Hello,

During a lovely day of maintenance on my locomotive fleet, I was surprised to learn that my 1972 vintage 3000 / BR 89 tank engine is different than my 1993 version of the 3000!

The 72 version has a flat commutator style motor, while the 93 version has a drum style motor. I find it interesting that M. didn't change the model number. Especially since many of the replacement parts are different between the two versions.

Now here's the really odd part ... after cleaning, lubricating, etc. both BR 89's run quite well. However, the newer version with the drum style motor is significantly louder than the older model. Is this normal? I expected the opposite.

Thanks,

Hi Rob,

You can find an extensive "analysis" of different BR89s through the years in this topic:

https://www.marklin-user...ult.aspx?g=posts&t=13679

Needless to say, my conclusions were exactly like yours: the older, the better.

Gentlemen,

Thank you all, for your prompt replies.

John, I checked the two BR89's this morning and as you suspected, they have different drive trains. I looked for gaps on the DCM motor's brush housing. There were not any ... I assume that's good :-) Also you are correct about "burn in time". The 1972 vintage engine has years and years of play from when I was a good bit younger. The 93 version really only has been used on Christmas layouts.

Brakepad, thanks for the link to the BR 89 thread. It was very educational. It certainly reinforces the feeling that I need to add a CM800 to the collection.

Tom, I appreciate the heads up on the re-use of model numbers. I was not aware of that fact and it certainly would have caused me confusion at some point.

BTW, my older BR89 hasn't run since the early 80's. Based upon info from the forum, I finally took the bold step of opening up the motor, cleaning it and installing new brushes. Needless to say, I am very happy with the results!

Happy New Year everyone!