Quick help hunting for a pair of Buckeye Tender trucks

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Im trying to find a pair to repalce a set of metals on an old Hobbytown?/Varney?/Bowser? metal tender. Want to transfer a decoder stright from a Blueline USRA tender, and to make sure it;s all okay, I want to replicate the truck situations. The problerm is, the Blueline is a 2 axl;e truck, plastic truck, and the current buckeye trucks, and the only replacemtens I can find, are metal and 3 axle. I know someone else had made plastic buck trucks, I just used a pair 4 months ago, but I can’t find that maker. Bowser has steel ones, but that defeats the purpose. Tried Walthers, and google. No such luck so far.

Do we know of a set that works?

2

If you’re looking for plastic 6-wheel Buckeye trucks, Athearn makes them–part number 90407. They use them under their big crane.

Ed

3

Are these close enough to tender, or closer to passenger trucks?

4

The crane has to be heavyweight, thats why the buckeye trucks. Similar for a tender.

Your looking for 4 wheel trucks?

So far I have not seen 4 wheel buckeyes. if you have the original trucks, post a pic of it.

Precision scale has tender trucks, including Buckeyes. Since Bowser is slowing down (big time) on steam kits and parts, I am turning to Precision scale, I just bought their catalog, so looking for a part, just ask.

5

I’ll see about a pic of the tender as soon as I can, I’d love to know what it is for posterity’s sake.

I’ve seen bucks on Walthers trucks, but they’re passenger and have a whole bunch of frivolous stuff on them.

I’ll check Precision too, hadn’t thought of them.

6

They are definitely NOT passenger trucks. They are pretty much typical 6-wheel Buckeye trucks–the very things you are asking about. Go to the Athearn site and see if they look like what you want.

I’ll mention that I’ve got an old Varney tender, and it did not come with Buckeye trucks–they were what most people would call “Commonwealth”. Now those do sort of look like passenger trucks. Are you perhaps confusing the two?

Ed

7

I’m not sure who made this crane, but I got it from the “used” table at the LHS - four bucks, if I recall correctly. I believe the trucks are the Buckeye-type to which you’re referring:

This is the Athearn passenger truck, although it’s the older metal version:

The ones on this tender are the Commonwealth-style:

Wayne

8

Thanks Wayne, those help.

I did check the Athearn cranes webpage, but Athearn’s shots are more of an angled down view with a crane in the way.

9

But not if you do a search for “90407” on the Athearn site.

Ed

10

If you can’t find it here it doesn’t exist on the planet, why are you opposed to brass or metal trucks just run insulated wheels if it’s an electrical issue.

http://psc1.virtualfocus.com/

11

Because my knowledge of electricity doesn’t extend past “I can screw something up royally PDQ” and I know the tender I’m removing the decoder and board from uses a plastic truck and takes power from the axle, so I want to use a plastic one as well, since I know it works that way.

12

The material which the truck frames are made from is inconsequential, they cold be made from paper or gold or lead it wouldn’t make a difference the electricity gets transferred from the track to the circuitry inside the tender either from metal wheels with a wiper the attaches to the hold down screw and a little insulator washer similar to the ones Kadee sells for shimming trucks and rubs on the axle or by wipers that actually slide on the rails themselves.

I’m sure if they have what your looking for in brass and they do offer a few in plastic they will be more then willing to help you with any questions you have.