i just purchased a couple of IHC passenger cars.
They seem kind of light to me.
Does anyone know how much weight I should add to bring them up to NMRA standards.
I don’t have a scale that deals in grams.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks
Gordon
I bought a digital scale at Cdn. Tire a week ago with imperial/metric and good to 5Kg. All for $59 Cdn. As for the NMRA standard that I’m not shure of. If your interested you can get zinc weights at your local Scout shop as they are used for Kub Kars.
I don’t know what the standard weight should be for those particular cars either. Have you tried running them in a train yet. If so and they give you no problems then I wouldn’t worry too much. However if they do, then add (don’t laugh) a penny or two to each end until they track to your satifaction. I think I would rather have rolling stock lighter then NMRA standards if they behave satisfactorily. Less wear on the locomotive, don’t ya know!!!
CP:
Go to the NMRA website, under the Practices and Standards tab for the correct weight for the cars in question.
If you need to add weight do it AFTER you have made any modifications such as metal wheelsets and decided on loads.
When adding extra weight mount it as low as you can, and balance the weight as evenly as possible on all trucks.
Randy
CP - a full length HO passenger car(85 footer) should weigh in about 7 ounces according to the NMRA standard - 1oz plus 1/2 oz per inch of car length. A small food scale is ideal for model work. A lot of folks bought them to measure food for dieting & dispose of them at garage sales - thats where I found mine. Ted
go to the N.M.R.A. website at WWW.NMRA.ORG to see how much weigh to add. MICRO-MARK sells a scale for weighing you rolling stock, and you can also pick one up at an office supply store.
But, some people disagree with the N.M.R.A. standards, finding them either too light or too heavy. I even read on another forum wher someone said he never adds weight, and has never had any problems.
I add weight to all my cars to bring them up to NMRA recommendations. I use a food scale that has a dish on top. That way I can put all the parts in before building a kit and just add pennies until the weight is correct. The issue of whether or not it’s needed is up to you. The advantages are better tracking and reduced pull off on sharp curves. If your track work is very good and you use broad curves it may not be necessary. Equalized trucks help also.
Enjoy
Paul
A new canadian penny weighs 2 grams
“Kub Kars”? Don’t they call them Pinewood Derby cars anymore?
I just replaced most of my rolling stock’s wheelsets with 33" Intermountain metal wheels–wow! It makes quite a difference in tracking and does add weight. I also bought some weights but found that the wheelsets added enough weight to bring just about all my cars to 4 or 4.5 ounces (I run primarily 40 footers) and even my little Mantua bobber weighed 3 ounces.
Kind of pricey but definitely worth the investment–I suppose I can use the extra wheelsets for an MoW wheel car or something!
“A new canadian penny weighs two grams.” What is that in American money?
Randy
I have had a lot of luck by using “shot,” the stuff they put in shotgun shells. I don’t know how easy it is to find as I got mine from someone who used to reload their shells so I have more than I’ll ever need. Just turn the car upside down and pour the shot evenly along the bottom and then use something like white glue or other bonding agent to adhere it to the car. Of course you could weigh out the portion before gluing. There is some “shedding” initally but after those few pieces fall off, the cars run great and you have the weight as low as possible.
Dale
.76 cents on a good day [:(!]
And Jetrock Pine wood Cars are still that, south of the border. Something I wasn’t aware of until this year. Man you guys take your racing seriously!!!
I rechecked this and found that the average penny Cdn or US weighs approximately 2.4 grams
Personally I prefer using zinc, brass stock or steel for weighing things down as I am leary about lead as enough exposure can cause health issues.
142 gm = 5 oz.
Lead shot is easy to find at gun stores–most half-decent gun shops sell reloading supplies, and bags of shot are inexpensive. Typically the finer the shot the denser your weights can be (assuming you’re not going to melt and recast the lead) since there is less airspace in between the bits of lead–fine bird shot (#8 or so) would work well.
I just bought some of those strips if 1/4 oz. weights with double-stick tape on them, but my rolling stock doesn’t add up to very much. Those with big fleets may need a cheaper bulk supply–and lead shot would do the trick.