Damaged Murphy's 201

[Darrman]

So I managed to pick up a 201 when IRM put up a small bit of extra stock the other day. However, when I took it out of the box both couplers, one of the buffers, and half of a bogie fell off, along with some other minor parts. The train still runs though with an exposed piece of metal that causes sparks whenever it touches the track.

I still have the missing pieces. What should I do now?

[murphaph]

The bits that fell off can be put back on but the colour looks sort of washed out. Doesn't look like my 203.

[meathdane]

Could it possibly be a return that got mixed in with the stock? I agree with Murph, it looks very faded and washed out

[murphaph]

One wheel is also a different colour. Never seen that before on a new one. Can you take some more pics of it @Darrman ?

[Darrman]

@murphaph Sure, here's some more pictures. The wheel colour in the first picture was just bad lighting. Hopefully these are a bit clearer.

[murphaph]

Looks better in those pics. Maybe just the light/camera combination in the original pic. You won't want to send it back because there are no replacements and putting the bits back on a loco is basically par for the course with many models, so the best thing is to lay out the bits and try to match them up using the exploded diagram. The only thing of any real concern would be the shorting you reported. Which piece is it sparking from?

[Darrman]

The metal piece sticking out on the wheels near the missing bogie piece.

[murphaph]

That's the power pickup spring. It should be parallel to the bogie frame and in behind the 3 wheels, touching the insides of the wheel faces. Can you compare to the other side of the bogie and try to seat the pickup to match the good side?

[Westcorkrailway]

It apears the post man was not to kind to the 201s due for cork. As yet another 201 has been reported pretty seriously broken. Once again 230 burst through its box and r the front from the buffer beam down ( and some bogey detail missing)…..good bit  of damage done unfortunately 

[spudfan]

The phosphur bronze pick up strip has two holes in it. These holes slot over the two protruding lugs between the wheels. The outside of the chassis frame has two holes that these lugs slot into, holding the bogie side frame in place. As your phosphur bronze strip is askew, one end could be hitting an axle thus shorting out. It will be o.k. when fixed properly in place. Here are some photos 0f 210. They show the protruding lugs and the phosphur bronze strip in place.

[iarnrod]

The interior white plastic packaging on the MM 201's is no way near up to the job for postage, and many 201's have arrived to me over the years with front end damage after bursting through the white inner plastic during transit.

Some retailers reinforce this white inner plastic with bubble wrap or hard foam to counteract it's weak nature.

 

[MOGUL]

35 minutes ago, iarnrod said:

The interior white plastic packaging on the MM 201's is no way near up to the job for postage, and many 201's have arrived to me over the years with front end damage after bursting through the white inner plastic during transit.

Some retailers reinforce this white inner plastic with bubble wrap or hard foam to counteract it's weak nature.

 

My 210 arrived with the white plastic cracked and the loco sitting at a funny angle.. Besides the steps on the bogie frame, no appparent damage to the loco thankfully.. The packaging in the 071s was a bit sturdier I think, so obviously the lesson was learnt

[connollystn]

Don't have a Murphy Models 201 but problems with the packaging were highlighted on one of Euvirail's reviews on his YouTube channel. Due to the proliferation of online retailing the packaging has been made a lot sturdier so the chances of receiving a damaged item in the post is reduced. Remember, the MM 201s were produced at a time when most of us were going to physical stores to make our purchases - they were the good old days.

[murphaph]

10 minutes ago, connollystn said:

Don't have a Murphy Models 201 but problems with the packaging were highlighted on one of Euvirail's reviews on his YouTube channel. Due to the proliferation of online retailing the packaging has been made a lot sturdier so the chances of receiving a damaged item in the post is reduced. Remember, the MM 201s were produced at a time when most of us were going to physical stores to make our purchases - they were the good old days.

That's actually a fair point which I had never really considered.

[Darrman]

Thank you for the help, everyone. I managed to reattach the fallen couplers and buffer, and though it was incredibly fiddly I finally got the bogie reattached and in line. Haven't run it yet (piles of Monopoly boards to avoid the carpet isn't really a good running environment) but the train looks well again, at least.

Thanks again!

[murphaph]

Good job! My new 203 arrived here in Germany this morning in absolutely perfect cosmetic condition! You can be lucky or unlucky. Cheers again to the IRM lads for releasing at the original RRP.

[Noel]

If problems persist IRM have excellent warranty service so perhaps send it back to them for repair or replacement. They will pick up the cost of collection/post.

[connollystn]

45 minutes ago, Noel said:

If problems persist IRM have excellent warranty service so perhaps send it back to them for repair or replacement. They will pick up the cost of collection/post.

My initial response would have been to contact IRM directly without needing to start a thread here, however, he was willing to tackle the issue himself and seems to have resolved the problem and at the same time a few of us may have learned from the advice provided by others and, I sort of found it interesting. Not sure if the model is a bit of a rarity and how likely is the retailer to have a replacement? Think the buyer wouldn't be best pleased if the only solution was a full refund but, have to wait to see if the model is running well.

@murphaph - Glad your 203 arrived in perfect 'cosmetic' condition but, I'm sure, it'll be in good running order also.

[DJ Dangerous]

1 hour ago, Noel said:

If problems persist IRM have excellent warranty service so perhaps send it back to them for repair or replacement. They will pick up the cost of collection/post.

I doubt that IRM, or any retailers, will have spares in stock for repair, or replacement 201's available.

1 hour ago, murphaph said:

Good job! My new 203 arrived here in Germany this morning in absolutely perfect cosmetic condition! You can be lucky or unlucky. Cheers again to the IRM lads for releasing at the original RRP.

Have to second that! Fair play to IRM for selling them so cheap!

Sounds like any issues with them were easy to resolve by the end-users, so it's a win-win all around.

[spudfan]

Regarding spares. I got buffers with springs from ViTrains for one of their class 37s this week.

[DJ Dangerous]

14 hours ago, spudfan said:

Regarding spares. I got buffers with springs from ViTrains for one of their class 37s this week.

To fit to a 201?

[spudfan]

No. The point being that even though it has been a while since the last ViTrains class 37 was produced, I could still get spares for it.

 

[BosKonay]

1 hour ago, spudfan said:

No. The point being that even though it has been a while since the last ViTrains class 37 was produced, I could still get spares for it.

 

Any responsible manufacturer will have spares and parts for a reasonable amount of time. More so if the models remain in production but a ‘one man band’ like Murphy Models the process can be a little looser. we don’t have parts particularly for any MM items we sell (but do of course for any IRM items)

[Broithe]

37 minutes ago, BosKonay said:

Any responsible manufacturer will have spares and parts for a reasonable amount of time. More so if the models remain in production but a ‘one man band’ like Murphy Models the process can be a little looser. we don’t have parts particularly for any MM items we sell (but do of course for any IRM items)

Where I worked, we would often get requests for spares from the past. As is common, some very early products will last a long time, before people get pressures from accountants to cut costs, once some experience has been got.

I once got a letter from some obscure place in the ex-colonies, asking for a spare terminal bushing* for a thing that I'd never heard of. Some searching found the details of the component. It was clear that there would not be 'one lying about somewhere' and, it would be hugely expensive to attempt to make one, plus the design required materials that would have been illegal many years before, so it would require a completely new design.

I informed the potential customer of the ridiculous price that we would require, should we agree to have a go at making something that might work.

They got quite shirty about us not having one on the shelf, even after I pointed out that they had bought it before my father was born.

 

* This sort of thing.

[MauriceJ]

My 230 came in the same damaged condition, just fyi.

[Noel]

On 3/3/2023 at 12:31 PM, DJ Dangerous said:

I doubt that IRM, or any retailers, will have spares in stock for repair, or replacement 201's available.

IRM's warranty service is top class, I'm sure their service team could fix this. If spare parts needed they might arrange via Murphy Models I'm sure. I understand 'normal' retailers may not stock spares, but IRM are not 'normal' retailers, they are extraordinary and make things happen.

[DJ Dangerous]

4 hours ago, Noel said:

IRM's warranty service is top class, I'm sure their service team could fix this. If spare parts needed they might arrange via Murphy Models I'm sure. I understand 'normal' retailers may not stock spares, but IRM are not 'normal' retailers, they are extraordinary and make things happen.

 

Are you joking or smoking?

IRM have no bodies, nor chassis, nor bogies for the A's. They have limited other spares, so limited that they have to be held back for warranty work only.

Murphy Models had no 121 spares within a few months of the locos selling out.

They had no spare Mk2D buffers while the coaches themselves were still on sale.

Doesn't matter how good IRM are, and let's be honest, they ARE bloody good, but they can't magic parts out of thin air, at least, not down here on Earth.

[BosKonay]

We have lots of spares for the A why would we not? 

[DJ Dangerous]

Just now, BosKonay said:

We have lots of spares for the A why would we not? 

Nooope! Already been down that route to try buy a wiper and a horn for the 048 that @murphaph has restored.

[BosKonay]

Aha. we don’t sell parts but we have ample supplies for warranty. did you email us about the parts requirements?

[DJ Dangerous]

7 minutes ago, BosKonay said:

Aha. we don’t sell parts but we have ample supplies for warranty. did you email us about the parts requirements?

Yup, I'd never post without first speaking in private.

But you definitely have no bodies, chassis nor bogies in stock, warranty or no, that much was very clear.

Don't have the emails to hand as I'm out, but can quote exact wording later if you need.

[Garfield]

1 hour ago, DJ Dangerous said:

Yup, I'd never post without first speaking in private.

But you definitely have no bodies, chassis nor bogies in stock, warranty or no, that much was very clear.

Don't have the emails to hand as I'm out, but can quote exact wording later if you need.

Hi Dave,

As it was me you were in contact with regarding this, I just want to clarify a few things here.

Firstly, it should be pointed out that the reason you contacted us was not warranty-related.

Regarding bodies, chassis and bogies, any fundamental issues involving these parts would have been detected within a short space of time after the locos first arrived, and if there were any issues the affected loco(s) would have been set aside and replaced with an equivalent from a reserve we had put in place (in the end this was not required and the reserve stock was released).

I did also point out that we have supplies of most other parts available to cater for any warranty cases that arise. We don't offer these parts for sale at present as we have to ensure availability for warranty work for at least 12 months after the very last new A Class model is sold to the end user. One reseller was advertising availability as recently as January, so I'm sure you can appreciate why we need to conserve stocks for so long. However, from posts I've seen elsewhere, I believe the rebuilding of your loco is now substantially complete, so if you want to email me a list of the small parts still required, I'll ask our technician to check these stocks and we'll see if we can make some available for you.

[DJ Dangerous]

54 minutes ago, Garfield said:

Hi Dave,

As it was me you were in contact with regarding this, I just want to clarify a few things here.

Firstly, it should be pointed out that the reason you contacted us was not warranty-related.

Regarding bodies, chassis and bogies, any fundamental issues involving these parts would have been detected within a short space of time after the locos first arrived, and if there were any issues the affected loco(s) would have been set aside and replaced with an equivalent from a reserve we had put in place (in the end this was not required and the reserve stock was released).

I did also point out that we have supplies of most other parts available to cater for any warranty cases that arise. We don't offer these parts for sale at present as we have to ensure availability for warranty work for at least 12 months after the very last new A Class model is sold to the end user. One reseller was advertising availability as recently as January, so I'm sure you can appreciate why we need to conserve stocks for so long. However, from posts I've seen elsewhere, I believe the rebuilding of your loco is now substantially complete, so if you want to email me a list of the small parts still required, I'll ask our technician to check these stocks and we'll see if we can make some available for you.

Yup, that's pretty much exactly what I wrote, although I was a lot more concise.

[Garfield]

52 minutes ago, DJ Dangerous said:

Yup, that's pretty much exactly what I wrote, although I was a lot more concise.

Hi Dave,

I was just adding context to allay any concerns that we might be unable to fulfill our warranty obligations. As I said above, drop us a line and we'll see what we can do re. the parts you still require.

[DJ Dangerous]

4 minutes ago, Garfield said:

Hi Dave,

I was just adding context to allay any concerns that we might be unable to fulfill our warranty obligations. As I said above, drop us a line and we'll see what we can do re. the parts you still require.

Oh come on, everybody knows that you guys will make sure that you can cover warranty stuff by hook or by crook.

An example of the lengths that you guys go to was in Fran's Manor update. He said something to the effect of a small delay being due to you guys wanting to make something better. Not because something was wrong, but because you guys felt that there was something that you could do better.

Everybody here on the forum knows the lengths that you will go to, and I made it very clear in my posts on Phil's workbench thread that this was NOT a warranty issue.

Anyway, I've digressed. The reason I mentioned it in the first place was to emphasise the improbability (not impossibility) of Paddy Murphy having spare 201 bodies lying around ten years later, and if your post is anything to go by, and if Paddy works in a similar manner, he, too, wouldn't have needed spare 201 bodies in the first place.