Mounting Trucks on N Scale chassis – Help Needed


NYO&W

NYO&W

Member
The LIRR MP-54 Project:

This is my first attempt at building a kit in N Scale. The prototype was used on the long gone Whitestone Branch of the Long Island Railroad, a portion of which I will be modeling. Paint scheme will be PRR Tuscan Red with black roof and chassis. They were run as motorized coaches after electrification of the branch. I plan to scratch build the roof mounted headlight and marker lights, to represent the motorized version, prior to painting.

QUESTIONS:

What type/size mounting screw and pin vice drill bit/s would one use to mount the trucks? See photo for close-up of attach points.

Would I use a 00-90 with a #62 drill bit such as are used for Micro Train body mount couplers or something else? The kit manufacturer recommended a #1 screw, but what does that translate to in the screw selection found in the Walther’s catalogue?

I assume a larger hole would be required in the truck to allow the truck to pivot freely. How much wider should I go with that one?

Thanks for Looking!
 
I think a #1 screw might be a 1-72. It looks from your pictures that the truck and the bolster have not been drilled out yet. A smaller screw like a 00-90 or an 0-80 might not have enough holding power. Of course adding a motorized truck would be a different problem and require a different mounting strategy.

You might be able drill out the truck and the bolster and use a standard bolster pins from Micro-Trains, Atlas or other mfg.

Glenn
 
WCWBrassHat said:
I think a #1 screw might be a 1-72. It looks from your pictures that the truck and the bolster have not been drilled out yet. A smaller screw like a 00-90 or an 0-80 might not have enough holding power. Of course adding a motorized truck would be a different problem and require a different mounting strategy.

You might be able drill out the truck and the bolster and use a standard bolster pins from Micro-Trains, Atlas or other mfg.

Glenn
Click to expand...

Thanks, Glen. I hadn't thought about bolster pins. BTW, to keep it simple, I will not actually be motorizing the model at this point, just making it look like one. The attached photos show how the motorized version differs from the cars that trail it. (Photos are courtesy of lirrhistory.com, http://www.lirrhistory.com/rolling.html)
 
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Is this going to be a static model? If that's the case, pretty much anything that you have a bit for would work.....but I agree a 0-80 or 90 would be pretty small for a working model. The problem is you can't tighten the screw or the trucks won't move and if it's not tight it'll be pretty easy to tear it out, especially if the area the screw is going into isn't very thick. Glenn's idea of using a standard pin might not be a bad idea, but the truck frames look pretty thick, so you'd have to check that the shoulder on the pin is long enough to go thru the truck and bottom out without binding the truck.
 
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