What happened at your workbench today?

I also would have liked to offer, but my lathe is not accurate plus sharpening tools is beyond me. Need some hands on training for that.
 
I bought a nice used AML Gramps tank car off the bay of E for not a lot of money, even including £7.50 past and pokage. It was quickly opened up, only for me to find that the usual metal trucks of extreme scality had been replaced by Bachmann items of great cheaphood and plasticity, and e'en though the wheels WERE metal, they were not the usual scale 33" small flange items they ought to have been.............................................no returns, either.

Fortunately for moi, I'm not short of a few correct trucks, but I AM short of the correct body-mounted couplings.....................................................the Bachmann items, of course, have Bachmann's own couplings, truck mounted. :( With 20 ft radius curves on our layout, body-mounted couplings are the norm.

Now I'm here in UK, where to get a pair of the correct couplings is my next problem. The Bachmann items are not even drilled to take the cut lever activation chain.
 
tac foley said:
I bought a nice used AML Gramps tank car off the bay of E for not a lot of money, even including £7.50 past and pokage. It was quickly opened up, only for me to find that the usual metal trucks of extreme scality had been replaced by Bachmann items of great cheaphood and plasticity, and e'en though the wheels WERE metal, they were not the usual scale 33" small flange items they ought to have been.............................................no returns, either.

Fortunately for moi, I'm not short of a few correct trucks, but I AM short of the correct body-mounted couplings.....................................................the Bachmann items, of course, have Bachmann's own couplings, truck mounted. :( With 20 ft radius curves on our layout, body-mounted couplings are the norm.

Now I'm here in UK, where to get a pair of the correct couplings is my next problem. The Bachmann items are not even drilled to take the cut lever activation chain.
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I'll have a look when I get home, which will be a week's time, but I don't think I have much, if any, of the Accucraft type. Most of my spare couplers are Bachmann, although I might have a couple of straight shaft for body mount. Whether one of those could be adapted for an Accucraft pocekt, and whether the AMS pockets are the same size as AML, I'm not sure.

I know that the spring operation of the Accucraft knuckles is entirely different to the Bachmann effort.
 
tac foley said:
I bought a nice used AML Gramps tank car off the bay of E for not a lot of money, even including £7.50 past and pokage. It was quickly opened up, only for me to find that the usual metal trucks of extreme scality had been replaced by Bachmann items of great cheaphood and plasticity, and e'en though the wheels WERE metal, they were not the usual scale 33" small flange items they ought to have been.............................................no returns, either.

Fortunately for moi, I'm not short of a few correct trucks, but I AM short of the correct body-mounted couplings.....................................................the Bachmann items, of course, have Bachmann's own couplings, truck mounted. :( With 20 ft radius curves on our layout, body-mounted couplings are the norm.

Now I'm here in UK, where to get a pair of the correct couplings is my next problem. The Bachmann items are not even drilled to take the cut lever activation chain.
Click to expand...

As a buyer, you do have recourse. Simply stated, the item was not as described. You can open a claim to be refunded, even though the listing stated "no returns".
 
Madman said:
As a buyer, you do have recourse. Simply stated, the item was not as described. You can open a claim to be refunded, even though the listing stated "no returns".
Click to expand...

Dan, TBH, I just can't be arsed. I have the car, for about a third the cost of a new one, and if friend Rhinochuugger can't help me out, I'll likely cobble summat together that will serve.
 
In my box of ‘fix this’ stuff were two point motors, one LGB, the other Piko. They both have seized solid screw terminals for the wiring connections.
the top one is LGB.....quite an early one as the drive pinion is thin, the lower one is Piko...the armature assembly is removed by pulling upwards the rubber 'waterproofing' seals

A5D2E659-336D-4829-9450-F15B826A5FF3.jpeg
Even an application of WD didn’t free them up ( although a third was rescued after a spray and soak ).
So, to replace the connectors.

I had a couple to hand, a new one in blue, I was going to reuse the older black one but it was already well used so fitted a second blue new one.

The best way to remove the old connectors is to cut their legs off, and carefully remove the short bit of pin from the coil wires.

If you can’t get the wire free, then cut to leave as much length as possible. If there isn’t enough length remaining, there are a couple of turns around a former, one turn can be unwound.


Using fine glass paper, remove the insulating varnish from the ends, wrap around the new pins an solder up.
Check there is continuity before reassembling, both motor coils are about 24 ohms.

Where to get the connectors? Mine were from an electronic project, but I understand that PhilP of this forum stocks them. Currently not on his website, so you need to contact him directly. Price, 40p each5D538A10-CFD5-4C69-ABC3-EC25ADF3009A.jpeg

43CB7818-1FAC-4C6E-A706-394A683A949D.jpeg
 

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Brixham said:
In my box of ‘fix this’ stuff we’re two point motors, one LGB, the other Piko. They both have seized solid screw terminals for the wiring connections.

View attachment 333281
Even an application of WD didn’t free them up ( although a third was rescued after a spray and soak ).
So, to replace the connectors.

I had a couple to hand in blue, I was going to reuse one but it was already well used so fitted a second blue one.

The best way to remove the old connectors is to cut their legs off, and carefully remove the short bit of pin from the coil wires.

If you can’t get the wire free, then cut to leave as much length as possible. If there isn’t enough length remaining, there are a couple of turns around a former, one turn can be unwound.


Using fine glass paper, remove the insulating varnish from the ends, wrap around the new pins an solder up.
Check there is continuity before reassembling, both motor coils are about 24 ohms.

Where to get the connectors? Mine were from an electronic project, but I understand that PhilP of this forum stocks them. Currently not on his website, so you need to contact him directly. Price, 40p eachView attachment 333282

View attachment 333284
Click to expand...
Strange you are on this, I have been messing with a couple as well today. One was well cooked with side and end plastic pin holder trashed likely due to point left on due to a dodgy switch. The other like yours had a dodgy screw, my plan was to get the good screws from the melted one but that did not work as the hole bit melted so a new wire in the good screw and another bit soldered to the connection with these going to a new terminal block. As it will be used indoors this not a problem.

Repaired one at front waiting connector, trashed one at rear you should be able to see where end plastic melted. Side plastics pieces were 2 blobs of black plastic. Method of operation on layout that caused the problem was switch and separate push button. A different panel uses 2 way touch micro switches, neither a really good method for EPL point motors.IMG_8209.jpeg
 
I Like the approach. I used to just hard wire switches with degraded screw terminals (doing away with the terminal all together) however keeping them functional in this way is great, thanks for sharing.
 
Northsider said:
I didn't think there was much point in producing a build log for the IOM H wagon, as it's been a straightforward 'locate and cement' assembly of parts that I laser cut before retiring. Suffice to say, I started work on it on September 5th
View attachment 333070

and have completed it more or less a fortnight later, albeit with a week in Wales along the way. Centre buffers were fitted and the pivot (that also doubles as a hook for those who use bog chain) was removed and fitted upside down.
View attachment 333071
Finally, the thing that marks out one of my builds from anyone else's...
View attachment 333072

I only went up to 2025 when I ran off my last batch of maker's plates, so I'll either have a very busy Autumn, or will have to arrange an alternative...
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I like these old carriages. Had a ride in a couple out of Douglas on holiday on IoM in '68 - loved them ever since. On my list to have a go at a couple once I finish a loco to pull them.
 
OK - project #2 - sound in the scratchbuilt 2-6-2.

Chuff switch fitted to tender bogie :cool::cool:

Reasonably straightforward - a dob of glue under each brass strip to keep them pointing in the right direction. The strips are turned up at the end so that they don't catch on the axle contacts as it revolves ;)

PXL_20241001_123247331.jpg
 
Now, project #1 - a bit more tricky as this is all rather tight, and working on fine clearances is well outside the Rhino comfort zone :worried::worried::worried:

Motor/gearbox with flywheel is just laid in for yet more checking :whew::whew:

and yes, that top (actually bottom) solder joint is OK - s'not dry :shake::shake:

PXL_20241001_133703024.jpg
 
'Technically' it is not a loco....
IMG_20241001_153041.jpg
And as it was only a fiver, I think I got away with it..

I also seem to have got the Kato chassis apart. Cut it down, and got it back together again. :nerd:
IMG_20241001_153331.jpg
Whether it will run, especially off 3.7V, is yet to be discovered....

PhilP
 
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