Power Functions Troubleshooting

[Hickernator]

 Hi everyone!

 I was wondering if someone could help troubleshoot a problem for me. I am trying to add power functions to my steam train. Without the motor (both medium and XL) the train runs perfectly fine along rails. I goes around corners with no trouble and the gears run smoothly. The pistons turn properly and are quartered. 

 As soon as I add a motor (following the instructions of the Emerald Night for gear configuration) the gears will jam automatically. I take the motor out and push the train along and it runs fine. As soon as I reconnect the motor, the gears just jam immediately. 

 I am unsure whether I am doing something wrong. If anyone can give some advice I would be most grateful!

 Thank you :)

 Hickernator

[Hickernator]

I've just done some more testing with the motor. The train is running perfectly without the piston rods. As soon as I attach them, the gears begin to jam. Very confused

[XG BC]

you could try adding the motor to the coal tender so it pushes the train just like you do when no motor is attached. the emerald knight set with the motorization according to the instructions isnt working that well either.

XG BC

Edited February 23, 2019 by XG BC

[Hickernator]

4 minutes ago, XG BC said:

you could try adding the motor to the coal tender so it pushes the train just like you do when no motor is attached. the emerald knight set with the motorization according to the instructions isnt working that well either.

XG BC

Thanks! Seems to be the only option - seen that people have done that for the Hogwarts Express. Will give it a go 

[dr_spock]

Are your drive wheels quartered?

[Bruce]

Check out my Emerald Night Fix at 

 

[Hickernator]

7 hours ago, dr_spock said:

Are your drive wheels quartered?

Yep - I am using 4 drive wheels, 2 of which are blind drivers. 1 and 3 have a flange. I am using a 12 hole technic beam and connecting all the wheels to it. Even if I connect just 3 or 2, it still sticks. 

[Daedalus304]

1 hour ago, Hickernator said:

Yep - I am using 4 drive wheels, 2 of which are blind drivers. 1 and 3 have a flange. I am using a 12 hole technic beam and connecting all the wheels to it. Even if I connect just 3 or 2, it still sticks. 

That is good, but it's not actually what quartering means. What you want to check is that the drive rod pins are at different positions on each side. If the driver's side Rod Pins are at 12 or 6 o' clock, the fireman's rod pins should be at either 3 or 9 o' clock. That is, they need to be One-Quarter rotation out of phase with each other.

The problem you've described sounds quite a lot like the rods are not Quartered, and they're what's causing your lockup.

[Hickernator]

10 hours ago, Daedalus304 said:

That is good, but it's not actually what quartering means. What you want to check is that the drive rod pins are at different positions on each side. If the driver's side Rod Pins are at 12 or 6 o' clock, the fireman's rod pins should be at either 3 or 9 o' clock. That is, they need to be One-Quarter rotation out of phase with each other.

The problem you've described sounds quite a lot like the rods are not Quartered, and they're what's causing your lockup.

I've given it another go and it's still jamming 

 What I've done is I kept all the wheels on the left hand side at 12, then on the right hand side I changed them to 3 or 9 to see whether it was because it needed to be clockwise or anti-clockwise. Neither solution helped. I've also been wondering whether it is due to weight because when I push the train along with my hand, the wheels with rods do turn, albeit quite stiffly. 

 I'm also wondering whether the connections are too stiff or whether the rod is too long or even if I need to add a second motor to give it more power (though I'm not too sure about this as my model is no bigger than the emerald night.)

 As mentioned before, the train runs perfectly fine without the rods attached. The wheels spin correctly and it can turn corners well. I've configured the motor arrangement as such:

 Battery Box in main engine

 IR Receiver in cab

 XL motor in tender, connected to one pair of driving wheels (one wheel either side an axle) - not sure if this could be the issue?

[Hickernator]

After much trial and error, I have finally figured out the problem. It was actually quite simple too!

 I was using the wrong technic pins to connect the train wheels to the pistons. I was using standard black pins whereas I should have been using those grey smaller pins. Runs perfectly now!

[XG BC]

that is really nice to hear, im glad you figured it out in the end.

XG BC

[Daedalus304]

On 2/24/2019 at 4:41 AM, Hickernator said:

After much trial and error, I have finally figured out the problem. It was actually quite simple too!

 I was using the wrong technic pins to connect the train wheels to the pistons. I was using standard black pins whereas I should have been using those grey smaller pins. Runs perfectly now!

Oh, yep, that would very definitely do it. It's understandable to want to try the black pins though! 

[technic70s]

What you have is there are two types of pins, one has bumps on it that they call friction ridges, they are designed to not turn easy. The Grey pins would be the friction-less pins.

LEGO have made so many parts over the years it easy to not see the slight differences. :-)

When I was a kid we only had the ones with out friction ridges. 

Technic, Pin with Friction Ridges Lengthwise WITH Center Slots

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=2780#T=C

Technic, Pin without Friction Ridges Lengthwise

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?P=3673#T=C

[Hickernator]

I never knew that! Really fascinating!  Must now try to locate some of those frictionless ones.

[XG BC]

the black pins are the ones with friction and the light bluish grey ones are without.

XG BC