Hello everyone.

A few of my Märklin Z steam locos with the older 5-pole motor are acting up, and will probably need replacement motors.

Would it be possible to (easily) retrofit a new motor with bell-shaped armature instead?

For example, let's look at BR 85.

Compare the exploded view of the older 88885 here:
https://static.maerklin.de/damcontent/7d/c9/7dc92a1759fed5e29ed7b369cea078951434542645.pdf

with the exploded view of the newer 88889 on page 8 here:
https://static.maerklin.de/damcontent/b5/f2/b5f2866bc6510f1f39744159d676d5841571119489.pdf

It looks like the new motor would be a direct fit.

Has anyone tried this?

Any reason why it wouldn't work?

Hello, hope you are well.

Your question is a good one, and how difficult could this transition be? It might work easy for the two locomotives you are comparing. I have not heard of a transition like this that has not required machining of the metal frame or the shell. There may be someone who is doing this work. Maybe this site could give you some advice or they may have identified easily transitioned models:

https://www.z-hightech.d...g=6&sprache=englisch

I tend to believe if it is truly easy, we would see more about it. A YouTuber is hard to keep quiet because they are usually out in front, proud of their accomplishments. I do recall someone posting a video some time back but since then, I have not seen further work. I will look thru my bookmarks to see if I have a link.

I just would not take on machining myself, but perhaps you have the type of equipment needed and have worked or are experienced yourself. A failure to get this machining right may be an expensive error to recover from.

I would suggest starting with a simple, less costly locomotive which Marklin has transitioned to the new motor, and which looks easy. I believe the new motors are selling for around $30-40. If an 8885 were used as a starting point, it might cost over $100. (Is assume you already have this). With these two expenses, you might as well decide you are committed.

One caution I would consider is that with the new model from Marklin, I have noticed, that not all parts shown on the diagrams are assigned a part number. I don’t know if these parts are still available or if they are not something which a user could purchase. Look over the new diagram you have, there might be some part which is shown but not listed on the part number listing.

I would look forward to what you discover if you take on this task. Please let us know how it goes. In the meantime, I will look for a link for a video on this.

Take good care.

Dwight

Thank you for your input, everyone.

Just like you, I do belive there are obstacles to overcome, otherwise there would be more information out there. With replacement 5-pole motors no longer being produced, we do however need to find some kind of solution.

Unfortunately I don't have the skills nor the equipment to do any machining if that turns out to be necessary, but I might buy a motor anyway and see if I can make it fit without too much trouble. If I do I will post my findings here.

I suspect that the conversions are beyond the skill of most miniclub users . So what's going to happen when existing 3 or 5-pole motors die - are we going to have a lot of "display only" models? I have asked Märklin this question directly - let's see if they reply.

Carim

Well, I had asked Märklin whether they would ever be selling spare 5-pole motors again or would they have a service to fit the new motors in non-functioning 3 or 5-pole locos. Otherwise, what should we do in this situation?

They replied:

"vielen Dank für Ihr Interesse an unseren Produkten und Ihre Anfrage. Wir konnten folgende Information dazu ermitteln:

Die entsprechende 3-pol und 5-pol Motoren aus den Spur Z Modellen sind leider nicht mehr erhältlich.

Wir bedauern, Ihnen keine erfreulichere Nachricht geben zu können und bitten um Ihr Verständnis."

[Thank you for your interest in our products and your inquiry. We were able to determine the following information:
Unfortunately, the corresponding 3-pole and 5-pole motors from the Z gauge models are no longer available.
We regret not being able to give you better news and ask for your understanding.]

Great!

Carim

As supplies dwindle people are going to “stock up” on spares. So there are probably lots of spare motors that will never see the light of day ;) Or the new fleabay pricing model will have them going for as much as a new loco. It’s a bit hysterical since the vast majority of motors will never wear out. For those who do run motors for 100’s of hours buying old locos for the motor may be the best way. I think buying old locos is a safe bet that they were not run much and the motors will have a lot of life left in them. I’m afraid Modifying the chassis and drive to accept modern motors will always be expensive, time consuming, and require special skills.
I started to focus on buying new locos for several reasons. Mostly because the older ones I was buying required a lot of effort to get running, but the new ones often look better too.
I can’t fault Marklin for leaving the past behind. It’s “marketing 101” isn’t it? Most of those old locos were pre bankruptcy and work only too well!
It’s an interesting situation though. New modelers come in and buy old locos, run them constantly until they die, then leave the hobby in disgust when they can’t get parts for a 50 year old toy! I can certainly see that happening.

Expert in the house! Fantastic creation BTW. I'll add "mill" to my list of things to buy :)

Hello everyone. Hope you are well.

Earlier I mentioned that the parts diagram doesn’t assign a part number to all parts shown and I didn’t know if these parts are available to us.

Today I was reading the operator’s instructions for one of the new locomotives. The parts diagram did not have numbers assigned to all the parts shown.

As I looked down further on the sheet, at the bottom it states. “ Parts that are not listed here can only be repaired by the Märklin repair service department.”

I guess that unfortunate statement clarifies this issue for me.

Take good care.

Dwight

Hi,

You don't even have to go to Nigel Lawton, Märklin sells a number of the new motors as spare parts already. A number of people on the ZFI forum are re-motoring 3 & 5-pole engines to the new motors just to get the better performance. The problems that are often faced are getting the new motor to sit in the old chassis (may require removing material and then putting in a support for the new motor) and also getting drive shafts of the correct length.

Carim

Gosh, the Z scene seems big in Europe! Just looking at ZFI now on a Sunday I see 30 users online! And my browser could translate the forum, what fun! I look forward to reading the threads.
The link to Nigel Lawton was very interesting too. Very complete instructions for a motor retrofit. I found it interesting that some are doing the conversion just for better running. I only have one 3 pole loco and I don’t mind the performance of my 5 pole locos. But one thing stuck in my mind:

“This is a cheap way to get a dead Z scale loco working, or to improve running if 'cogging' of the original motor is a problem.”

Buying dead locos cheap and re motoring them with cheap can motors is a nice idea for anyone with skills on a budget.
Maybe my last post wondering if the effort was worth it or if the motors were really wearing out was a bit insensitive. I actually hoped to spark some discussion on who has had motors die? I have not and I have some pretty old locos from fleabay and other shops.
What I imagined to be a hopeless subject has sparked a really interesting discussion now!

Hello hope all is well.

In most cases, going from a 3 pole motor to a 5 pole does not require extensive modification. A concern with steam type locomotives, is that the motor might need to be soldered into the circuit board. This could be a challenge to some. Other modern electric/hydraulic locomotives can easily be upgrade be removing the old one and inserting the new 5 pole.

I would check which motor you need for your locomotive. Sometimes a motor number is switched to a new number unexpectedly. You could check with a reputable dealer such as z hobo, to verify which is correct for you. Www.zscalehobo.com. It is possible, he may still have your motor available.

I five poles motor is said to be quieter and starts to move before a three pole. The three poles takes more to get moving, but is is stronger in pulling power. Others say there is really not much difference and an upgrade is a waste of money.

Take good care.

Dwight

Hello again.

Is that a question for me?

Yes, I have upgrade a 8891 to a five pole and it works today.

With a reasonable amount of skill and a few tools you can do it too. Do you know if anyone has worked on your locomotive before and does it currently work.

I am not totally familiar with your model and could not find a parts diagram for it. I believe it is similar to the 8891. Check this diagram

https://static.maerklin....c3d0c6406b1434542608.pdf

Search this forum about upgrading Z motors and if you will replace a motor when you find one, search “quartering”. If you have not quartered the wheels before, that will be perhaps the most difficult process you will encounter. You could try removing the motor without removing the wheels, but I just broke down the entire locomotive. If you come up with a question or problem, search the forum because it may be something already covered or just ask.

Try not to lose anything because the parts are small. Take your time, cleaning the parts is an important task.

You need a good soldering tool removing the motor. Careful not to melt anything around it. I did not have a good one, but got thru it anyway. I have since obtained a good one and it is so much better to work with.

You likely know all this, but it is good to realize you can do this. If you would rather, contact z hobo, he does this kind of work too. Only one I know of.

Best wishes for your successful results.

Take good care.

Dwight

5 mins after I read your thread here I fell over this on facebook;
Screenshot 2023-03-27 at 22.54.07.png (1,377kb) downloaded 50 time(s).