Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

[delivery of oblivion]

Hello Folks,
I have on a few occassions asked questions about the Aristo Rogers 2 4 2 smoke unit.I have just purchased a new Rogers 2 4 2 loco,and was surprised to find that there was no On /Off switch for the smoke unit,situated behind the door,at front of smoke box...Despite this being the place mentioned in the manual.In fact the switch for the smoke unit,is actually positioned underneath the locomotive...Doesn`t say on or off,so i`m not sure which position is which.I wondered if this could possibly be one of the newer models,with a New high-volume fan-assisted smoke unit with burnout protection ??
Does anyone know,or own one.Could be i have been sold the more up to date version in error.
Cheers
Ade

 

[funandtrains]

Aristo-Craft have redesigned these a few times. I have a couple of ones which are several years old and there is a switch in the smoke box and the smoke unit is built into the chimney which pulls outs with a jack plug type fitting. If it were to have a fanned unit the smoke unit would have to be in the body with a hollow chimney so it would be simple to tell the difference.

If the loco has silver valve gear then it is a very old REA version.

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

Hello Mate,
Thanks for reply.Its definitely not an old REA Loco.Its also not the type of smoke unit you mentioned,with the pull out,jack plug.I pulled the smoke stack up,expecting it to be like that,and what happened was the Black plastic smoke stack outside sleeve,came out,revealing a long gold thin tube,going down the whole length of the outer sleeve,and into the loco.It is hollow...So i guess i must have the new design.As i say,switch is underneath the loco,next to the underside of one of the Cylinders.There`s a little sticker saying smoke switch,refer to manual.Trouble is manual supplied only mentions the older type unit,with swich in smokebox door.
I have now e mailed arist direct to find out for sure,but wanted to see if anyone knew here.The thin tube itself,that goes into loco..Any idea if it can be removed,or is it like "welded" in to something inside.Dare not fiddle about with it,till i know more.
The sound unit in tender is really loud,which i guess being new,it would be.
Cheers then

Ade

 

[funandtrains]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

Have they improved the sound unit too? The old type was a very crude analogue system with just a chuff from static hiss?

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

As far as i can tell,the Sloped back tender is identical in every way to the 2 i have had before,and the sound unit operates in the same way,with a rubber roller underneath.Its just far louder,with volume turned up max,than what i expected,but of course,that will be because its not had any use,i guess.Is still the same sound though,basic chuff.
By the way,do these aristo smoke units operated with any time of smoke oil..I only have Bachmann oil.Guess it won`t destroy it ?? I understand that they work better with full on power,possibly from a higher power controller,rather than just a 1 amp lgb.The rogers i had before,the smoke units have never really been great.
Cheers
Ade

 

[funandtrains]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

I don't know about this loco but Mikado needs Aristo Crest oil.

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

That could be why my other ones didn`t work so well,with me using Bachmann oil.I really don`t want to damage this one,so i`ll try get hold of some proper Aristocraft oil,before testing it out.
Cheers
Ade

 

[ntpntpntp]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

http://aristocraftforum.com/NewDocs/manuals/21000_2-4-2rogers.pdf

If you look at the manual for the 2-4-2 (above), there's a note at the bottom of page 6 referring to updated instructions on page 11. There it says models from around 2005 have the SD-45 style smoke unit, and gives instructions for these.

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

Thanks for that Nick..Looks like the one i have got.I was searching for these manuals on line earlier,and couldn`t find anything !! Infact i cannot even find anything about the Rogers 2 4 2,on Aristocrafts main site,which i think has altered since i last looked.Anyhow,many thanks.Does look like i`ll need the correct oil.Have to see if any is avaliable in the uk,rather than direct.
All the best
Ade

 

[ntpntpntp]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

You're welcome. I found the manual easy enough on the main Aristo site, under "Our Product Lines" then "Product Manuals". Not sure I like the site design as much as the old version though.

I have one of the old REA 2-4-2 locos, it seems to work well enough for what I paid for it (ie. an ebay bargain!)

The bottles of Crest smoke oil should be easy enough to find from UK dealers - eg. Dragon G Scale is listing them at £4.26. I have a couple of bottles from different sources and I see them on UK ebay from time to time.

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

Thats great Nick,thank you.Appreciate the info on the web site too...Just couldn`t see where the manuals were at all,plus the computer was really slow earlier,which never helped.I am pleased with this loco.Got it brand new for approx £125,and expected it to have the older type unit.Was surprised to see it was different,and thought that probably it might be the newer one.I understand its got a burn out protection,whatever that is.Anyhow,at least i know now that pushing the switch forward towards the front of the engine,Ie to the left,is ON,And to the right,(To Cab) is off...The opposite way round to the switches in the smoke box door.
Off to bed now,
Thanks both of you for replies
Ade

 

[Shawn]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

I haqve both the older and newer version. I use all types of oil for the smoke with no issues. I mainly use the oil for lanterns. The sound is the same although my older REA has the sound in the engine and has no tender. I think the REA engine runs much better and the older smoke units seems to run great. The newer Rogers the smoke units works ok. The only issue I have is it stops smoking after a few minutes even though there is still plenty of fluid in it. Th newer unit is nice because you dont need to turn off switch.

 

[Andrew]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

On most Aristo stuff if you look closely you will see a "decal" with the year biult on it. From memory it is on the back of the loco on the rear beam.

I removed my smoke unit from my Rogers & placed it in a building with plenty of power to make smoke. The reason was I converted all my locos over to battery power. It is a good smoker but I have read articles that say it can be possible to have a faulty unit with not working or poor smokers.

Mine wouldn't haul much as I had a 1:9 slope on long lenghts of track, one of the wheel sets stripped the gears. Replacement cost was at about $100 AU - about 1/3 to 1/2 the price of a new loco. I replaced the drive unit with spare LGB unit, I removed the front and rear wheels, shortened the boiler and have a great looking, reliable unit.
Regards from Andrew
Sandbar & Mudcrab Railways

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

Hi Folks,
Thanks Andrew for the info on finding out which year the loco was built.Mine is 2008.I wonder if this means i have the more up to date unit,which can actually be left turned on,as Shawn mentions.
I contacted Aristocraft,and they asked me which colour box it came in,as a way to identify year.Well,i assumed most of their boxes were yellow anyway ??? Never had a reply.I`ll e mail them and tell them the year.
Cheers
Ade

 

[delivery of oblivion]

Re:Aristocraft Rogers 2 4 2

Just found out from Tate at Aristocraft,that my 2008 Rogers loco,does not have the up to date smoke unit with fan assisted burn out protection.I was quite surprised,being as its definitely not the original type unit,ie smoke unit /stack plugging into the top of the smoke box,and on/off switch,behind smoke box door.My switch is underneath,next to cylinder.Unfortunately i still haven`t got any smoke oil to test it yet.Did they make an interim unit then,between the most upto date,as mentioned,and the original ?
Cheers
Ade