Ted S posted:@Dieseler where did you find that dual-shaft Pittman motor? Did it come out of an O-gauge train, or something you picked up surplus on an auction site??
Bought on auction site.
My Gramps was testing for Williams before the production of his carbodies. The two nearly identical all raw brass ones he was in care of each had different brand motors to be tested before a supplier was chosen. Those Pitmans almost got passed on because of heat build up hot enough the tab insulators where beginning to swell out, melting in the can motors. You need to mindful touching the bodies after a good run too. Originally configured with an old school silver rectifier. ... and due to a low blood sugar recovery right now, I'm brain farting hard on the rest .... but I think going to half wave in series was how they were shipped back after testing the possible wiring configurations.The alternate was a better running motor, but not rebuildable. (began with an A...Aztec?)
He also was in care of a permanently coupled and tethered, A-B-B-A set "to test" (took two people to rail the beast). Once "approved", he was told they were his as a thank you; the test was to ensure the gift was a satisfactory one. The collection was sold after Gramps passed, and I'm curious if anyone has ever seen " the beast", or any others like it?
Adriatic posted:My Gramps was testing for Williams before the production of his carbodies. The two nearly identical all raw brass ones he was in care of each had different brand motors to be tested before a supplier was chosen. Those Pitmans almost got passed on because of heat build up hot enough the tab insulators where beginning to swell out, melting in the can motors. You need to mindful touching the bodies after a good run too. Originally configured with an old school silver rectifier. ... and due to a low blood sugar recovery right now, I'm brain farting hard on the rest .... but I think going to half wave in series was how they were shipped back after testing the possible wiring configurations.The alternate was a better running motor, but not rebuildable. (began with an A...Aztec?)
He also was in care of a permanently coupled and tethered, A-B-B-A set "to test" (took two people to rail the beast). Once "approved", he was told they were his as a thank you; the test was to ensure the gift was a satisfactory one. The collection was sold after Gramps passed, and I'm curious if anyone has ever seen " the beast", or any others like it?
All four of the Pittman dual motored trainmasters i have run are very cool to the touch after a hour run time when i ran them without the body to see the interior and how it was built. Did have to replace 2 of the rectifier's on 2 of them when they started lurching forward and or just stop on there own but those run just fine now after soldering in new ones.
A clean commutator is a happy commutator. 
Still need to fine tune it a bit but the motor barely turned before cleaning.
CW- I left the original brushes in they are fine.
Bob
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Regarding the early Williams... half-wave rectification would definitely result in higher running temps. Newer reversing units almost all use full-wave rectified DC.
Those large Pittman motors are good, but the lack of flywheel coasting is a major bugaboo in real-world operating environments. A LOT can happen that can result in an unintended sudden stop. When you combine this with rubber tires and self-locking gears it gets ugly. The top-mounted flywheel isn't a good solution because it requires a short motor, which further reduces torque. The motors with flywheel on top are Mabuchi RS-385, much inferior to the big Pittmans. These probably cost the manufacturer about a dollar each in bulk, and you will need an exact donor when it wears out.
In the early 80s a friend of mine brought his Williams with Pittmans and an MPC-era 8952 to my 12x8 O27 layout. The 8952 rolled just as slowly and consistently over my sagging particle board and sharp curves. Look at some reviews in "that other mag"... before the advent of speed control, no vertically-motored diesel was able to get below the 10-mph barrier. Pullmor-motored diesels, with their "crude" but larger 3-pole motors helping each other out, can do a little better for short bursts. This makes for more realistic starting and stopping. Train > robot.
PCJ RailRide's dual pullmor diesels starting a long freight
Bottom line, I would take a postwar growler or even an MPC twin-pullmor diesel over one with vertical can motors--Pittman or otherwise. Legacy / Liondrive with back-drivable gears might be the exception.
My L&N Geeps linked above used truck-mounted can motors like the low-end K-Line. The Z-1000 being able to output less than 5v and the 30+ autoracks behind them are responsible for their performance in that video 
Edit: Oh, the video that Ted S. linked to was to my Pullmor-motored SD40's and grain-hopper train. I'm not sure what transformer I had at that point--Could have been a Z1000 or a small postwar transformer (I don't think I used my MRC Trainpower 027 on anything but floor layouts)
---PCJ
What is the name or partnumber for this curved clip that holds the power truck in place?[url=https://postimg.org/image/lf0vchh3z/][img]https://s19.postimg.org/5gs5mcmw3/20171201_222750.jpg[/img][/url]
It's a tinnerman's clip, also called a speed nut.
Lionel part number 600-133.
I buy them in bulk from Train Tender.
Thanks!
