original plastic version. I tested the run today, it is perfect. Thank you all for those who help me searching for the gear.
In this new modification, I also add a second gear into the front axel and I linked the front and rear gears using a metal shaft. You can see the video in here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQtS0xT_pD0.

mymodeltrain
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Re: USA trains gear

Post by mymodeltrain » Tue Oct 05, 2021 6:48 pm

mymodeltrain wrote: Tue Oct 05, 2021 6:47 pm
mymodeltrain wrote: Mon Oct 04, 2021 2:11 am
mymodeltrain wrote: Tue Sep 14, 2021 10:58 pm

It turned out NWSL does not have the right gear for the model. They said this is the first time they heard of gears for USA trains dockside. So my next approach is trying to find a matching pair gear/worm gear with similar dimensions to those I am going to replace.

After searching for the gears unfruitfully, one of my friends made one for me using 3D printing. It turns out the gear (which was printed using onyx, if I am correct) is even stronger than to original plastic version. I tested the run today, it is perfect. Thank you all for those who help me searching for the gear.
In this new modification, I also added a second gear into the front axel and I linked the front and rear gears using a metal shaft. You can see the video in here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQtS0xT_pD0.

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