Welcome to the first part of the Athearn Diesel Locomotive Tuneup and overhaul guide.

Disassembly

• Step 1:    Remove the body shell from the chassis.  This varies with the type of locomotive, some have side tabs, others you apply pressure to the middle of the body and pull it away.  Set the body shell aside out of the way.

• Step 2:    Remove the power connector clip (A).  Throw it away, it is nothing but trouble.

• Step 3:    Pull the motor Assembly (B) off of the body.  If the mounting pads (hidden) or Splines (C) do not come off also, remove them. Set the motor, splines, and mounting pads aside.

• Step 4:    Remove the Front worm gear clip (E) and remove the worm gear assembly (F) be careful not to lose the bearing (G).  Remove the front truck from the frame.  It is vital to keep the front and rear parts seperate, I usually take a sheet of printer paper, draw a line down the middle and label one side "Front" the other "Rear".   Place the Front worm gear clip, worm gear assembly and front truck on the side labeled front.  Repeat for the rear truck.

• Step 5:    (Optional)  If you are going to replace the light with something more prototypical, remove the light mount (D) with pliers.

• Step 6:    Disassemble the trucks. Remove the Sideframes (H). Remove the Top and bottom Gearbox Connector clips (I) and remove the wheelsets (J).  Set all parts on their respective side of the paper.

• Step 7:    Disasemble the wheelsets.  Hold on to one side of the wheelset and twist and pull the other, be careful not to lose the bearing. Then hold on to the gear and repeat for other side be careful not to damage the gear or lose the bearing.  Repeat for all wheelsets. 

• Step 8:    (Optional) I recommend that you replace the Athearn stinterd iron wheels as per the Wheel Replacement Chart.  I don't like them very much and on most locomotives the factory wheels are the wrong diameter anyway.  The wheels get dirty too easily, spark badly on even slightly dirty track, and they are a pain to clean.  However, they do provide better traction than nickel silver .

OK! You are finished with Part 1 of The Athearn Tune-up Guide.

If you wish to keep the existing Athearn motor follow this link to the Quick and Easy Tuneup page.

Otherwise you must be in it for the long haul! Follow this link to the Total Overhaul page.

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