AHM Krauss Maffei ML-4000 HO scale locomotive

AHM Krauss Maffei ML-4000 HO scale locomotive

Total Rebuild

After doing the Tenshodo SD24, I finally gained the skills necessary to revisit the AHM Krauss Maffei ML-4000 project that I started about 5 years ago.

When I started the project I found it simple to disassemble and strip all the paint.  The motor is a vertical shaft with a worm that goes down to a set of brass gears inside the rear truck.  Power is picked up from 2 axles on one side in the from, which is the right side and by a single axle on one side in the back.  The way this thing is able to work at all is because of the very heavy weight blocks.  It does run quite smooth in fact.  There are 2 traction tires in the rear.

The trucks are quite detailed with a single piece sideframe and screw on bottom cover.  This is the problem.  There is only 1 wire coming up from the center and to add power pickup was beyond my skill at that time.

Fast forward to the Tenshodo.  I had begun using the Tichy phosphor bronze wire to get more pickup out of the Bachmann and Life-Like trucks which lead to figuring out a way to do the same with the Tenshodo.  That's when I remembered the Krauss Maffei.  Could this method be adapted.  On the front truck, it was simple and a couple quarter inch holes in the frame floor gave plenty of clearance for turning.

Now for the rear truck.  There is a problem in that the motor just floats freely and is held in place with a spring clip.  The floor of the frame has a steel plate which is another obstacle.  Even if those two items are overcome,  2 wheels have traction tires and there is a serious clearance issue with the steel plate and motor in the way.  So let's see what we can do....