I’ve got a Bachmann 70T switcher that I want to strip and repaint. The plastic handrails have to come off first, and I am hoping that someone has a trick to removing the delicate little buggers in one piece. Absent this, is it possible to buy a set of new ones, either plastic or wire ones?
Being real gentle is the key word for removing those handrails. They are just pressed into the holes where they reside. But yep their delicate. I used very small needlenosed pliers to lift them out of the holes . The cut levers were a bear to remove , but I used jewelers screwdrivers as tiny prybars to lift them out of their mounting holes. This whole thing applies to the 44 tonners as well. It can be done sucessfully.
Hopefully the handrails are attached differently than they were when the models first came out. They were fastened with some sort of rubbery glue on the inside. I can recall removing them on my models, not always successfully as the glue did not want to let go. I later discovered their undecorated models came with the handrails packaged separately, which I really appreciated!
So it appears that gentle brute force is the key. The switcher is less than one year old and I would have bought the undecorated version if I could have found one. I did get an undecorated GP30, and you are correct, the windows and handrails come unattached which makes the paint job a real breeze by comparison.
I wonder if presoaking the body in the stripping liquid, Pinesol first, then Castrol-something-or-other second if the Pinesol doesn’t work, and brake fluid last will help.