Athearn Challenger, Good Grief!

[peteski]

...and parts are (still) always available; go figure....

Mark in Oregon

OEM parts, or reproductions?
Also remember that these toys were made way before the limited-run with reservations business model used today.

[kverdon]

Both original and reproduction parts are out there and Athearn can't dig up parts for something made 3 months ago that has had numerous runs.  When I spoke to the etailer I purchased my original unit from, he said the recent run of Big-Boys and Challengers had been somewhat of a nightmare for him to the point he may drop Athearn completely.

[peteski]

Both original and reproduction parts are out there and Athearn can't dig up parts for something made 3 months ago that has had numerous runs.  When I spoke to the etailer I purchased my original unit from, he said the recent run of Big-Boys and Challengers had been somewhat of a nightmare for him to the point he may drop Athearn completely.

Unfortunately we live in the world of limited-runs, advanced-reservations and production outsourced to China.
From what I heard from the industry insiders is that Chinese manufacturers have the American companies by the short-and-curlys. The Chinese companies dictate how many spare parts they will manufacture for the run (if they provide any spare parts at all). This scenario might not be the same for all the companies, but it seems to be pretty common amongst manufacturers.

[MK]

That is correct Peteski.  Not only that the manufacturers "own" the molds.  So you have no negotiating powers to take YOUR mold elsewhere for better pricing or better quality.  Their concept is they made the molds so it's their property even though you paid them to make it!  Any IP brought into the country belongs to the government.

(BTW Petski, it was nice meeting you at Amherst.  I wished I had more time to chat with you but I was busy all over the place!)

[peteski]

(BTW Petski, it was nice meeting you at Amherst.  I wished I had more time to chat with you but I was busy all over the place!)

It was nice meeting you too MK. Yes, the Amherst show is very hectic, but still lots of fun.

[nscalbitz]

That is correct Peteski.  Not only that the manufacturers "own" the molds.  So you have no negotiating powers to take YOUR mold elsewhere for better pricing or better quality.  Their concept is they made the molds so it's their property____

Welcome to the world of who has it owns it. Offshoring work is only as valuable as your skill at getting it back.
Next they will be making available models at 1/8th the price, the way B***man and co started doing 40 years ago. Ask Airfix UK about outsourcing to Hong Kong in the 70's. Same issues...
dave

[rgengineoiler]

Yesterday, March 6th finally got an email reply from Athearn.  Supposed to be another 3 weeks for the parts to come in.  They even said they would email me when it is being shipped back to me.  Another words, shut up and wait!  But I guess that is progress.  I bet the CEO still got his or her's bonus for last years sales.  Waiting for a slow container ship to arrive is not good business.  I'm wondering if the parts are even made yet.  This is what happens when a good company is sold to another huge conglomerate.  It is all on the spread sheet.   Waiting!  DR

[kverdon]

Yep, still waiting for the Challenger I sent back in October to return from Athearn service. They promised it back in Dec. I’ve had it. They are on my boycot list. Been spending my model railroad budget on postwar Lionel and having a blast. I’ve picked up 3 locos for the price of the challenger. The one I received broken I was able to fix for $4 myself. This has soured me on NScale locomotives for the forseeable future.

[jdcolombo]

I bought one of the very first Challengers (a Clinchfield) which unfortunately had large-flange wheels on the tender, pilot and trailing trucks (the drivers were fine).  I know at one time Athearn offered replacements, but at the time I had a Peco Code 55 layout, and the Challenger ran just fine on that track because of it's design.

When I built my new layout with Atlas Code 55, of course, the Challenger would no longer run, hitting all the molded spike heads with the larger-flange wheels.  I wrote and e-mailed Athearn about new wheels.  Never heard back.  Wrote and e-mailed a second time after the new run came out, figuring that NOW they would have wheels available.  Never heard back.  Finally, I just took the wheels out, chucked each axle in a drill, and filed down the flanges myself.  It took a while and some experimenting with the flange profile, but now the Challenger runs just fine on my layout.  Unfortunately, this process took most of the plating off the wheels (which are brass base metal, it appears), but it doesn't seem to have affected electrical pickup.

But it should not have been up to me to do this.  Atlas and Kato both keep parts supplies for their engines.  Wheels, motors, frame halves, etc.   Micro-trains sells parts for their rolling stock.  Even Bachmann keeps parts, although they are often sold out of the stuff you need. 

I have one Challenger and one Big Boy.  I've converted both to ESU LokSound, and both run extremely well.  But I'll never buy another Athearn product given my experience.  Life's too short.

John C.

[MK]

And if you try calling them....nobody every picks up!   

[mmagliaro]

I bought one of the very first Challengers (a Clinchfield) which unfortunately had large-flange wheels on the tender, pilot and trailing trucks (the drivers were fine).  I know at one time Athearn offered replacements, but at the time I had a Peco Code 55 layout, and the Challenger ran just fine on that track because of it's design.

When I built my new layout with Atlas Code 55, of course, the Challenger would no longer run, hitting all the molded spike heads with the larger-flange wheels.  I wrote and e-mailed Athearn about new wheels.  Never heard back.  Wrote and e-mailed a second time after the new run came out, figuring that NOW they would have wheels available.  Never heard back.  Finally, I just took the wheels out, chucked each axle in a drill, and filed down the flanges myself.  It took a while and some experimenting with the flange profile, but now the Challenger runs just fine on my layout.  Unfortunately, this process took most of the plating off the wheels (which are brass base metal, it appears), but it doesn't seem to have affected electrical pickup.

But it should not have been up to me to do this.  Atlas and Kato both keep parts supplies for their engines.  Wheels, motors, frame halves, etc.   Micro-trains sells parts for their rolling stock.  Even Bachmann keeps parts, although they are often sold out of the stuff you need. 

I have one Challenger and one Big Boy.  I've converted both to ESU LokSound, and both run extremely well.  But I'll never buy another Athearn product given my experience.  Life's too short.

John C.

John, if you are game for it, you can use a Caswell plating kit to replate nickel on to those wheels.  It only costs about $40 for the kit and it works surprisingly well.
http://www.caswellplating.com/electroplating-anodizing/brush-plating-products/plug-n-plate-kits/plug-n-plate-nickel-kit.html

I even use it to replate nickel onto my soldering iron tips when they start to get pitted.  I was surprised at how well the plating holds up on such a harsh application, but I'd say that the tips last at least another 6 months before I have to replate them,
and a soldering iron tip lives a hard life compared to tender wheels.

[rgengineoiler]

OK everybody,  I Got a call from Alex at Athearn in California today, April 4th,  and said they were sorry the repair was taking so long and offered a new Athearn freight car of my choice for now.  A nice offer but I have probably 225 freight cars of all types or more and don't need any.   He also said that the factory was re-designing the gearbox on the Challenger (China) with no estimated date for the parts to be shipped.  That info made sense to me because when I placed the Challenger on the track for the  first time it made a very loud grinding noise and it was finished.  I think what bothers me most is that it is paid for, it is April, my winter time working on the layout is mostly over and my acreage is calling loud and clear.  Murphy has always been with me.   Doug    

[mmagliaro]

As frustrating as this is, I think they need to do this.  Remember this picture (below).  I'd wager that the grinding you heard was that spider ball spinning and chewing at the cup that it wasn't seated in.  They need to fit a slightly longer coupling in there so that the whole thing stays together.

[rgengineoiler]

Many Thanks for the picture and explanation.  Sure makes sense on the noise I heard.  I did not want to mess with it and ruin my warranty and why should a buyer have to.  I suppose I won't get it back until next fall.  Doug

[kverdon]

Unfreaking Real!! Almost 6 months after I send them my engine back and they can’t even estimate when I get it back. Anyone want to lay odds on a year? I really regret not just returning the second one as well and spending that $400 elsewhere. I’m tempted to call and complain to get them to send me a free car. At least I could EBay it and recover something.