Dapol 220 Voyager problems

cutting42 · May 04, 2018, 01:10:12 AM

I have been collecting stock for many years and put together a test track ostensibly to test the new Pendo but took the opportunity to test some of the stock I had purchased over previous years and never got around to running.

Fortunately it all runs, some better than others but in the main the Farish stuff is best especially the Pullman and the 350's

Anyway I got an original Dapol 220 Voyager and remembered it was not great but it really sucks. No traction at all and cannot even pull itself around an oval of track. I know it is regarded as a poor model but is there anything that can be done with it?

kirky · May 04, 2018, 07:50:53 AM

That sounds like there is a drive problem somewhere.
Ive got four voyagers and none of them have that problem. In fact I can run one with a dummy voyager and it will easily pull 8 cars round the track.
I suggest you look at the power car. Most probable is that one of the cardan shafts has popped out of its housing and is thuis only driving one bogey.
cheers
Kirky

njee20 · May 04, 2018, 07:59:15 AM

Agreed, they're not that bad, I'd be whipping the body off to have a look!

koyli55002 · May 04, 2018, 08:37:06 AM

The one thing I remember from my 220 was that it seemed to "grind" on tight corners. The 221 seemed much better. Can't check now as the 220 went to pastures new........

Vonzack · May 04, 2018, 10:33:07 AM

Hi @cutting42

You tend to get allot of drag on the 220s from the wheelsets in the bogeys because they don't have pinpoints. Just put the power car on the track and see how that runs first, make sure you're happy that that is running OK and eliminate any issues with it first.

Then put the other coaches and the driving cars on the rails and give them a slight push, you should see that they don't roll very far, if at all. Compare them to a coach from the 350 as an example. The 220 Power car is having to push this lot around and it's just not heavy enough.

There's plenty of room to add more weight in the power car (at the ends, above and below the drive shafts), but they still don't run that well.

Cheers, Mark.

cutting42 · May 04, 2018, 11:24:44 AM

Thanks for the replies so far. The unit is essentially new as I bought it just as I stopped running any trains. The internals are all connected correctly so is think it is an extreme version of general drive and wheel resistance. I will strip it down and free up what I can and add some weight.

Ps the track is unitrack double track super elevated. The outside track so not that tight.

Rabbitaway · May 04, 2018, 06:19:06 PM

I had the same problem of lack of traction on reasonable inclines as the drag in the driving cars at each end was excessive. Could not resolve the problem via adjusting any part of the bogie so I carefully removed the light pick ups and the set now runs fine. I took the view the lights were useless, as like all these sets they flicker badly anyway. The pick ups can be refitted if need be. I run in DC so not really an issue.

cutting42 · May 05, 2018, 01:21:34 AM

Had a session with the graphite, snips and screwdriver today and it now runs adequately; removed the light pickups and will prob look to wire throughout for the lighting and possibly sounds as well. It is still a bit pants but will be fine.

More problems found with a Farish 66 and two 57's with split gears, brand new, never been run. That will teach me not to run after purchase but probably over 5 years old now so warranty looooong gone.

njee20 · May 05, 2018, 11:25:47 AM

Odds are they didn't arrive with split gears, so not using them for years is unlikely to have made a difference. The work of seconds to fix too.

cutting42 · May 05, 2018, 03:42:54 PM

Quote from: njee20 on May 05, 2018, 11:25:47 AM
Odds are they didn't arrive with split gears, so not using them for years is unlikely to have made a difference. The work of seconds to fix too.

Can you get the gears anywhere else other than BR Lines, they are out until the 21st May

njee20 · May 05, 2018, 04:49:05 PM

Peter's Spares?

You can order complete axles from Bachmann, it's slightlt more expensive, but still only £2 an axle IIRC.

EtchedPixels · May 05, 2018, 09:25:40 PM

Quote from: cutting42 on May 05, 2018, 01:21:34 AM
Had a session with the graphite, snips and screwdriver today and it now runs adequately; removed the light pickups and will prob look to wire throughout for the lighting and possibly sounds as well. It is still a bit pants but will be fine.

More problems found with a Farish 66 and two 57's with split gears, brand new, never been run. That will teach me not to run after purchase but probably over 5 years old now so warranty looooong gone.

If they've not been run and they are under 3 years old then I would complain to Farish and ask them for new wheelsets on the grounds they are not fit for the purpose they were sold. If they are shirty ask to speak to someone more senior and explain to them if they don't you'll get trading standards and the model shop you bought it from involved. The 57's are particularly bad for split gears along for some reason (batches maybe ?) with the earlier freightliner 66's

My experience so far with Bachmann for the two models that had split gears within a year and a half has been that they sent me replacement wheels for free. They also sell them as spares but stock can be a bit random sometimes.

Whether you actually bother trying to have a fight with a model ship if this fails is up to you

Alan