I have heard people say that a lot of derailment problems can be traced to out of guage wheels. So what can be done about it? Can they be adjusted or must they be replaced? I just ordered an NMRA gauge from my LHS and need to know.
BB
both dependind on problem.
Hi Bruce,
If you’ve got some rolling stock with plastic wheels on metal axles, like the typical wheelsets that used to come with Athearn “blue-box” kits, then you can easily adjust the wheelsets by twisting them and prying them apart or twisting them and pushing them in slightly. Just be sure that the wheels fit in the NMRA gauge properly (I believe the gauge will show you how to use it with a diagram). Wheels too close together are as bad as wheels too far apart when it comes to causing derailments.
Regarding engines: Just last night I received a New Haven FA1 that I bought on Ebay. It derailed in several places on my layout so I checked the wheels with my NMRA gauge. Sure enough, the front wheels and back wheels were too close together so I had to remove the truck sides and pull the wheels slightly apart with a little twist to get them back into gauge.
Please understand that you’re going to have to look at engine diagrams that are usually supplied by the manufacturer to figure out how to get the wheels adjusted. On Life-Like Proto 1000 and 2000 engines, for instance, you’re going to have to pry the bottom “truck clip” off to enable you to remove the wheel and axle assembly and then adjust the wheels. It all takes patience and practice.
Remember, if a particular piece of rolling stock or engine is derailing and everything else is running fine, that particular piece of rolling stock or engine must be the problem. If everything derails in a particular spot, then obviously the track is the problem
I hope I haven’t insulted your intelligence with my explanation. That is not my intent.
Good luck.
Mondo
Good info Mondo. I always wondered how you adj loco wheels.
Terry[8D]
I have a NWSL gear/wheel puller that I use. It gives a gentle pull on the wheels, and can make fine changes. Try to keep the wheels centered on the axle – you may have to adjust each side differently or make sure to adjust both sides. I use some little axle bearing cups to protect the pointed end on the axles.
To narrow the gauge, it’s nice to have a back-to-back gauge. I have a brass block with a slot across it for the axle – and another slot for the gear. A simple one can be made from a piece of angle iron that will fit inside the wheels (the angle goes along the axle).
One of the tricks is to keep the wheels at right angles to the axles.
The wheels that are the biggest problem are on locos where the axle goes through a hole in the frame and it can’t be removed with both wheels on it. Usually the frame of the wheel puller is too thick to fit between the wheel and the frame. I’m stumped on these.
One important note, if its a steam engine dont twist the wheels to adjust them. You need a puller to adjust them and if you mess up the quartering you are in for a lot of problems.