Rapido Trains FP9A Product Manualline - page 5
5
to ensure that everything is where it should be. We try to catch all potential issues at the
factory, but with literally thousands of locomotives in each production run it is possible
that the odd problem may slip past our quality control inspectors. They do karaoke at
night and can get tired during the day. Please cut them some slack. At least they know
all the words to the newest Lady Gaga song.
A bigger issue is damage in transit. 99% of all locomotives are perfect when they
leave our warehouse. But our gentle courier and postal carriers like to use our models
to practise for the Rugby World Cup, so between our warehouse and your front door
chances are this FP9A has been used in a 300-yard field goal attempt and spiked into
the floor during a victory dance by Doug in Receiving. No packaging is designed to
survive such punishment.
If bits come loose in transit, they are easily reattached with white glue, such as Weld-
bond. We prefer Weldbond over CA because it works just as well for most layout sce-
narios and is very easy to clean up. There is no risk of damaging the paint job – just
wipe it up with a bit of warm water on a paper towel. If the courier companies have
been really cruel and there are a lot of parts loose, please contact us. You can send the
locomotive back and we’ll glue all the parts back on and pack the thing in a mile of toilet
paper before sending it back to you. As an added benefit, the toilet paper may come
in handy for other purposes as well.
If any parts are missing or broken, please call or email us. We’ll happily send you free
replacements. We aim for 100% customer satisfaction…
…with one exception. If you are one of those people who calls us because the bell is
slightly crooked and you don’t want to move it back into place with your finger, please
go away.
CHECKING AND ADJUSTING YOUR LOCOMOTIVE
We try and make sure that every locomotive is perfectly up to spec before it leaves the
factory, but if the karaoke was particularly good the night before your model was as-
sembled there may be a couple of bugs. Doing a quick pre-service check will solve most
operational glitches.
• Check to see that all wheelsets are correctly in gauge using an NMRA RP-2 Stan-
dards Gauge. Should any of the wheelsets be out of gauge, than remove the
affected wheelset from the truck by prying off the bottom lid of the gearbox with
a small flat screwdriver and then spreading the sideframes slightly. The wheelset
can be regauged by grabbing each wheel and twisting. Reverse the steps to
replace the wheelset, and ensure the gearbox cover is snapped into place before
placing on the track.
• Check that all underbody piping and appliances are firmly installed and clear of
the track. Of particular note are the air hoses and steam pipes at the rear end of