Trains that 'chug'

Hi all,

First time poster! My son and I have enjoyed starting with TM2, going back to the Tomy trains and now Plarail.

I've noticed some of the trains seem to 'chug' and not run very smoothly. At first I thought this was just an issue with second-hand toys being dirty, but recently I bought one of the ES-08 C12 locomotives brand new with the carriage and it 'chugged' straight out of the box.

Here's a short video of what I mean:



Is this normal? Did I receive a dud? Can it be fixed? Should I return it to Amazon?

Thanks for your thoughts and help

[Super]

I have had many 'chugging' engines in the past, most were used though. I don't think I have had a C-12 new out of the box though and the ones I have now don't do the chug. Why not return it to Amazon since their Returns are so easy and see what another one does. For the most part, if my memory isn't leaving me, I think all of the ones I had that ended up chugging were the Thomas Type motors which I think the C-12's run with.

BTW: welcome to you and your son to BluePlasticTracks Darth 😃

Thank you for the kind welcome!

You know... the other 'chuggers' I have... are both Thomas engines.

I'll try another C12 and report back when that happens. Might be a while! Thanks a lot

[Super]

I know I had worked on a couple of chuggers but I can't remember what I did besides disassembling the box motor, checked or replaced cracked gears and lubed it up and can't remember if it fixed the situation or not. I do remember that I either fixed a chugging Cargo Liner or replaced the box motor entirely but it doesn't chug anymore.

Please let us know if a replacement fixes the problem.

I've had a chugging issue too with 1 or 2 of my Trackmasters in the past (used) and just like Super, It was so long ago and I've also done a plethora of things to the engine as one does when buying used engines in general that I don't remember what the cause of it was I'd be guessing because of my limited experience with chugging engines. But maybe check if the running wheel axels gear is cracked or otherwise loose (because of said crack). That is, if you don't choose to return it.

[Super]

Mitz, do you remember if your chuggers were the square Thomas type motors or one of the handful of other types?

Yes actually So vaguely I remember lady chugging a bit and fixed that (but can't remember how because it wasn't the primary issue I was fixing/cleaning) 

But I definitely remember belle chugging.  But in her case, it was either because her wheel axel gear was missing a tooth, or loose from a cracked gear. (Loose from a cracked gear might have been a different engine entirely)

Chugging engines were a rarity for me, probably only two. Have people who notice chugging engines typically state the engines are square type? That be interesting to look into but that would be a challenge since all my engines, even spares don't suffer chugging enough to notice.

[Super]

All the chuggers I have come across are the square Thomas type motors

Thanks for adding to the discussion @mitzalplik!

I've decided to keep this one (I'll order another soonish) and open it up. Not super easy to get into! The gears visible on the outside look fine, I'm just wondering if the motor is simply not up to it. I'll see before too long.

I noticed on this (admittedly old) video where one of the 'modern' C12 runs there's a slight chug to it (4:37):

[Super]

I don't see the 'chugging' in the video but thanks for bringing out a video from our beloved creator of BPT's Ucwepn 😃👍✔