Traction tires binding on new Lionel Legacy F7

I had the same issue with my F3's. A quick call to Lionel customer service and they sent me new ones free of charge. The ones i took off were twice as thick as the ones they sent me. im not sure if they were the wrong ones or a mfg issue caused them to swell but Lionel took care of it.

Easily fixed by using MTH traction tires, as described in this thread.

Are these new issue F7's?  It's really bizarre that Lionel let this problem arise to start with, let alone persist.

I had a similar problem on one of my F units. In my case, the problem was due to the side-frames not being aligned correctly. I loosened the screws, adjusted the side-frames a little until the wheels rotated without touching anything, re-tightened the screws and all has been well ever since. 

I bought one of these sets at the LHS. It was a known issue to them and of course they changed the tires at the time of sale.

I suppose these type of things happen in a world where auto manufacturers can build cars with bad ignition switches or accelerator pedals.

These engines are among my favorite.

Fred

Thanks everyone.  This was a new unit, but may have been new/old stock.

I read the other thread, and I'll contact Lionel and/or MTH for new tires.

One of the side frames was loose.  I had already tightened it, but there was not enough play to fix the problem.  And the extra tires in the box were all fat ones, too.

The forum comes to the rescue again!

Bob

I use MTH tires, problem solved.

This problem afflicted all the F3/F7 production from the 2012 time-frame. I've had to grind brake shoes on my Wabash & L&N sets. i purchased the SP Black Widow set from Marty Fitzhenry and he was kind enough to supply new MTH tires which fit perfect and don't protrude 1/32" beyond the wheel flange like the original issue tires from this exporter did.

I read of the D&RGW set also being afflicted as its the same time-frame along with your Milwaukee set.

Total Quality debacle in this instance.

Once you get some correct tires installed, they will run great.

I picked up a set of MTH tires at their parts booth at York. They fit perfectly and the engine runs great. Thanks again, everyone. 

Bob