Dodgy Points

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Paul M

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I have a couple of LGB R1 points that are in need of a bit of lubrication. Any suggestions as to the best stuff to use?
 
I like a spray with GT85, also provides some weatherproofing

gt85.co.uk

Homepage - GT85

GT85 spray for professional tradespeople, mechanics, cyclists & DIYers. It lubes, cleans, protects, extends the life of equipment, and makes maintenance easy.
gt85.co.uk gt85.co.uk
 
JimmyB said:
I like a spray with GT85, also provides some weatherproofing

gt85.co.uk

Homepage - GT85

GT85 spray for professional tradespeople, mechanics, cyclists & DIYers. It lubes, cleans, protects, extends the life of equipment, and makes maintenance easy.
gt85.co.uk gt85.co.uk
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A question. Do you spray the point rails with this, or do you spray the point motor - or both. I just wondered, because I have sprayed the point hinge rails with WD40 in the past, but not the actual motor. I have only sprayed the motor and switching bar with compressed air - to help remove dirt. I would be interested to know if you can use the GT85 on the motor and/or the sliding mechanism as well.
 
I've been giving my dirty points a good clean, which seems to have helped. I'll be breaking out some GT85 or similar stuff, but I think one of the springs has started to fail.
 
I usually spray the point rail hinges and shoot some into the motor's throwbar rack and pinion. I don't deliberately spray the motor shaft bushings (LGB says not lubricate these) but I'm sure some overspray gets on the pinion end bushing. The carrier ends up evaporating just leaving the PFTE. I only do this if a point motor starts acting up. Also, I've learned to check the point rails carefully for debris that may be interfering before resorting to the spray. I'm using Solder Seal Gunk brand Teflon spray lubricant which, if I've read the GT85 description correctly, is basically the same stuff.
 
If you have early EPL point motors, you really should check that the ceramic permanent magnets in the rotor part of the motor haven't fractured and are restricting movement of the mechanism. You need to pull the EPL point motor completely apart to see the rotor assembly properly.

The later EPL point motors had a different rotor design which overcame that particular issue.
 
Software Tools said:
If you have early EPL point motors, you really should check that the ceramic permanent magnets in the rotor part of the motor haven't fractured and are restricting movement of the mechanism. You need to pull the EPL point motor completely apart to see the rotor assembly properly.

The later EPL point motors had a different rotor design which overcame that particular issue.
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And if you pull an EPL motor apart be very careful that you understand how it came apart so you can put it back together. Get 1 thing wrong on the rebuild and they will not work at all. Best suggestion is to take a lot of digital pics at close up if you can.
 
Whilst testing my uncoupling ramps one of my point started to play up. I am using a Revolution to operate the points, and the point would only move one way with the control, so after ensuring there was no debris preventing the movement, first I swapped the wires, the point still failed in the same direction, so not the Revo (phew!). Removing the motor, and using the same power supply as I use on the Revo I tested the motor, exact same fault. Top off, and nothing looked out of place, no grit and no damp. A quick wipe around and power applied with the top removed, worked both directions, fully assembled, and still working. Back onto the point and all is fine.
I really hate it when I can't find a cause for a fault, but the fault clears, maybe it just wanted a clean :)
 
JimmyB said:
Whilst testing my uncoupling ramps one of my point started to play up. I am using a Revolution to operate the points, and the point would only move one way with the control, so after ensuring there was no debris preventing the movement, first I swapped the wires, the point still failed in the same direction, so not the Revo (phew!). Removing the motor, and using the same power supply as I use on the Revo I tested the motor, exact same fault. Top off, and nothing looked out of place, no grit and no damp. A quick wipe around and power applied with the top removed, worked both directions, fully assembled, and still working. Back onto the point and all is fine.
I really hate it when I can't find a cause for a fault, but the fault clears, maybe it just wanted a clean :)
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Just wonder if there had been some carp under the point that got dislodged when you removed the motor? I find I get that now and again particularly after rain where some of the loose ballast get moved about.
 
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