Maersk Train Problems

[Legoluchlol]

I recently finished the Maersk locomotive. Although it is a beautiful set, I found some design flaws and other problems. First of all when I opened the box, three pieces needed for construction were not in any bags. These pieces consisted of a 2x2 and some new plates that grasp on to poles. None of the bags were opened. Second, I extremely dislike the large walls on the sides that when taken off, reveal the engine. These walls fall apart with extreme ease. The large walls rely on a few studs on one side of the wall to hold it up. My instructions also messed up when I got to the "cockpit" of the train. It showed to cockpits blended into one picture. There last design flaw is when converting the train to power functions, 2 circular pieces ontop of the engine need to be removed to switch the battery on and off. Anyone else encounter these problems?

I am sorry for any grammar errors as I am posting this from my iPhone

[mikka says]

well looking at the power functions issue, it isnt really one at all.i personally dislike the ugly receiver sticking out from the boiler of the emerald night, so i use 9v parts. the RC receiver is somewhat of a downfall for TLG, i remeber when you could power a loco by chucking a motor block underneath. but seeing as these days have passed, i came up with a rather ingenious solution..

if you can ge a short, spare PF extention cable, wiring the both ends up to a regular RC circuit chip may save some heartache in ruining the look of the Maersk. (try this on your own risk!)all you need it a wire receiver, which is less obtrusive than the one designed by Lego.

-enjoy

mikka

[Scorpio]

First of all when I opened the box, three pieces needed for construction were not in any bags. These pieces consisted of a 2x2 and some new plates that grasp on to poles. None of the bags were opened.

Second, I extremely dislike the large walls on the sides that when taken off, reveal the engine. These walls fall apart with extreme ease. The large walls rely on a few studs on one side of the wall to hold it up.

My instructions also messed up when I got to the "cockpit" of the train. It showed to cockpits blended into one picture.

There last design flaw is when converting the train to power functions, 2 circular pieces ontop of the engine need to be removed to switch the battery on and off. Anyone else encounter these problems?

If you are missing parts then I would suggest calling Lego directly and they should be happy to fix that.

As for the large walls, they aren't meant to be taken off and put back on regularly and even so it is Lego, you can easily put it back together. I believe there is more than enough clutch power to keep them snug against the rest of the train.

I had the problem with the instructions too. Made me laugh but wasn't a big deal. I just looked at the next picture.

I wouldn't call that a design flaw. Would you like to see the battery in plain view? Also, only one needs to be pulled up to turn the battery on and off and it is held down by two studs making it easy to take off and put back on. It is the first of the three closest to the front of the train.

Edited April 6, 2011 by DHCP1121

[nfl_solo]

I did not have an issue with any pieces being loose in the box and there were actually quite a lot of extra pieces. Once the set was built.

I didn't notice any issue with the wall plates being loose or coming off to easily. Once they were n place they seem to hold well until I need to open it up.

I noticed the issue with the double print overlap image on the cockpit build, it was only on 1 image so not bad. Probably all the initial manuals were printed that way.

The top piece does need to be removed to push the on/off button, but the whole plate is held with two studs and removes easily.

[TaltosVT]

I just finished building my set this evening. I was actually missing two 1x4 plates out of mine. Not a big deal, as I could pull some out of my collection, except that one of the missing ones was Maersk blue, so I had to swap out one of the ones hidden inside the refrigerated container.

I do agree that the side walls are a bit flimsy. I found that they stay in place best when the handrails are pushed up next to them.

Overall, though, I really enjoyed building this set, and I think it looks incredible. Other than the side walls, it's sturdy enough that I didn't mind letting my two year-old drive it around the living room, and it feels heavy enough that it should be a good puller if I decide to motorize it.

-Elroy

[hoeij]

I do agree that the side walls are a bit flimsy.

You can fit a 1x4 or a 1x6 plate on the back of each side wall, it fits when you put it in the second lowest position.

[Legoluchlol]

The set does look incredible- I guess I was unclear- none of my pieces were missing, some were just floating around in the box not in bags.

I change my mind- the walls aren't flimsy when attached correctly

I out power functions in mine- it is quite fast but at the fastest speed, doesn't not derail.

I also connected the emerald night set with the Maersk train to test it's pulling power- at the fastest setting, the loco pulled all 5 cars (+ itself) at a medium pace

[Duq]

I am sorry for any grammar errors as I am posting this from my iPhone

And with an iPhone in my hand I suddenly forget all the grammar I learnt in school...

[Vestabuyer]

Greetings!

I didn't have too much difficulty assembling the wonderful set. I would like to make a slight comment about the build that I thought was a bit odd. The big plates that were mentioned have a couple of 1 x 8 tiles (I believe) that attach on the bottom of each that seem a bit "loose." Granted, this is a very small issue, one that could have been corrected with a custom tile part for this set only. Other than that, I think TLG scored a 100!

[JopieK]

And with an iPhone in my hand I suddenly forget all the grammar I learnt in school...

;) strange things do happen sometimes...

@Legoluchlol:

I have my own extension to PF. in that way I can easily disguise my IR receiver somewhere not so eye catching.

[Brickimad]

I'll be using a 9V motor in mine. Have a full Ir set from the 7938 set, which I pulled out and fitted a 9v motor instead. Thought about using the unit, but decided not to. I do need another 9v motor, though. Time to look on ebay...

[Legoluchlol]

I recently bought a second Maersk Train set- two look wonderful together! The two locomotives in the front and the 4 cars in the back.

However, with power functions, the train moves at an extremely slow rate and slips on the curves quite frequently- and no I do not have any flexible tracks in my set up

Removing one locomotive solves this issue but i think the train looks better with two.

One pf motor clearly cannot move an entire train of 6 cars... any suggestions? I may perhaps add a second pf motor to the second locomotive..

[Dan-147]

I recently bought a second Maersk Train set- two look wonderful together! The two locomotives in the front and the 4 cars in the back.

However, with power functions, the train moves at an extremely slow rate and slips on the curves quite frequently- and no I do not have any flexible tracks in my set up

Removing one locomotive solves this issue but i think the train looks better with two.

One pf motor clearly cannot move an entire train of 6 cars... any suggestions? I may perhaps add a second pf motor to the second locomotive..

Are both locomotives powered?

If so, the motors seem to be fighting ach other. Probably best to have two motors on one loco and to leave the other one unpowered. That would mean reversing the polarity of one motor with a 8869 Power Functions switch.

Otherwise, those Technic axles add a lot of resistance. You might want to rebuild the unpowered trucks with standard train wheel bricks in a manner somewhat like on the Metroliner. Check page 17 of these instructions.

Edited April 18, 2011 by Dan-147

[Brickimad]

I put the 9v motor on it. At full power, with the two cars almost leaves the track, unless I go to max 90% power on the controller. Also put it on the 12v track, again almost too much speed. Not bad for a 30-year old motor!!!

Suppose just goes to show how $%@p the PF system is. The PF was from the city train, which now has 9v on it. Looks like I'll be putting the PF unit (Motor/RX/TX and battery box on ebay... )

You're right about the technic axels. They are fixed, without a Differential-causing extra drag on the wheels round the fairly sharp lego tracks. I replaced the bogey with normal lego wheels, or once could replace the axel with the technic beam clip/cross bit.

Just loaded this Youtube clip of the 12v system...

Edited April 18, 2011 by Brickimad

[AndyC]

One pf motor clearly cannot move an entire train of 6 cars... any suggestions? I may perhaps add a second pf motor to the second locomotive..

You could replace the technic 6 axles with frictionless technic axle pins (the tan/grey ones) on the unpowered engine, since that will allow the wheels to spin independently if drag in corners is causing an issue.

Before doing that though, I'd make sure you haven't pushed the wheels too tightly onto the model, if they're pressing against the frame there'll be a lot of unnecessary friction. They should be a little loose and spin freely by hand. I've pulled trains longer than 6 cars with a single PF motor, so it shouldn't be a requirement to add another unless you're building particularly heavy cargo.

[hoeij]

You could replace the technic 6 axles with frictionless technic axle pins (the tan/grey ones) on the unpowered engine, since that will allow the wheels to spin independently if drag in corners is causing an issue.

The wheels in the old 9V wheel sets also did not spin independently, and nevertheless did quite OK in curves. The newer 9V/RC train wheels sit looser on their metal axles, so this allows the two wheels to spin at different speeds, but this seems to make little difference in experiments.

On straight track, the technic axle pins definitely have more friction than the technic 6 axles. I would recommend the technic-6 axles, not the pins (the Emerald Night has a couple of pins, I felt it was necessary to lubricate them to make them run more smoothly. No such problems with the axles).

Before doing that though, I'd make sure you haven't pushed the wheels too tightly onto the model, if they're pressing against the frame there'll be a lot of unnecessary friction. They should be a little loose and spin freely by hand.

This is of course very important. You'll have tons of friction if you put the wheels on too tight. Legoluchlol: Did you try this? Let us know if it helped. If you hold the train upside down and spin the wheels, they should not stop spinning right away, they should spin freely for a couple of seconds.

[F0NIX]

There last design flaw is when converting the train to power functions, 2 circular pieces ontop of the engine need to be removed to switch the battery on and off. Anyone else encounter these problems?

I would not say it is a design flaw, but it is not a good design.

Anyway, I found a mod to be able to turn the batterybox on and off without removing any bricks at all. It is realy easy and you only need 4 extra technic parts. Look at this thread for more explanations and pictures: http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=54320

[pdxbricks]

The wheels in the old 9V wheel sets also did not spin independently, and nevertheless did quite OK in curves. The newer 9V/RC train wheels sit looser on their metal axles, so this allows the two wheels to spin at different speeds, but this seems to make little difference in experiments.

On straight track, the technic axle pins definitely have more friction than the technic 6 axles. I would recommend the technic-6 axles, not the pins (the Emerald Night has a couple of pins, I felt it was necessary to lubricate them to make them run more smoothly. No such problems with the axles).

This is of course very important. You'll have tons of friction if you put the wheels on too tight. Legoluchlol: Did you try this? Let us know if it helped. If you hold the train upside down and spin the wheels, they should not stop spinning right away, they should spin freely for a couple of seconds.

I also found this problem on my Maersk engine, one pair of wheels would not spin freely when I put the decorative sides on. I tried changing the clearance between the wheel and the technics brick and it didn't help. Then I swapped the front and back axles and wheels, and that seemed to have solved the problem. I know it shouldn't make any difference, but it worked in my case.

[ZueriHB]

I recently bought a second Maersk Train set- two look wonderful together! The two locomotives in the front and the 4 cars in the back.

However, with power functions, the train moves at an extremely slow rate and slips on the curves quite frequently- and no I do not have any flexible tracks in my set up

Removing one locomotive solves this issue but i think the train looks better with two.

One pf motor clearly cannot move an entire train of 6 cars... any suggestions? I may perhaps add a second pf motor to the second locomotive..

Add a second PF motor, may need two extension cables and a 9V cable / plate to reverse polarity.

I did this and my Maersk loco happily pulls all my cargo wagons. I still need to build the second locomotive to get a better look on my consist.

Have a look:

[hoeij]

Otherwise, those Technic axles add a lot of resistance. You might want to rebuild the unpowered trucks with standard train wheel bricks in a manner somewhat like on the Metroliner. Check page 17 of these instructions.

Without major modifications this won't work, because the studs on the standard train wheel holders will bump into the front of the train base plate (so it won't go through curves).

I've done a few comparisons (very inaccurate, by hand) regarding the friction. On straight track, pulling 1 un-motored Maersk engine takes much more effort than pulling 6 Maersk cargo cars (with 1 container each).

You can lower the friction quite drastically by putting some lubrication into the holes of the technic brick where the axle goes into (I'm not sure what the best lubricant is though). I tried some WD-40 (note: I've read somewhere that this might be bad for lego bricks, so I can not recommend that you do this too) and I estimate that this reduces friction by about half. Big improvement, but even with that it's still a lot more friction than what you would have had with standard train wheels. Perhaps a different lubricant, one more suitable to plastic, would have given a better result, although I suspect that even with the best lubrication, a plastic axle would still have more rotational friction than a metal axle.

My advice, if you want to pull a second Maersk engine, is go to a hobby store, and ask for some plastic-to-plastic lubricant. Without that, pulling that 1 engine is a MUCH higher load than pulling those cargo cars.

Add a second PF motor, may need two extension cables and a 9V cable / plate to reverse polarity.

I did this and my Maersk loco happily pulls all my cargo wagons. I still need to build the second locomotive to get a better look on my consist.

Could you check if you get the same results? How many of your cargo wagons do you have to put behind each other to create a load that takes an equal effort to pull as 1 Maersk engine?

[Pet-Lego]

Removing the rubber bands from the wheels that are not attached to a motor works away some friction on curved track.

I only have rubber bands/rings on the 4 wheels that are attached to the train motor (on all my trains).

Removing the rubber bands/rings is done easily with a toothpick, slide it between the flange and the rubber and then gently push it in the direction the wheels normally rotate.

[FelixTheCat]

And with an iPhone in my hand I suddenly forget all the grammar I learnt in school...

When you haven't got a full size keyboard and you're trying to write a long post it's fairly natural to abbreviate or leave words out entirely. I do it all the time when writing emails or posts from my iPhone.

[hoeij]

You can lower the friction quite drastically by putting some lubrication into the holes of the technic brick where the axle goes into.

I now built 2 Maersk engines, and compared them side by side. One is standard, and the other one is lubricated with WD-40 (I've read that WD-40 might not be good for plastic, so I used only a tiny amount. I put a tiny amount of WD-40 on a piece of napkin, and inserted that into the hole of the technic brick. The amount of WD-40 that is put into that hole is so small that you can't even see it.).

If you give both engines the same push and let them roll out, then the lubricated one rolls 3 times further (tried this on straight track). In any case, both in straights and in curves, it takes much less effort to pull the lubricated engine compared to the standard one, the difference is immediately obvious when you push or pull them by hand.

On straight or curved track, two lubricated engines will definitely be easier to move than one standard one.

A train built with 2 sets of 10219 can be pulled comfortably with 1 motor, but only if you use lubrication. Without lubrication, you'll need 2 motors.

(obviously, the cargo cars do not need lubrication, they roll very well as they are, and don't add much to the load for the motor).

[nils]

Hello hoeij,

until now I didn't dare to lubricate. When I read your message I decided to find out on wikipedia if your solution is right.

on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedcubing I found the following:

WD-40 is incompatible with ABS plastic due to white sprit content.

One possibility should be Cyclo Silicone Spray

Regards,

Nils.

I now built 2 Maersk engines, and compared them side by side. One is standard, and the other one is lubricated with WD-40 (I've read that WD-40 might not be good for plastic, so I used only a tiny amount. I put a tiny amount of WD-40 on a piece of napkin, and inserted that into the hole of the technic brick. The amount of WD-40 that is put into that hole is so small that you can't even see it.).

If you give both engines the same push and let them roll out, then the lubricated one rolls 3 times further (tried this on straight track). In any case, both in straights and in curves, it takes much less effort to pull the lubricated engine compared to the standard one, the difference is immediately obvious when you push or pull them by hand.

On straight or curved track, two lubricated engines will definitely be easier to move than one standard one.

A train built with 2 sets of 10219 can be pulled comfortably with 1 motor, but only if you use lubrication. Without lubrication, you'll need 2 motors.

(obviously, the cargo cars do not need lubrication, they roll very well as they are, and don't add much to the load for the motor).

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

Nice hint Hoeij ...thanks for your usefull test!

As Nils suggests we have to find out a better lubricant ...but the way is correct!