I know the remotoring older locomotives is fairly easy; check out NWSL et al, someone will have what I need…
Is/are there companies who would sell replacement drivers, pilots, trailing wheels, tender trucks, etc? I have a few older (Mantua) locos, and while the flanges do work on cd.83 rail, after seeing these next to a newer loco and some cars with the RP25 wheels, I realized how much better the smaller flanges look, and want to swap things over (if it’s possible).
Anyone have any ideas of where I should start with this?
This is going to be tough. Mantua in particular had some odd axles, and steam wheels are various sizes. Certain ones you may be able to find wheels and axles that fit but I think it is going to be trial and (lot of ) error. Many of the Mantua axles were crimped in the metal frames so you may not even be able to disassemble them. If you know someone with a small hobby lathe, they could turn them down, but it is a lot of work requiring making jigs etc.
Someone used to sell different sized and styles of steam engine drivers, maybe driver pairs, thru Walthers, I forget who (Precision Scale, Cal Scale?) but I have not looked in a long time. Truck and tender wheels and truck frames also. But you are still going to have to get gears, etc., and you better buy a NWSL puller and quarterer while you are at it.
Some brass importers used to get extra parts and then sell them if warranty work did not consume them; you might check with them, too.
Unlikely as it may seem, I have had a reasonable degree of success turning down steam driver flanges in place, using the loco’s motor for power. The tricks:
Set the mechanism in a holding fixture (I spot-assemble mine with odd bits of wood and screws,) either on its side or on its back.
Connect the motor brushes to a power pack with clip leads.
Arrange a small vacuum (I use a miniature shop-vac) with the intake right next to the driver to be worked on.
Power up the loco, then use a new, sharp file to carefully reduce and shape the flange. Use a light touch. Stop and check frequently for flange contour and motor heating.
This is a slow process, but it is much easier than trying to find odd size drivers and odd size axles, and infintely easier than demounting and then re-quartering. The key is lots of airflow into the vacuum cleaner, to keep shavings out of the loco bearings and electricals.
jsoderq - I don’t know what you’re talking about; if i take off the cover plate on the axles, the drivers will fall right out. The brass bearings sometimes need a little “convincing” but even then, they come out readily. As for driver diameter, that’s easy enough to find.
Virginian - Thanks for the advice about the gears and stuff, would hate to get everything and then remember i need gears to make it all work… and then needing to wait another week or something to get started because of such a small part, lol.
Chuck - That’s an interesting solution, however I don’t have any measuring devices that can measure that finely yet… (and now I’m kicking myself for not getting the digital calipers from Railfest this past weekend)… and I’d probably file off an entire flange, or something that is not supposed to get filed away[:I]. However, I might go this route after I’ve gotten a little more experience under my belt.
lothar - thanks for the links, they should provide quite useful in my hunt for replacement drivers [:)]
And thanks to all you guys for offering your suggestions as to how I might best eb able to go about this, hopefully I’ll find a suitable solution and will have some progress updates for a WPF not too long from now…
Just for info, you specically mntion leading, trailing, and tender trucks which is where you find odd axles crimped in the frames. I guess you didn’t really want to concern yourself with them.
oh, lol, my apologies then. the way I read your post made me think of the drivers themselves, not the leading/trailing/tender trucks. Those I’m probably just going to end up replacing the entire assembly with one that has rp25 wheels (and/or will accept the rp-25 wheels)
All of the steam locomotive drivers that I have seen are plated brass. Any sort of machining to the treads will quickly remove the plating.
As mentioned above, Bowser. And they will often remove and install a gear for you for a nominal charge - telephone them to discuss what you want to do.
I believe that Mantua steam locomotive drivers are pretty close, if not, RP25. The lead, trailing and axle wheels are far from RP25.
Also, check out Greenway, but be prepared for severe sticker shock:
wow, it’s a good thing i didn’t ask about the drivers at railfest last weekend… i would have probably passed out on the spot… $20 for a single axle!? bah, the entire loco sold for less than that!
Dan, the latest Micro-Mark has the digital calipers on sale for I think $15.95. I got mine from Harbort Freight about 5 years ago and use them A LOT for almost any model measuring. Mi, and I think most of these, also have a digital depth gauge in the handle useful for installing decoders in tight shells.