Hornby R.398 Flying Scotsman : Repair Request 

Hi Bill! Greetings from down here on Wirral! Your style of presentation has matured, but your experience has been built on, job by job, and as such, your confidence in tackling quite complex jobs has come on tremendously. As other previous commentators have said, I find watching you working your magic on these ailing models and bringing them back to life quite therapeutic! Looking forward to seeing you get the layout scenery started. Keep up the good work!

Commenting on your older videos is very good idea. I'd definitely watch them. I've wanted an A1 Scotsman for a while and recently managed to acquire one just like the one your working on. It was in good condition and at a reasonable price. Gave it a service and she is running very smoothly. I chickened out of pulling the wheels off though, and cleaned the motor through a small hole in the casing. I stuck some builders plates on the sides of the boiler too.

Another marvellous repair.

Another Great Repair Video Bill. I have noticed that quite a few of these late Hornby 5-Pole Ringfield Motors have a 'whine' to them. It is quite literally a case of luck of the draw.

Seemed like enormously more effort than it really deserved. I can’t work up the love for tender drive locos. They’ll always have rotten traction and frequently don’t run too well. Still, a doggedly determined repair.

Hello Bill, another interesting video.As a generalisation, I think part of the problem with older locos are 1 / the friction contact electrical connection between engine and tender is delicate, and with time and usage, loses its original contact, hence the reason for Hornby now using a plug and socket instead. Older locos really need either a replacement plug and socket, or, a direct cable connection between the engine and tender. 2/ I also think that the very thin wiring, with the passage of time, becomes a current inhibiter due to the natural degradation of the cables. Therefore a slightly thicker replacement wire should be considered.3 / I also think that additional pick ups to supplement the existing pick ups would not go astray. 4 / on some locomotives, skate collection from each railhead is feasible ( BR 03 & 04 shunters come to mind ) to supplement the existing pick up arrangements. 5 / although the Hornby ( derived from Fleischmann ) ring field motor tender drive is often criticised, but as most UK home layouts are quite compact, and a 6 coach train is probably the longest train that a compact layout can accomodate, the ring field motor does comfortably handle this equivalent train length. 6 / as an side, the R398 version is a Gresley A1 ( 180 psi, compared to an A3 at 220 psi. After 1925, all the A1s were upgraded to long lap long travel valves. ) Regards from Australia.

Great repair Bill, 6 coaches no probs ,those analogue amp meters are a great help in servicing locos.

Nice job. looks great too

New traction tyres would help. That loco clearly has some miles on it so i’d have replaced those too. You’d be surprised just how much current wheels fitted with tyres collect. I have retro fitted lima diesels with pick ups on traction wheels. Its helps immensely.

Oiled up traction tyres? That would certainly contribute to the slipping… and not necessarily visible on inspection. Then again it seems to do alright with that long take of teaks.

Hi, first of all, I do admire your great ability to spot, recognise and repair faults for sure! But, I don’t quite get the way you clean/ spray off much dirt,.....but then carry on working whilst placing the cleaned parts etc, back in that same dirt!? You have your towelling to catch small parts on, so why not have a sacrificial sheet on top, so to move and return to your still clean towelling? Don’t mean to be rude or insulting, but...best practice!! Cheers

My god! On your track it sounded as so it was a Swiss cog railway loco. There must be someone somewhere that knows a trick or two to get that to sound like it's not climbing up a Swiss mountainside! Hornby really have had some seriously bad manufacturing processes, some of the Jouef 1960s and 1970s model locos with their pressed sheet bowl gears you've repaired run quieter, which is amazing for their age.

Hi Bill, I think the problem could be wear in the plastic cover at the opposite end to the pinion. Having a spinning shaft with a proper bearing at one end and just a hole in the cover at the other is asking for vibration of the shaft. There is not much clearance to the magnet if the armature is flopping about. X03/4 has proper bearings at both ends. Also as henrybest pointed out the cast mazak shafts the gears are mounted on will wear and spoil the gear meshing. If only Hornby had used brass pins (like the old Silver Seal copied from Fleischmann) this would be less of a problem. Anybody ever drilled out the posts and put new brass pins in? All the best from Kent.

Regarding the gunk causing the gears to wear down, it could have been the other way round, as well. Maybe, it has been noisy right from the beginning, for which it had been over-oiled at some point in time and the surplus lubricant accumulated as gunk in the motor? Anyway, great video. And it's just and honest to declare defeat, where due. (Just pretend it has a steam turbine. 😀)

Hello Bill, a thought, as you are building your new layout, with every repair/service, can you give a brief update of the layout work after the repair service is complete. No need for any video of that, keep that for the next layout update. Just a thought. 👍

Hi Bill. Really enjoy your videos fixing these models. Can I ask what the spray is you are using, please

Hi Bill my 3pole motors are more quite when running then my 5pole ones do

I seem to recall someone else on youtube having a similar vibration issue, caused by a loose magnet "chattering" when on load, or(as has already been suggested here,) the posts the gears are mounted on

Could the cause of the vibrating gears be that the posts that the gears turn on are worn, and not the gears' teeth? If so, new gears (with unworn axel holes) might improve the noise, but not eliminate it entirely. Of course, it could be both the posts and the teeth that are worn.

did you try checking the traction tyres, if they slip it can put the loco under stress.

I wonder if the gears have been changed before and they have used the wrong gear set for a three pole motor because the five pole and the three pole have different amount of teeth on them and the main gear of the motor has a different amount of teeth to and a mix possible won't mix well together

Silly question. Have you tried a little drop of oil just behind the cog on the motor spindle. It cured one of mine. Cheers Paul.

Bill, have you got any experience of a R398 Flying Scotsman by chance? The tenders linked via a sprung drawbar, which from my example seems to cause the current to drop as the spring is pulled. Have you or anyone else come across a good fix? Im not sure why the pony truck even needs to have a spung loaded drawbar tbh

Hi Bill. WOW... that's the filthiest commutator I've ever seen on your channel. And a 5-pole one at that. I don't understand why people who supposedly love their hobby, allow their locos to get in such a state. It probably explains why garages are always booked up because some people just cannot be bothered to look after their own cars. Shame! Keep up the good work Bill but don't put your layout construction in 2nd place! Paul. 👍❤

you should use an electric toothbrush

Pickups on the wheels fitted with traction tyres? Good grief - do the employees at Hornby actually understand how electricity is conducted?

Nice looking model but the Chinese one is absolutely rubbish.