Dan, thanks for this video. I have not had to do this yet, but have two diesel locomotives that need it. Your video gives me confidence that I can get it done. Sincerely, Kennedy
If you take your time and make careful note of how things come apart, you should be able to put it back together. I'm sure you'll do fine. Thanks for watching!
I really like this new series! Very informative, and useful to almost every model railroader regardless of scale! I look forward to a similar video in the future! Maybe about fixing low/high couplers!
Steam engines can be difficult to fix sometimes. If you don't already have one you might want to get an NWSL Quarterer, which will let you check the driver quartering. I'm glad you liked the video and thanks for watching!
Good advice Dan. I've been adjusting the wheel gauge on some cars I recently bought. Interestingly enough it was the most expensive one that caused me the most trouble. The cheap stuff works fine................David(UK)
Sometimes it's like that. Just because a model costs more doesn't mean it will necessarily have everything up to standard (though it should). Thanks for watching!
Great video Dan! I've been checking wheel set gauge on all my diesels and rolling stock for years. I replace most rolling stock wheel sets with the appropriately sized metal offerings from Intermountain. Despite the Intermountain quality, I still find an occasional wheel set that is out of gauge. I never cease to be be amused when friends put brand new cars onto the rail, and can't understand why they derail?
Had two Athearn Genesis BNSF 3 bay hoppers with terrible wheel gauge, ending up adding IM wheels instead, the flanges loved derailing over some switches on a layout.
@@DanielCortopassi Thanks, i have to look at the with of the power truck itself. I have an old metal one I'm tinkering with and if I narrow the wheeltrack width, the wheels will be tight against the truck's body. I'll have to see some other ones, maybe a plastic truck set will be narrower or I can maybe cut it down.
Very interesting and informative. I've noticed that the front driving wheels on my largest locomotive (an HO Scale Pennsy K4) seem to come slightly off the track when going through turnouts, so I'm wondering if such a tool as the one shown here would resolve this issue, and if so, where I might be able to procure one.
The NWSL puller is still available. I did a quick search and it looks like the NWSL website has it, and it's also available from Walthers. They actually have several versions of it for different sizes. Also, I did a video recently on re-gauging the drivers on an N scale Bachmann 2-8-0. I used the NWSL tool as well as one from Great Planes that's intended for the R/C hobby, but can also be used for model trains. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi You're welcome. Yeah, I ordered HO stuff. First order, today, I got WaltersTrainline tank car Quad Hopper, and flat car. Flat car fine. Couldn't believe it - steel wheels. Terminology is still foreign. One had wheels undercarriage off and no screw. Other one screw in hole and carriage not attached. I've looked everywhere how to unscrew screw. Nothing. You did it at 4 minute mark, but my screws don't look like your screws. I'm screwed. At least a paper was in boxes from Walthers with number to call. Again, I truly appreciate reply. I'm laughing like heck. A hobby with problems.
Sorry to hear you had issues with your models. Sometimes you can use a substitute screw to attach the trucks if the original is missing. I've got a supply of small hobby-sized fasteners that I've collected over the years. Sometimes they come in handy as replacements.
Hey Dan! I'm still in the process of upgrading all my athearn blue box engines to nickel silver wheel sets, all 35 of them! I have finished 6 GP40-2s and 3 SD40-2s using your old video on detailing a SD40-2!! I almost wish now I was modeling N-Scale!😁😁 Oh yeah how is that Conrail engine coming along?
The Conrail SD40 is in the next episode of the consist build. I'm really hoping to get that out very soon. Upgrading the Blue Box wheelsets is well worth it. Thanks for watching!
Catching up on comments... On some diesels it might be possible to use small washers to limit the side-to-side play, but it really depends a lot on the truck design. Thanks for watching!
Great discourse. Perhps you can advise. I have a plastic Kato gauge on the edge of their re-railer which is 2 slots in the plastic. These fit the tracks exactly however the wheel flanges are all Narrower. yet the trains appear to run fineThe slots in the gauge line up with the middle of the wheel flats not the flanges is that correct spacing? Its this the case on you NMR gauge or ?
I don't think the Kato re-railer is necessarily an accurate wheel gauge. I would recommend picking up an NMRA gauge. It does a bunch of stuff, including checking wheel and track gauge (the spacing of the wheel flanges and distance between the rails are not exactly the same). Some track, like Kato Unitrack, is fairly forgiving if the wheel gauge is slightly narrow, and the equipment will run fine. Thanks for watching!
Enjoyed the video Dan, I'm learning so much from watching, I bought an Athearn Genesis, SD60m/60I Diesel Road Locomotive, and the rear coupler is about a half a coupler high, I don't see an easy fix,, it looks to me like I'll need to shim and file, to get it lowered to the right height, any thoughts?
Shims are usually the way to lower a coupler on a diesel. You may need to remove some material below the coupler on the pilot if it's interfering with putting the engine back together. I plan to do an episode on fixing coupler height in the near future. Thanks for watching!
Daniel, can you give any information on wheel sizes? It can be confusing when replacing plastic wheels with metal (33" or 36"). I model in N scale, and the storage boxes they came in do not give any information on the wheel size. Are there any quick or good rules to follow?
A general rule of thumb is that steam era freight cars have 33 inch wheels. Most passenger cars have 36 inch wheels. Many, but not all, modern freight cars often have 36 inch wheels. It seems like cars with 100 ton capacity generally have the larger wheels, while some cars, like boxcars sometimes have 33s. It seems like a small difference, but it actually changes the look of a car, even in N scale. There are, of course, exceptions to everything, so the "rules" should be interpreted loosely. If you can do some research and find out what the car you're modeling actually had, that is of course the best bet. Thanks for watching!
Most of my aftermarket wheels are from Reboxx. They make HO scale wheelsets in a variety of sizes to fit different brands of models. Thanks for watching!
Sorry if I missed your question before. You can measure wheel diameter with a scale ruler. You can also compare them to other wheels of a known size. 3 scale inches doesn't sound like much but even in N scale there is a noticeable difference between 33 and 36 inch wheels. 40 inch wheels are large for a lot of rolling stock, but more common on locomotives. I hope that helps. Thanks for watching!
I'm glad you liked the video. If you're talking about the wrench I used to remove the side rods of the steam locomotive near the end of the video, I don't know the exact size. Those wrenches are sometimes included with the locomotive. Sorry I can't be of more help. Thanks for watching!
