Does anyone have any advice on adding electrical pickup to the front truck of an older Hobbytown drive FM 10-22 diesel? I purchased one used recently, and I think that its overall performance on the layout would be improved greatly with 8 wheel pickup. I was some what supprized that the truck was powered via a driveshaft, but no means of electrical pickup whatsoever.
Hobbytown uses both trucks for electrical pick-up but each truck only picks up one rail i.e. one truck lefthand rail and the other righthand rail. The front truck is insulated from the frame with a bushing on the mounting screw just behind the gear tower. Adding pick-ops like the ones made by Tomar is one option.
Have never added KD coupler springs to a diesel truck but they might work:
Visit:
http://www.pacificcoastairlinerr.com/bachmann_4-4-0/wipers/
Thank you if you visit
Harold
Harold, That is a good way of adding pick-ups.
Thanks for sharing. I am going to have to remember that circuit board idea.
Back in the olden days, there used to be pickup kits available you could add to diesels with pickup problems. I think they were aimed at the 4 wheel little switcher engines - I think they added pickup shoes that would rub the rails in front or back of each wheel. Not sure how something like that would be mounted.
I never had much luck with “track sliders”, always found them to be finicky. Some people love them.
Harold
I whole heartedly agree, but if the original poster is determined to add pick up to a particular diesel, then that may be an option. Like you, I prefer not to “go there”, so I would deal with the problem by selling the diesel and looking for a better operating replacement. I’m past the point of wanting to fiddle with stuff like that - when I was 20, maybe, but not now at 53! =P
If the tender doesn’t already have PU on both trucks, that would be the easiest and least finiky place to gain the additional PU.
That is a neat method of PU using the bronze Kadee spring.
Bob, he’s asking about a diesel, not a steamer.
I think using the KD springs to make pickups is probably the simlpist solution. Incase you have clearance issues, consider mounting the pickups on the sides of the trucks, with the wipers wiping the wheel treads instead of the backs of the wheels.
My solution to both improve the pickup and make the Hobbytown RS-3 chassis & drive compatible with Atlas, Kato, Athearn was to rebuild the chassis to accommodate a Proto 2000 drive and fuel tank/motor mount. Here’s some pix of the frame modifications:
Hobbytown RS-3:
I also did the same with a Tiger Valley RS-36, using an Atlas drive:
[IMG]ht
So, from your statement: “its overall performance…would be improved”, it sounds like the unit will move. Right?
I am puzzled, however, by your statement that “the truck was powered via a driveshaft, but no means of electrical pickup whatsoever.” If that is the case, then the word “improved” that you used earlier would be an extreme understatement.
You should be seeing a wire from the motor to the front truck, as shown in this picture:
The other truck takes care of itself by being grounded to the frame–thus there’s no need for a wire.
And, yes, more pickup wheels would be a good thing. I would go with wipers on the insulated wheels.
Ed