Greetings. I have a P8 from the Kaiser Zug set. The front truck seems to derail on 30 degree (437,55 mm) C track curves (24230). It appears that the front wheels jump the track. Any suggestions?

Hi,

Normally there is small strip that acts as a spring which pushes down the truck onto the track. If you slightly bend the strip further, the spring force will be bigger and the truck will remain within the track.

Good luck,
Gregor

Hello, and welcome to the forum. Do you have a name we can call you? I can't imagine myself calling you imagine. Imagine that!....

4-6-0 locomotives are notorious for being difficult to balance, and this often leads to problems with traction and derailments. I believe at least one of our members has found a solution where they replaced one of the driven axles which has no traction tyres for another one with traction tyres. Another, maybe simpler, solution can be found by adding weights either at the front or the back, depending on where the problem is.

By the way, is your loco trom the Kaizer Wilhelm train? If so this is not a P8 (later Br38) but an S10 (later Br17). The first versions of the S10 by Marklin were even worse pullers, and the design of the chassis was revised for later production runs of this locomotive.

Thanks for the clarification. The 37031 is definitely a P8, but this is not the loco that comes with the Kaiser Wilhelm train that I know (2681/2881 set). Maybe you can tell us a bit more about your train? I'm sure we would all be very happy to see photos of your loco and coaches.

Good luck with your experiments, and I hope you can get your loco to pull its train successfully. Be aware that this is not one of Marklin's best pullers, but it should be capable of pulling a train of 4 - 6 coaches on the flat.

Is the problem one of power or traction? Getting the balance right by adding more weight will help with traction issues, but if the wheels are not slipping and the problem is with the power of the motor not being enough then there might be a motor issue.

Looking at it from the other end, are you sure your coaches are free running? Wheelsets that are seized in their bearings will make it more difficult for your loco. A free running wagon should roll anywhere between half a metre and a metre with a gentle push before stopping. If you give it a push and it only rolls a few centimetres then you need to investigate why.

Feel free to ask more questions, and please let us know how you get on.

Thanks for the tips. Time to get some tires for the loco and check into a sound system once it works.