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 Posted - June 21 2015 : 5:49:01 PM
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The majority of the rolling stock I have is older Tyco/Mantua cars with metal frames and metal trucks. (I also have a lot of older yellow-box era Athearn cars with sprung trucks.)
For maintenance purposes, I have wanted to remove the axles from some of the older cars with the metal trucks, but unlike the newer plastic trucks, these do not seem to budge.
Is there a trick to removing these?
Thanks in advance.
Edited by - ShockControl on June 23 2015 7:33:34 PM
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Posted - June 21 2015 : 7:39:10 PM
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I assume you have the trucks with blackened steel bolsters between the frames:
The bolsters can be gently bent to spread the side frames apart and allow the axles to be removed. Obviously, you can only bend a piece of steel just so many times before it fatigues, but I've done this as a one-time move to replace the original wheel sets with intermountain all-metal wheel sets.
Bending the bolsters back into their original shape takes some attention so the car rides level on the truck.
Carpe Manana!
Edited by - scsshaggy on June 21 2015 7:47:01 PM
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Posted - June 21 2015 : 9:49:51 PM
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quote:I assume you have the trucks with blackened steel bolsters between the frames:
Originally posted by scsshaggy - June 21 2015 : 7:39:10 PM
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Well shaggy this is a very un tyco tender and loco drawbar and tender truck setup. I think someone has copied a Gilbert. I would stick to a standard tyco-mantua setup.
It has been working for years. It does look like you split the tender frame and inserted a insulator between the 2 pieces.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
Edited by - toptrain on June 22 2015 05:58:10 AM
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Posted - June 22 2015 : 5:29:49 PM
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quote:Well shaggy this is a very un tyco tender and loco drawbar and tender truck setup. It does look like you split the tender frame and inserted a insulator between the 2 pieces.
Originally posted by toptrain - June 21 2015 : 9:49:51 PM
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I did just that, though the purpose of posting in this thread was not to suggest a particular way of laying out a tender.
This picture just contained the kind of trucks I was talking about. I wanted to make sure I wasn't talking about one kind of truck while ShockControl was thinking of another kind.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - June 23 2015 : 6:36:38 PM
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Thanks for the replies. So let me ask: Setting aside the collectibility/original parts angle, would it make sense to replace the metal axles with plastic wheels/axles, as these would have a certain amount of pliability and would not stress the metal trucks?
Alternately, is there another way of cleaning/lubricating the points of contact without removing the axles?
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Posted - June 23 2015 : 9:38:46 PM
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Regarding plastic axles in metal trucks, I'm not sure how well those little needle points would wear in that case. I suppose it would work if the metal is smooth enough. I don't think that the axles stress the metal trucks, though, since there's usually a little wiggle room between the truck frame and the ends of the axles.
Regarding cleaning and maintenance, I usually just put a very tiny amount of either automatic transmission fluid or white gear grease where the truck frames ride on the axle ends. This keeps the zamac from corroding so the axles turn freely and, in the case of tender trucks, it keeps the electrical pickup working well.
I apply the lubricant as a little drop on the end of a wire or toothpick. You want just enough to lubricate the axle, but not enough to migrate to the wheel treads.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - June 24 2015 : 08:45:13 AM
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quote:... I don't think that the axles stress the metal trucks, though, since there's usually a little wiggle room between the truck frame and the ends of the axles.
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Thanks for the reply. What I meant here was that, if I were using all plastic wheels/axles and wanted to remove them, I could probably bend the plastic to certain degree and not have to worry about bending/breaking the trucks during removal.
I will try the lubricating the ends as you describe, but I don't know what kinds of accumulated gunk - cat hair, etc. - may have gotten into the trucks after so many decades.
Thanks again!
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Posted - June 24 2015 : 12:31:56 PM
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quote:
I will try the lubricating the ends as you describe, but I don't know what kinds of accumulated gunk - cat hair, etc. - may have gotten into the trucks after so many decades.
Originally posted by ShockControl - June 24 2015 : 08:45:13 AM
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You could clean those trucks before you apply the lube. I gentle wash with warm water and Dawn dishwashing liquid. Or a few quick sprays of electrical contact cleaner into the truck journals to clean/flush out the gunk.
http://tycodepot.com/
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Posted - June 25 2015 : 9:53:10 PM
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I have several Tyco/Mantua tender trucks and would love to change out the wheelsets, but I am afraid of breaking these. Does anyone know if the truck sideframe can somehow be pulled off of the bolster without destroying it? I don't want to mess with attempting to try to bend the sideframes since they are a Zamac casting and can easily break.
Thanks and regards, Vic B.
Vic Bitleris
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Posted - June 26 2015 : 6:59:10 PM
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quote:I don't want to mess with attempting to try to bend the sideframes since they are a Zamac casting and can easily break.
Originally posted by bitlerisvj - June 25 2015 : 9:53:10 PM
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You're right. DON'T try to bend the side frames. They'll break for sure. I've changed wheel sets on these trucks by bending the steel bolster. Do it carefully, and you can get away with that. Steel fatigues more slowly than many other metals.
I know of no sure and easy way to take the side frames off of the bolsters.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - June 26 2015 : 7:33:09 PM
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The sideframes CANNOT be removed from the bolsters. I have tried exactly twice, which is the same number of times I have witnessed truck sideframes shattering before my eyes.
--CRC
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