I received these Kline Reading Company passenger cars about 5 years ago when my father bought out a large collection as a gift for me. Well I finally got into the boxes of used rolling stock this weekend. These are Kline's and the passenger cars look really great. But as you can see they were run pretty hard.
At least that is what I am thinking unless somehow excessive power could do the damage to the rollers. So now I am off to part searching again to get these back on the tracks.
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Yeah, sometimes "roller suppliers" have produced some really soft ones - like yours, I
guess - or made from materials that contain a lot of...whatever they shouldn't.
I bought a beautiful "NP" Lionel Atlantic w/TMCC back in the day - beautiful
if mongrelized model (SP Boiler, etc - PRR E6 below the waist) that had a roller
(the second one was OK) that continually rusted. Actual iron oxide. Lots of
impurities; I soaked it with oil every time I ran it and the rusting seemed to have
stopped. Haven't run him lately...hmm.
These bad materials issues seem to have become rarer and rarer, thankfully.
Lionel should tool up proper SP running gear for that loco and revisit it with the
modern trimmings - it's scale, but small enough that a huge layout is not needed
for it. I re-lettered mine, as it started out life as a freelance model anyway.
It also happens if the rollers have absorbed moisture from the air, and if there is corrosion on the internal pin. The roller sparks and the arcing consumes the roller. See this on PW a lot especially with heavier loads.
Once replaced the arcing ceases. G
Lubricating the roller should also reduce the wear. The electrons can get through the oil film just fine. I recommend ordinary motor oil for lubricating everything. It never dries out or gets gummy.
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