Proto 2000 Axle Gear Problem Fix

Its been years a decade or so since I had my Proto 2000, Fa2, Locomotive out of the box and frankly I had no idea there was a major issue with their axle gears. I grabbed a new in box Fa unit via eBay for real cheap so I had a matched a-b-a set.  When it arrived one of the wheels was loose in the package and after further review a few were very loose on their axle gear (you could turn one wheel by hand not affecting any others) That looseness would never allow the locomotive to go anywhere pulling a load behind it. That's when I discovered after a few minutes of Internet research there was a pattern of failed axle gears in these units as well as the GP-7+'s.  (proto 2000 has been for some time now a part of Walthers and they stopped warrentying the gears long ago but they are cheap 6-10 bucks).

Well there is an easy fix. Almost anyone can do it. First purchase an Athearn axle gear replacement set. They will drop right in as direct replacements for your lifelike proto 2000 FA or GP7+ units. Part number on the axle gear set is ATH-60024.

The Package may say SD40 on it as well but don't get scared these things are right for your proto 2000. They come 6 to a package you need 1 per axle change them all if you have any issues.

When you have your new parts flip the locomotive over and carefully work off the plastic clip on the center of the truck between the wheels with a small flat head screwdriver. That clip keeps the axles from just falling out if you turn the loco right side up and it keeps both haves of the truck together.

Take out the axle you want to work on and pull off each wheel from the gear. If the gear is bad this is fairly easy to do by hand no tools needed to pry.  These gears tended to crack which gave the axle that is just pressed into it too much freedom to turn on its own.

Open a pair of pliers or channel locks very wide. The wider the pliers the more vertical (up and down instead of on an angle) the pressing action will be. Press on one wheel and axle into the gear. Then repeat for the other wheel. (you could also use a bench vise) You should not be able to do this by hand easily at all because of the new tight fit the replacement gear has.  You can grasp the axle gear with the groves in the pliers and hold it while working the wheel back out slightly if you end up pressing them in too far (which you probably will do).  Eventually you need to check the width of the wheels with a NMRA track and wheel gauge so you know you have them spaced properly. Make sure the gear is centered between the wheels. 

Once gauged properly your done- lay it back into the truck where it came from. It may take a second or two to line up the axle bushings properly before it drops in. Repeat for all of the axles..loose or not your their anyway.

One of the few videos I found online showing you this replacement http://youtu.be/O6rICPsxQbY