My new motor truck 601-100 came with no new speed nuts. These are small, flat, slightly curved metal strips that slip over the shaft holding the motor in place. The strips have small ‘pins’ that grab the shaft, creating a tight friction grip.
Do I straighten the speed nut slightly or bend it a little more? Can these even be removed and re-used?
Hindsight being 20/20, I should have ordered new speed nuts and springs . Hope you guys can help me make the old ones work on the new motor truck.
Thanks,
Charlie
I’ve done this many times, and used the same speed nut again. When you first remove them, gently pry up the pins all around, with a small slot-type screwdriver, until you feel the tension easing up, The nut should lift right off. Take a pair of ordinary pliers and “flatten” the 4 pins to the same plane as the nut itself. No need to bend the nut-it should be fairly flat. When you want to re-use it, just press it back on and force the pins gently against the rod (as on accessories) or rectangular post (as on motors) with a pair of needle-nose pliers, and voila (that’s French for presto), it will hold just as it originally did.
Ran into the same problem with my #210 Alco. I ended up using a pair of needle nose pliers to flatten the bow out of the ‘speed nut’, then pried it off by tipping it off of the stud in the long direction - broke both one side of each speed nut using this method, though. They probably broke when the tabs went over center as they reversed on the way off of the stud.
Like you, I did not have spares. I re- used the broken speed nuts by pressing them onto the studs concave side down. So far, so good.
I’ve seen these listed in Olsen’s. Next time I order something from them, I’ll also get some of the these clips.
I suppose if one were to work carefully, some small pieces of shim stock could be forced up from the bottom side of the spring nut to release the tabs and ease them off of the stud.
Okay, thanks. That worked. Leads me to another problem, though. See post on New Motor Truck Derails
Charlie