I have an Athearn GP9 that I need to remotor. I have a motor that I think will fit and a general idea. I have only taken a motor our of a hustler and it had no flywheels. The GP9 uses flywheels and I want to know how they are held on. Will the motor simply pull out of them and what about the U-joints? Will they drop off when the motor comes out or will they stay in place. This is one of my best older engines (had it for over 35 years) and I don't want to mess it up trying to fix it. All the help I can get is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
http://www.hoseeker.com/assemblyexplosionAthearn/athearndiagramgp9flywheeldrive1973.jpg Pressed on to the shaft. Plastic bushing. Should come off. Make certain the parts have no oil when you reassemble, that the shaft diameters are exactly the same, and the length overall is the same. Chamfer the end of both shafts. Dave
I think so. Been a LONG time since I took one apart. Are you using a new Athearn motor? Some of the issues that may occur: Since the u-joint and keyed sliding shafts are designed to work with up and down of track and curves, the new motor needs to be the same as the Athearn in a couple of key areas. Overall length of the shaft, as in, one end to the other. The length of the motor housing needs to be the same as the Athearn or shorter. The shaft diameters need to be exactly the same. If the length of the shaft overall is too short, you may not have proper purchase on the shaft by the flywheel. If too long, it will push the sliding shafts together, and push the truck nose down. If the motor housing is longer than the Athearn motor, you may have the same issue as above. It has been several years since I took the flywheels off an Athearn motor, but I seem to recall they were just as that pictorial I posted, the plastic part went all the way through. Why are you replacing the motor? Dave
When I run it around the track at full throttle it seem to be running at medium speed. Than about 4 times around a 4 X 6 track it starts to slow down than stops completely. The motor is not hot but I have to wait maybe a couple of hours than it does the same thing. I have oiled the gears but that does not work.
I really don't know anything about the motors except that they run the engine. As far as knowing the parts or where they are located and what they do, I am a complete dummy. I need all the help I can get.
I know this does not help you now - but I thought I'd share as I am currently repowering an Athearn F7. NWSL sells repower kits for Athearns, this is what I got. The install seems to be pretty straightforward, I think most anyone could do it. All the necessary parts come with the kit, along with detailed instructions - and the motor comes with flywheels already attached. As for taking flywheels off your Athearn motor - in my experience they are pressed onto the shaft. Well to put it more clearly, I once TRIED to remove the flywheels - and they are on there good. I suspect you'd need a tool of some sort to pull them off. My Athearn motor is doing close to what yours is - after I get done installeing the NWSL motor and have some time, I'm going to attempt to take the Athearn motor apart and see if I can't 'tune it up'. There are some good websites that have info on doing this. Good luck with yours and have patience, they are more intimidating than they deserve to be.
Yeah, NWSL makes a kit. Wide bodies, flat side of the motor horizontal, narrow body, flats vertical. Seems I used a puller with a small spindle to reach through the u-joint and press on the end of the shaft.
Wow...I am impressed with this NWSL motor. This is a whole step up from the Athearn motor for sure. Tramp, you need to get one of these re-motor kits. Well worth it.
I am not sure of what motor I would need. If someone could post a link to the correct motor with the flywheels attached, I would appreciate it.
Go to http://www.nwsl.com/NWSL_Online_Catalog.html then go to "Athearn Repowering Kits: Diesels, Switchers, etc." When you get there, scroll down to Repower Kits. I ordered Kit 163-4 for wide diesels. It has two flywheels. there is a narrower version (1163-4) with narrower flywheels. Important: Measure the inside of your shell for clearance - as well as chassis, as explained in the catalog. Read that section as well. In my experience, NWSL staff are very helpful, so if you're not sure - contact them. I'm planning on picking up a used GP9 soon myself as a candidate for repowering, I ordered an extra kit so I'm hoping the shell is wide enough to accommodate the 163-4.
NWSL are great products, but why not just buy the exact Athearn replacement part if you want the easiest fix?
Yep...that's certainly an option and easiest by far. The OP was looking for 're-power' advice though, so there you go. I have to admit I'm pretty enthusiastic about the NWSL repower, seeing my old Athearn F7 run so quietly and with so much pulling power. Rivals my Genesis F7. That said, it's not a simple replacement where you take the old motor out and put a new motor in. Not dirt cheap either at 39.95, but pretty good value I think.
Where do you get an exact Athearn replacement part (with the flywheels). I have looked all over. Athearn does not have them and Ebay rarely list motor numbers. I would like an exact drop in. The motor is #84040
As far as I know, the Blue Box line , once they went to flat can w/ flywheel gold side motors only ever had 2 models. The regular size and the small size for switchers. You don't want the older motor, you want the flat can HiPro. In fact, they don't make the 84040 any more. It has been replaced by the 84080 and the 84086 (with flywheels.) http://www.athearn.com/Search/Default.aspx?CatId=THCR&SearchTerm=motor&Page=1 They say they are for DCC, that just means they meet the current requirements unlike some of the old round cans and open frame motors which do not meet dcc requirements. Again, don't get me wrong, the NWSL motor is fabulous, but Athearn certainly does make replacement parts (they've had supply issues, but they're restocking) There are a couple places online that had them in stock and my local hobby shop also regularly has them. Heck, if you want to turn it into a science project, you could just buy new brushes and springs and see if you can get the old motor humming again.
I had the same problem - Athearn (Horizon Hobby) didn't stock them, and although I could find motors on eBay that looked like they were a match, they didn't have a Athearn number. Even at that I might have tried one if they hadn't considered them to be made of gold. What pushed me to a re-motor kit from another source was that personally I wanted something better than the Athearn that was more reliable - this particular locomotive is part of a train display that goes to fairs, and it needs to be able to run long hours without fail. The Athearns weren't up to that abuse. Maybe if you find something on eBay you could email the seller to get the dimensions of the motor (flywheel to flywheel)? If they match, I would think it would fit.
What Yoho said That's what I love about this place, eventually somebody knows where to find what you're looking for! And I didn't know that those "DCC" motors would work in the BB. Good info.
There's no such thing as a DCC motor. A DCC motor is a motor that is with in the voltage and current ratings that DCC needs. Every single Athearn Flat can motor ever made is within those specs. They just put that "DCC" on there to catch the suckers.
