When my father passed away I inherited several HO scale engines and a dozen or so freight cars. After storing and thinking about them for thirty years I have finally had the engines restored and have repaired all of the freight cars (the engines and cars are more or less as old as I am and I am sixty).
It took a while to figure out the freight cars as their metal wheels and three-piece metal couplers tended to create sparks (or shorts).
My remaining problem is that my layout is Code 83 and these trains were obviously designed for Code 100. They “bounce” over turnouts and re-railers and can de-rail at speed. Any suggestions other than building a loop of Code 100 track?
Sixty year old, hey! I’d offer three suggestions. 1) Check around and see if they’re collectable. Who knows, you might be able to harvest some cash. 2) Build a nice display case and set them up as a remembrance of your father. 3) Lay some track on a shelf and put them on display in your layout room. If you’ve laid cown Code 83 track you would probably be happier running stuff that’s designed for it.
Sixty year old, hey! I’d offer three suggestions. 1) Check around and see if they’re collectable. Who knows, you might be able to harvest some cash. 2) Build a nice display case and set them up as a remembrance of your father. 3) Lay some track on a shelf and put them on display in your layout room. If you’ve laid cown Code 83 track you would probably be happier running stuff that’s designed for it.
If your using Atlas code 83 turnouts, ALL trains bounce over them![(-D] You can change the wheels pretty easy. It’s probably the old large flanges that are causing your problems. Many companies make after market wheel sets.(Intermountain and Proto 2000 are two of the best.)
I have a similar tale, and my decision was to replace some wheelsets and couplers so they could be run. I figure my father would have done it anyways if he was still here in person. The cars otherwise remain unchanged, other than the open boxcar doesn’t have a hobo in it, thats my dad.
Replace the wheels. Sixty years ago was before the RP-25 wheel contour was even thought of, let alone released to the hobby. Prior to RP-25, wheels with very deep flanges were standard, the idea being that deeper flanges helped keep the train on the track. The RP-25 standard (sorry “recommended practice”) calls for a much shallower flange, and a rounded chamfer joining the flange to the tread. RP-25 came out in the late 1950’s and has become universel in the United States because it really works and rolling stock with RP-25 contour wheels actually is better at staying on the track. The Europeans are still doing the deep “pizza cutter” flanges but over here we have a better way.
Anyhow, you can buy metal replacement wheels from several makers that will pop right in and run better, and not hit the plastic “spikes” that retain your rails.