Hello all! I finally got my parts from Bowser, and now I’ll show you how to put new wheels on an old Rivarossi steam engine![:D] Why? Because Rivarossi used plastic wheels with traction tires and large flanges, which would sometimes crack or not be centered on the axle well, and sometimes ran rough. They also can’t be used on less than code 100 track. And now lets get to it![:D]
Step 1:
The first thing that needs to be done is to get all the parts needed. For this project, I used Bowser 80" Box Pok drive wheels (Greenway Brass and Mantua will also work), two light and one medium, none geared. I also used two Bowser 804 hex screws, K&S 5/32" brass tube, and 3/32" brass tube.
Step 2:
The Bowser axles will be mounted in brass bearings made from the 5/32" tube, because Bowser’s axles are smaller than Rivarossi’s. I used a 5/32" round file to open the axle slots so the new bearings can be fit in. To make sure the axles are in exactly the same place, I put the bottom plate on and opened each hole until I could slip the brass tube in.
Step 3:
Once the slots were opened enough, I took the bottom plate off and filed the slots open the rest of the way so the tube could slip in from the top (bottom?). It’s a good idea to remove the worm and idler gear before doing any of this, because you don’t want steel shavings getting into the gears!
Step 4:
Originally, I was going to cut the tube in half and mount it like Mantua’s removable bearings. This was going to be more trouble than it was worth, so I instead mounted full tubing on each axle. Before pulling any wheel so I could get the tube on, I made a score mark on the axle and wheel so they could be lined up easily. To make each bearing, I used a cutting disk mounted on a motor-to
Great job Darth.
Maybe MR could do a future article on one of your projects?
Pete
What did you use for pickups on the insulated wheels?
Jerry
The Hudson is wired so the engine picks up from one rail and the tender from the other, so I didn’t use any additional pickups.
Aside from better performance, it’s amazing what a difference those Bowser drivers make aesthetically. It looks like a completely different loco. I always thought their Hudson’s appearance suffered from the pizza cutter flanges more than most, for some reason. I think most of the shaking in these locos came from uneven traction tires, which could be pretty severe, but solid metal drivers should help nonetheless.
Those flanges look they might have about .010" clearance between them, so I hope the bearings are snug. You’re braver than I am, because I’d be afraid I wouldn’t keep the axle slots perfectly parallel.
Great work, Darth! Now you don’t have to worry about that added weight causing the steel frame to wear out the brass axles, and you can actually get some driver spin. [:)][tup]
I’ve tried replacing the traction tires to make it smoother, but in my case it was just bad wheels. Believe it or not, the flange diameter of the Bowser and Rivarossi wheels is identicle, so clearance isn’t a problem at all.[:D]
I’ve been working on replacing the rest of the engine’s wheels. I’m also going to try putting a spare FK-130SH motor in, since the can motor in this one seems to be from around the middle of their quality control (runs fine, but it’s noisy and squeeks in reverse).
I’ve now finished with remotoring and changing out the pilot and trailing wheels.[:D]
The FK-130SH motor is small enough that I was also able to add a 16mm Genesis flywheel after removing some plastic from inside the shell. I also had to remove the original motor bracket. The new motor is mounted on some sort of foam-rubber material with super glue. The NWSL coupling was an extra one I had on hand, and I’ll probably replace it with the next size up eventually.
Most of the replacement wheels are Intermountain 33" freight car wheels, which have had their axles modified to fit (I also had to make new brass bearings for the front truck like I did with the drive wheels). The rear axle is made from leftover NWSL 40" wheels, mounted on a slightly shortened Athearn Hi-F axle, and with the ends ground into needle-points. Replacing all these wheels would’ve been a lot easier with axles that were flush for the front truck, and had proper width needle-points for the rear truck. The rear wheels should also be 42" instead of 40" like I used.
I brush painted the drive wheels Model Master Aluminum, since that looked pretty close to the color used on the real ones and other higher quality models.
The new wheels are definitely more realistic than Rivarossi’s.[:D]
Sure makes a good looking model![:D] The siderods still need a little more adjustement, but I’m a lot happier with my Hudson now![:D] I’m still going to get BLI’s brass hybrid when it comes out, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to put this one away. I’m just going to have two really nice Hudsons for the layout.[:D]
Darth, I have really enoyed following this, not sure I would have plucked up the courage to do it myself! Great looking results if you don’t mind me saying.
It looks awesome, Darth. Another FK-130 to the rescue.
Does it run without any hitches or binds? Also, I guess there was enough play between the axle and idler gears so that the axle gear could be raised the tube thickness and not overmesh them? My Pacific has the same gearing, and the mesh already seems a little tight.
Branden, you should start a repair business. I enjoyed looking at what you have done, even tho I will probably try something that advanced.
Ken
LOL I agree there Ken. Brandi and I got baptised into our first steam engine. We were sent a Bachman Niagara 4-8-4 with tender by Flynn. Brandi and I love it so much we setup a small track in our bedroom and laid there watching it go in circles for about 2 hours the other night. Now I’m all into the steam locomotives (however I still have my love for the diesels).
I know one thing, if I ever get one in need of repair like that, I’m boxing it up and sending it to Darth LOL. I don’t have the tools, or patience for a job like that (thanks U.S. Army) LOL
Considering what you’ve done with cars, I’d say you would be a resident expert here in short order.
I have to echo what’s already been said; I don’t have the tools or patience to take on an undertaking like you’ve done. I can already see that the wheels would get put back on, a strip of track glued to a nicely finished block of pine and put on a shelf as a static display. Congrats on your results.
Thanks all for your comments and compliments.
SteamFreak, there’s still a hint of binding in the siderods, but I’ve gotten it all worked out well enough that it’s not even noticable while running. I actually found that the axle and idler gears were already meshed pretty tightly with the stock axle, so I made sure when I was openeing the slots that the new axles would rest in exactly the same place. It sounds hard, but doing it the way I showed actually made it pretty easy.