Trash to Track Episode 19. Austrian Kleinbahn ÖBB Electric loco.

Hello and welcome to the 19th episode of Trash to Track.
In this episode i take a look at an Austrian Kleinbahn ÖBB 1245 class electric loco.
This loco has one of the strangest motor set ups i’ve ever worked on.
Stay tuned to see if i can restore this unusual loco and convert it to digital to run on my Garden railway.
Thanks for watching, please like, share and subscribe.
If you have a loco you’d like to see featured on Trash to Track please email me at
[e-mail]
Facebook group ‘Dans model railways’
Instagram Dans_model_railways

[@mobahartenholm9289]

Hello Dan. These copper- brushes are used very often in ac- märklin lococ. It's very usual for germans - not to say europeans😉 sad that you still not apart. Greatings from germany - Rainer

[@guidoklingbeil8180]

The motor has a disc as commutator. The brass brush is simply for cleaning. Drum shapes commutators are fine with two carbon brushes. Centrifugal forces do the cleaning. Very interesting to see a Kleinbahn loco rebuild. The chassis seems to share characteristics with Märklin.

[@rolfchristensen8350]

Very similar to the way, Marklin used to put locos together pre digital, certainly same type of brushes. Regards from NZ

[@bartsroga8337]

Hello. It’s nice to see an Austrian locomotive on the channel. Some Kleinbahn engines are even fitted with 2 motors. Sadly many are also suffering from zink pest, check well before you buy one. Brass brushes can also be found on Rivarossi motors.

[@patricksmodels]

The copper brush keeps the commutator clean from carbon residue. Old Rivarossi motors also had one carbon brush and one copper mesh one.

[@garethparkin9498]

Nice that Dan

[@joevarga1213]

I've come across those brushes in old Rivarossi locomotives. The motor looks similar also. If the parts are the correct size it might be easier to find a used loco for motor parts.

[@nicholasbishop3300]

Nice work Interesting model Nick Australia

[@ausfoodgarden]

I'm pretty sure those springs you removed are actually copper suppressor coils. You shouldn't need those with DCC I don't think. Nice video as usual and an interesting model with a very agricultural-looking motor. Cheers!

[@SoRTs6233]

What a great video! I have come across some European locos in n-gauge, (Piko railcar, Arnold diesel, and a Fleischmann electric Be 4/4) and they seem to employ some strange (to us!) technology. But, step-by-step gets there. Great result, Dan, the loco looks great running. Cheers, Jim L

[@maltnz]

Had an old AHM loco with a similar motor and brushes. It was mounted vertically over the front bogie.

[@rogerking7258]

Hornby, in their previous incarnation as Tri-ang had functioning pantographs back in the 1960s if not the 1950s.

[@keithparker2206]

Entertaining video but there was a very simple answer as to why the loco was initially a non-runner! It is a frequent practice with German and Austrian manufacturers to have a switch on the loco to transfer power collection from track to pantograph (in your case it was the isolator on the roof that you pointed to at the start). Moving the isolator to the second pickup strip on the roof would have enabled collection from the track. Those springs you removed are chokes which are standard with Trix and Fleischmann models in N Gauge (my chosen scale) used as suppressors in DC - no idea if you need them in DCC although have seen then on DCC models.

[@dansmodelrailways7886]

The switch on the roof was in the track pick up position. When the battery was applied it did move slightly on track then stopped.