Everyone, I need some help. A couple weeks ago I bought a 4-8-4 bachmann steam engine off eBay for my brother for his birthday. I was very excited. When I got it, I was home alone and decided that this would be a good time to test it on his layout. I put it on the track for no less than 5 seconds when I accidently knocked it over and broke the coupling between the loco and tender. I tried glueing it but that did not work. Then it got worse, I lost the little plastic part. I contacted the Bachmann service dept. yesterday morning, but no reply. Do you think I could use a piece of wire or something?
Guys, I am panicing here! His birthday is Sunday. I need some help and fast! Thanks! Any help at all no matter how big or small would be so greatly appreciated! [:)]
You can easily make one from sheet styrene. Just cut out a dumbell shape and punch holes in the ends. Paint it black and He’ll never know the difference.
Just watch that you get the length right so that the distance between the loco and tender is right.
I hope it is that easy. A drawbar problem can turn out to be more complicated than one might anticipate. I am in Nscale and speak from experience. On most Nscale steam engines, the tender has electrical pick-ups. The electricity has to run through the draw -bar. I have a Kato Mikado I broke the drawbar on. It looked like it would be an incredibly easy fix. Well it wasn’t. I’m waiting for Kato to do another run of its Mikado so I can get the needed parts. The drawbar on my Model Power Pacific had “issues.” I got it straightened out, I think, but if everything wasn’t just perfect, the tender would leave the track on one side when going around corners. I had a friend who warned me that drawbar issues can be a bit more complicated than they first appear. I didn’ believe him. I do now. This is in reference to Nscale steam. I have no experience with steam engines in any other scale.
The Bachmann 4-8-4 Northern, which is the one in question here I hope (it’s a much easier fix), does not have any pickup from the tender. I have one. Niether does the N&W J class 4-8-4 that Bachmann put out. I also have one of them. Both drawbars are just dumbell shaped pieces, although the J class drawbar is Z’d in the middle (you can just warm the plastic carefully with a hair dryer (wear oven mits) and Z it to the proper dimentions). Many of the other Bachmanns do, and that would be an issue with them.
Sheet styrene is simply a fancy name for sheet plastic. You can find the stuff at hobby stores, craft stores, and probably even Wal-Mart in the craft section. The stuff is REALLY cheap. A dollar or two will buy you enough to make 50 drawbars! If you’re really in a pinch, go buy a new Men’s dress shirt. The plastic that they stick in the collar (that clear plastic) can be used. It’s a little thin, but it would work in a pinch. Maybe cut it in half and then glue the two pieces together in layers to thicken it up and give it a little more rigidity, then cut the drawbar from that and then paint it. The upshot is, you get a new shirt! [8D]
I have made a couple of drawbars from the lids of margarine tubs. The soft plastic is good for this because it is a little flexible. This was on locomotives that had screws to connect the drawbar to locomotive and tender. I don’t know if it would work with the kind that have a rigid pin on the tender that sticks down through the drawbar. I don’t know the construction of the engine in question, but thought I would pass along the hint.
I’ve used thread to make new drawbars in the past - this was on an old Graham Farish N gauge steamer. The original was steel and bent (so it used to make either the loco or the tender lift off the rails) - haulage and running both improved when I chucked it and made a loop of cotton in its place, I was able to get a reasonable distance between the two so there was no noticable “jolt” when reversing. If you want an original one you may have to contact Bachmann (keep trying, sometimes emails get lost) but the thread would work as an interim fix. Good luck!
It sounds as if it may not be so hard of a fix, especially since it doesn’t have any electrical contacts or wiring running through it. Good luck and leet us know how things work out.
Guys, Thank you so much for your help! I really appreciate it! I think I can probably go to Wal-Mart for it. If not, I have a local hobby shop. Luckily my tender does not have electrical pick up. Do you think I can take the front tender truck off to put on the drawbar, or will it break. I am afraid to do it because I broke the drawbar. Anyways, let me know!
Oh look my 500th post! Yay!!! [^][:D][:I][8D][:O][:O][:)][C):-)] I am officially a green star!
Sure, you should be able to do that easily. It will either be held on with a small screw or with a small plastic pin that is a simple push fit into the bolster.
