Tune-Up, Build and Review of the Original Tyco Super 630!

[@SMTMainline]

It's a shame they quit making these, I have a feeling tyco would have been around longer if they had.

[@animalyze7120]

They should have just partnered with Athearn like Cox and Lionel did and they would have been on to something. The drives were clever enough and do work well, it's those ball bearing motors that made these things get put on a shelf.

[@EmilyCarl-t7x]

Older models, were far better

[@trr94001]

Just seeing a Tyco Alco with a chassis is remarkable.

[@DarthSantaFe]

And it’s the only Tyco diesel (not counting 4-wheel switchers) to have a full chassis! The only other one I know of to have a single-piece chassis is the metal sharknose, and even that was in the roof instead of the underframe.

[@Riogrande6400]

This era of tyco was actually pretty decent. I've seen a lot of tyco locomotives over the years and this I beautiful Loco nice job

[@scottfw7169]

Installing the handrails on these and the Athearn blue boxers was a thing I enjoyed when coming to HO scale model trains around 12 years old after having been building plastic and balsa model kits since around 5 years old.

[@srenchin]

I linked this video to my thread about this same Tyco model in the Tyco Forum web site, I see you ran into some of the same issues I had with my model. The central gear assembly has a very tight fit in the plastic chassis!

[@DarthSantaFe]

I’m guessing some of these were common issues for this model!

[@Christiane069]

Very well done. I always enjoy how you make any model and brand maintenance "look" easy.

[@papstrainshow3353]

That's a great video on that 630. You don't see many of them. I found one at a local swap shop in a box of trains I bought years ago. When I got home and realized what I got I was happy.

[@vincenttolve9756]

Very good job. Excellent explanation of the model's history and nice work on the repairs. Thanks.

[@larmo5633]

I found this rebuilt very insightful, well done, very interesting, well done on this locomotive

[@animalyze7120]

These things were far better than the regular lineup for tyco but still had that lawnmower sound. Gramps took those motors out and used an aftermarket version which they still make for this style of motor, just make sure it's not the ball bearing type which requires grease not oil to quiet them down, they are good just a lot of work. Great video!

[@tracynation2820]

Super. I wish that my ALCO C-630 had come with this drive. My Century was actually in good running condition when railroad management (Me) had this idea that his railroad should have a Baldwin BP-20 Passenger Sharknose locomotive. A real BP-20 cost about $200.00 back then, but a friend of mine had a Tyco Baldwin RF-16 Sharknose that had died on him, and I got the idea to put the six wheel drive Powertorque motor truck and six wheel dummy truck from the C-630 in his Shark, effectively creating a short, chunky Baldwin BP-20 Passenger Sharknose unit. He was willing to trade for four Hot Wheels cars, and that was great because I couldn't shake the Shark fever, so I took him to the store, got him his booty, then stopped at his place and got mine. My plan changed though when I found out that my new toy had a bit of yarn wrapped around the gears, and the locomotive ran fine when I cleaned and oiled it. New plan, acquire two six axle Tyco Powertorque sideframes and one geared wheelset and one non geared wheelset, and turn the Sharknose into a dual motor twelve wheel drive passenger pulling machine, then turn the C-630 into a directionally controlled, fully lighted, highly detailed dummy locomotive with the possibility of putting a nice drivetrain and chassis in it down the road. The new plan worked, and the Shark and the Century were completed in about four weeks spare time, with both getting fully detailed. I added aftermarket ALCO and Baldwin parts, window glass, wipers, uncoupling levers, a picture of me in the cab, lighted number boards, class lights, and cab lights, air brake and MU cables, as much extra weight as I could stuff in the powered unit, and some weight for the dummy, spark arrestors, new horns, and new Kadee knuckle couplers. The ALCO and the Shark are both still operating on my model railroad to this day, and still look fantastic, and, technically, this is good news for Tyco fans, because I still have two almost fifty year old Tyco Powertorque locomotives earning their keep on an operating layout, even if the C-630s motor is in the Shark, it is still running, so the Century probably would still have been operating if I hadn't put the drive into the Shark. I was lucky to get two of the older better quality Powertorque drives, and the Sharknose will still pull a 21 car passenger train, but usually gets assigned to commuter service. I never found a Rivarossi chassis in my wanderings, or any twelve wheel chassis without a body, so I never repowered my C-630, and I probably won't now as I love my detailed dummy. But if I ever do run across an operating Rivarossi chassis for my Century, I will snap it up and present my railroad with another decent locomotive to facilitate freight delivery. Hello from the Tracy Mountain Railway in Colorado. 💙 T.E.N.

[@DarthSantaFe]

Sounds like quite the series of projects! I built a BP-20 a while back using a resin kit, but aside from that, they only have been available in brass as far as I know.

[@JNXT_Railroad]

Very nice example of this loco - I have never seen one in such good shape, you were fortunate to find it! I have had 4 of these in my roster so far, but all were in horrendous condition. Every one had one of the gears in the transfer case cracked, and every plastic wheel was cracked. On one, the wheels were past the point of rescue, so I was able to use the wheels from a Rivarossi E-unit. I had to very carefully ream the axle holes out a bit to get them to fit, but otherwise they worked out fine - even a bit of an upgrade. On another one the trucks were completely trashed, but I was able to use Rivarossi U25C trucks as replacements. It required some modifications, but it worked!

[@DarthSantaFe]

The tower gears cracking must be a common issue then! The cracked wheels happen all the way back to the Mantua MU-2, but at least those can be replaced with a bit of work. I'm thinking of using NWSL wheels for this one.

[@LevelUpModelTrains]

I've always thought that the shells of these things were way too nice for the drive they had, and I'm sure this was why! 😂

[@animalyze7120]

This was Tyco's attempt to compete in the hobby grade market and tried a reverse Athearn design due to copyright issues and fear of lawsuits. These were great pullers after the motors were replaced and only because of the noise. You can use bearing grease in the motor but have to get it completely apart and itll quiet down quite a bit but not enough for most folks. Good try but fell a tad short.

[@ArcadiaJunctionHobbies]

Tyco - the model train company that snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. This model was an ideal springboard to take their engines to the next level. Instead, they destroyed themselves.

[@michaelmorgan7893]

If I hadn't seen it on here, I wouldn't have believed it. That's definitely a new one on me. A Rivarossi built Tyco locomotive.

[@scentgrasslakerailway]

I could watch your videos all day, so well-presented.

[@briandonovan9560]

Came across this video and subscribed. These videos are really helpful to learn about locomotive maintenance. Thanks.

[@ecidaho]

I have a later power torque version I have repainted into Minnesota Commercial. That road likes ALCO locomotives so I thought it w/o would be a fun what if, along with an tyco C-430. Thanks for the great video.

[@ROBERTN-ut2il]

The ALCO Century 630 is a model of six-axle, 3,000 hp (2.2 MW) diesel-electric locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) between 1965 and 1967. It used the ALCO 251 prime mover. 77 were built: 3 for Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, 4 for Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, 8 for Louisville and Nashville Railroad, 10 (with high noses) for Norfolk and Western Railway, 15 for Pennsylvania Railroad, 12 for the Reading Company, 15 for Southern Pacific Railroad and 10 for Union Pacific Railroad. Entered Production 7/28/1965 (Atlantic Coast Line #2011) Years Produced 7/28/1965-10/27/1967 Model Specification DL630 Engine 251E, V-16 Horsepower 3,000 RPM 1,100 Carbody Styling Alco Length (Between Coupler Pulling Faces) 69' 6" Weight 394,000 Lbs. (Optional ballasting available up to 420,000 Lbs.) Dynamic Brakes Optional Trucks C-C Truck Type Hi-Ad (High Adhesion) Truck Wheelbase 12' 6" Wheel Size 40" Traction Motors GE 752 (6) Traction Generator (AC) GTA9 Gear Ratio 74:18 Tractive Effort Rating 79,500 Lbs. at 12 MPH Top Speed 70 MPH Production Rosters C630 Total Built = 77 Owner Road Number(s) Construction Number(s) Completion Date Atlantic Coast Line 2011-2013 S-3480-1 thru S-3480-3 7/1965-12/1965 Chesapeake & Ohio 2100-2103 S-3486-01 thru S-3486-04 10/1967 Louisville & Nashville 1425-1432 S-3486-01 thru S-3486-08 6/1966-7/1966 Norfolk & Western 1130-1134 S-3456-01 thru S-3456-05 5/1966 Norfolk & Western 1135-1139 S-3480-01 thru S-3480-05 9/1967 Pennsylvania 6315-6329 S-3466-01 thru S-3466-15 10/1966-12/1966 Reading 5300-5306 S-3442-01 thru S-3442-07 6/1966 Reading 5307-5311 S-3487-01 thru S-3487-05 9/1967-10/1967 Southern Pacific 7800-7814 S-3439-01 thru S-3439-15 3/1966-4/1966 Union Pacific 2900-2909 S-3440-01 thru S-3440-10 5/1966-10/1966 C630M Total Built = 56 Owner Road Number(s) Construction Number(s) Completion Date Canadian National 2000-2001 M-3479-01 thru M-3479-02 8/1967 Canadian National 2002-2043 M-3491-01 thru M-3491-42 12/1967-6/1968 Canadian Pacific 4500-4507 M-6002-01 thru M-6002-08 7/1968-9/1968 Pacific Great Eastern 701-704 M-6029-01 thru M-6029-04 7/1969 The C630M was built at the Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) with the "M" designated "Canadianization" for locomotive requirements in that country. When Schenectady ended operations on December 31, 1968, production of this model continued at MLW but were re-designated as the M630. M630 Total Built = 29 Owner Road Number(s) Construction Number(s) Completion Date Canadian Pacific 4550-4553 6030-01 thru 6030-04 9/1969-10/1969 Canadian Pacific 4570-4575 6030-05 thru 6030-10 10/1969-11/1969 Canadian Pacific 4508 6030-11 11/1969 Canadian Pacific 4509-4516 6030-12 thru 6030-19 12/1969-1/1970 Canadian Pacific 4554-4555 6030-20 thru 6030-21 2/1970 Canadian Pacific 4556-4557 6036-01 thru 6036-02 2/1970 Canadian Pacific 4576-4581 6036-03 thru 6036-08 2/1970-3/1970 Sources Foster, Gerald. A Field Guide To Trains. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1996. Kirkland, John F. Diesel Builders, The: Volume Two, American Locomotive Company And Montreal Locomotive Works. Glendale: Interurban Press, 1989. Pinkepank, Jerry A. Diesel Spotter's Guide. Milwaukee: Kalmbach Publishing Company, 1967. Solomon, Brian. Alco Locomotives. Minneapolis: Voyageur Press, 2009.

[@MozanaRN]

On headlights for locomotives running in mainline service; A single locomotive (without train) is required to have both rear and front headlights illuminated at all times. When running with two or more locomotives without a train only the lead headlight and trailing locomotive headlight need be illuminated. When a locomotive engineer backs his or her train the lead locomotive headlight is left illuminated. There are some situations on which a locomotive engineer can dim or briefly turn their headlight off. On mainline service when other trains are approaching or when the locomotive is entering a passenger station location. Especially when passengers are boarding or leaving a passenger train. These requirements are in most operating rule books for train movements. I am still not sure why directional lighting is touted as a plus when thinking about these standard railroad procedures. Sincerely, George, former railroad conductor and locomotive operator (retired). PS: On the video for tuning up the Tyco Super 630. It is one of my favorite videos you have released and has inspired me to seek out this rare beast. Thank you for your excellent work.

[@DarthSantaFe]

Thanks for the info, and I hope you can find one!

[@gacj2010]

Oh ...man....Iove these tycos And more so...I love this guy.Darth Veda..giving them new life....makes me want to almost give it a shot using this as a guide.. Keep these coming , man , if you can ....I love this

[@BlakesTrainsandMore4014]

I have a 1980's (I think) Tyco Santa Fe 630, with a "Pancake Drive", and it somehow the 3rd Best runner in my fleet! The top 2 are a Bluebox Athern Dash 9, and a Athern Genesis Dash 9.

[@ThePainTrain765]

It's a shame they didn't keep this drive, much better than the powershit™ version. The shell detail really isn't all that bad if you ask me, tyco would occasionally make a decent quality shell. Excellent video as always!

[@ACLTony]

Spot on about the shell. This unit and the GP20 were, for their time, among the most reasonably accurate.

[@sailormatlac9114]

I've often seen people super detailing that shell to make quite honest N&W locomotives. Not bad to be honest, not bad. If only the chassis tabs weren't so obvious

[@jeremyhall1492]

Great job on the rails, thanks for posting

[@thomasmoje5926]

Pretty cool looking locomotive..although a noisy runner. Those older Tyco, Mantua, etc. model locos can be quite interesting.

[@johnmatthews7703]

I convinced my dad to buy one from the Sears Christmas catalog in the 1960"s? I am not sure what year that was but it was the original version with more correct trucks. It ran terrible with a very noisy drive. My father ended up returning it to Sears.

[@DarthSantaFe]

It was probably ‘73 or ‘74 since those are the only years this version was available, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it had most of the issues I encountered along the way (off-center wheels, loose gear mesh, noisy motor bearings). I’ll most likely replace the wheels on mine with better ones.

[@johnmatthews7703]

@@DarthSantaFe I don't think so as 1973 I was in the military, and in 1974 I got married. My recollection is that I was younger maybe early HS. It may have been produced originally for Sears with an earlier version with a different drive than what you found. I don't remember it being a Rivarossi drive either. The staggered axles were protypically correct. The later version was completely wrong.

[@DarthSantaFe]

@@johnmatthews7703 As far as I can find the Tyco shell was developed and first sold in 1973, and they didn't have any 6-axle diesels during the Mantua era (up to 1970). Was it possibly a similar model like the ALCO from this Gilbert catalog? hoseeker.net/gilbertinformation/gilbert1957infopage4.jpg

[@johnmatthews7703]

@@DarthSantaFe I just did some research as well. It seems as if I am mistaken on the year. 50+ year's memories sometimes are not what we think they are. He did buy just the engine for what appears to be $14.99. in Santa Fe. It ran poorly compared to our Penn Line amd Olympia chassis for Athearn shells engines.

[@DarthSantaFe]

@@johnmatthews7703 I can say from personal experience that you don’t have to be 50+ to have a memory go off by a few years. :)

[@mgr_video_productions]

Excellent video. CNW had a similar looking high hood ALCo C628.

[@Benthetrainkid]

Who knew Tyco once had a Rivarossi style chassis

[@casstelles]

It's interesting to see this model has a Rivarossi drive. My guess would be the cost was too high to continue using this drive versus developing an in-house drive. Too bad Tyco wasn't able to use more of the Rivarossi drives. The mid 70's models would have performed better. Also, I wonder if the old Rivarossi U25C would have interchangeable parts. The drive on this C630 is almost identical to the U25C.

[@DarthSantaFe]

The U25C drive did have some differences, like the gear tower having some reduction, and the trucks use helical gears like the second stage of the large steam engine drives.

[@jeffreymcneal1507]

This appears to correspond about the time Precision Engineered Model Company (PEMCO) made its debut. Consisting of a small cadre of Tyco engineers, the goal was to produce a higher end, but affordable, model train to compete with the deteriorating standards of Tyco. Ca 1980's. Is there a related factor, or merely coincidence?

[@DarthSantaFe]

I don't know much about PEMCO, but seeing some of their designs, it wouldn't surprise me if the engineers did come from Tyco.

[@Zebrails]

This shell fits an Athearn U30C chassis... Yeah... John

[@DarthSantaFe]

Yes, but the U30C trucks and chassis are incorrect for an ALCO, so I’d consider the Mehano C-628 chassis to be a better base for a repower.

[@fleischmann_rowa_roco_ho]

👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@brianbaird3]

That's a good looking Chessie 630

[@moparnut6286]

Awesome tyco 630!

[@rickdee67]

The Santa Fe rendering has 4 of the front 6 wheels off the rails, photocopy?

[@DarthSantaFe]

Could be! They probably made and photographed a prototype for catalog use before finalizing the design and going into production. Going through catalogs, Tyco used a lot of placeholder models when their own weren’t ready, like an Atlas SD24 when theirs was almost ready for release, or a Westside 2-10-4 for their own cancelled 2-10-4 kit.

[@adamserafini6945]

Where you finding things like this and the Rivarossi C liner with the boxes?

[@DarthSantaFe]

eBay. :) It's amazing what you can find there sometimes in a random "I wonder if anyone has these right now" sort of timing.

[@gerlandkent6377]

[thank, you for youre video]👍

[@ROBERTN-ut2il]

1) You need to get an ulltrasonic cleaner - they are cheap and the pieces being cleaned come out spotless 2) Needs some mild weathering to cut down on the toy effect. Alcos were notoriously smoky, so some blackening around tghe stack would be a good beginning

[@scottfw7169]

That is a dramatically different driveline from the train set Chessie one my parents gave me in the mid 1970s

[@retr0bits545]

I actually have one of these in the original box. Though it is a power torque drive.

[@cacline72]

Odd how with the early Super 630 the accurately scaled trucks on it make the model way more presentable than it does with those ugly looking "Power Torque" trucks.

[@fmphotooffice5513]

I would be taking phone pictures during dissasembly.

[@craytum6945]

Very nice rebuild. They sure are noisy though !

[@EdwinsTrains]

I had no idea about these, and I had no idea there were Tycos that had an actual frame! Will you do anything about the chip on the fuel tank?

[@DarthSantaFe]

I'll probably try and fix it with some super glue, baking soda, a bit of sanding and some paint, but it's at least small enough to not be visible most of the time.

[@jimflagg4009]

Rare 6x6 drive. Nice.

[@gacj2010]

Its s beauty

[@tony42hajdu]

how did you drill that hole to that gear? we are interested to see also this :)

[@DarthSantaFe]

I couldn’t fit it in any tools that would let me turn it, so I clipped the bearing pin off the end and very carefully drilled as close to the center as possible while keeping it as straight as possible. I ended up not recording it because it needed my full focus and I didn’t know if it would even work.

[@nmnn422]

Union Pacific and BNSF, in the last few years have their newer locomotives 6 trucks into C4 trucks

[@PopaJohn-Trains-ky4sm]

i seen a video about these then i bought one then i started collecting Riverossia's (spelled wrong )

[@pieseasmyseas]

Rare? I find them at nearly every yard sale i stop at

[@DarthSantaFe]

The common ones with the Power Torque motor are everywhere, but there are very few of these originals. If you’re finding these at every yard sale, you might be one of the luckiest shoppers there is…

[@pieseasmyseas]

@@DarthSantaFe I know the difference between a can motor and a pancake motor and personal will just instantly toss all typos in the trash.

[@DarthSantaFe]

@@pieseasmyseas ?

[@pieseasmyseas]

@@DarthSantaFe just say no to tyco...

[@DarthSantaFe]

@@pieseasmyseas Oh, Tycos! The other reply must have autocorrected Tyco to typo, so it wasn't making much sense. :) Tyco diesels with the Mantua designed MU-2 power truck are about as rock solid as HO scale could get in the 60's, and those will run forever with minimal maintenance. The steam engines with open-frame motors are also extremely long-lasting and reliable. The train-set level pancake motors don't hold up well of course, so I wouldn't recommend those, but their better quality stuff can just about outlast an Athearn.

[@rubywarrior1]

drop a brushless motor in it.

[@DarthSantaFe]

It would be an interesting experiment! A reversible brushless motor would probably cost more than the entire engine though, so I think I'll save that for a high-end brass model someday.

[@HaroldAlexis-bb8sd]

This i never knew of it's existance the moment I saw the bottom where the fuel tank is located this has a flywheel motor type. No idea it was Rivarossi related. Mantua was the best. I wish that TYCO had continued this similar format which was & still popular with ATHEARN would you believe Bachmann Spectrum? Obviously if this was RIVAROSSI I t was made in Italy or Yugoslavia. What is sounds good in advertising isn't true at all power Torgue was a total mechanical disaster for TYCO. I hated those motors. They were notorious for that extremely annoying squealing/ squeaking half short or long pitched noise. The ones in the mid 1970's were made in HONG KONG, they were garbage. Engine 1102 ILLINOIS CENTRAL GULF got into an accident. I dropped it as it slipped cheap plastic broke i reglued up but wasn't good quality and CRAZY GLUE was an infant back then. 1102 ILLINOIS CENTRAL GULF ended up getting scrapped. I would love to aquire the one as demonstrated in this repair/ assembly. Excellent video presentation. 🎥👍⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐🛤️🛤️

[@DarthSantaFe]

They’re rare and don’t come up too often, but if you can find one of these original 630s, I’m sure it will last a lot longer than the common Power Torque version!