STEP 3: Lubrication
STEP 2: Electrical Improvements
Continued ...
1970s Santa Fe SD45 - 3
2a
2a: Here are the tools I use, along with the discarded
parts. From left to right: a solder gun, solder, insulated
terminals, pliers, soldering paste, jewelers flat head
screwdriver, and some wire to reconnect the power from
the motor to the trucks.
2b
2b: I attach the wire to the terminals and solder the wire
to the positive wire on the motor as shown in the pic-
ture. The terminals slide onto the truck clips. The nega-
tive connection is made by the metal clip on the motor
bottom that contacts a polished spot on the frame.
3
3: Remember the Athearn “growl”? You can tone this
down. Carefully pry off the gearbox cover on each truck.
I have used Vaseline for years with no problems for this
step. If you are not comfortable using Vaseline, apply
a plastic-compatible grease to all of the gears you can
see. Put in a large amount. Apply it to the metal drive
gear also. Put the unit on your track and run it back and
forth a few times to work the grease through the gear
system. Apply more if unit continues to growl.
Another method to reduce the “growl” is by cleaning
out any flash in the gears, and by reducing the end-
play in the worm gear with NWSL washers (see photo
above). This method is more involved and requires
further disassembly of the trucks. If grease alone
doesn't solve it, use this method as a last resort.
MRH-Jan 2014
