Bachmann City of Truro

[mikesndbs]

Hi all, hope some of you may like this, very simple and quick but how could it be anything other than elegant with these locos! 

[Sir TophamHatt]

Sorry for dragging this up.

Managed to bag myself a lovely model of this but I too have trouble with the front bogie not following the rails.

 

Has anyone modified it with more weight?  What did you use?  Where did you put it?

[Hilux5972]

I used liquid lead. Just a thin layer along the underside of the Bogie.

[Sir TophamHatt]

Me again  :/

 

Can anyone confirm if the rear pretend coupling hook on the tender is removable?

I think someone has glued mine in so now even a #20 Kadee won't fit.

Might have to so some careful pulling / snapping

Edited November 6, 2019 by Sir TophamHatt

[Wacol]

Yes, it's removable. Standard NEM socket.

 

 

 

 

[Sir TophamHatt]

21 minutes ago, Wacol said:

Yes, it's removable. Standard NEM socket.

 

Not the coupler, but the little hook above it.

[Wacol]

Aaah, ok.  I have kadees fitted so I never worried about adding the coupling hook.

 

 

 

 

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

22 hours ago, Sir TophamHatt said:

Not the coupler, but the little hook above it.

So, a representation of the drawhook. I would expect a Kadee head to clear underneath it if it is at gauge height, unless the drawhook moulding is rather oversize, (or possibly accurate if this class had large drawhooks).

 

Check the gauge height of the Kadee. If that is correct but it still fouls, then your choices are a wipe or two with  a file on the drawhook underside to obtain clearance, or pull it out/snap it off.

[Sir TophamHatt]

This is a Kadee #20.

 

I think it's going to have to be a careful pliers job.

 

 

It's possibly been made worse by the coupling hook being glued a little more so a bit hanging down is permanently in that position.

If it was loose, it may have been okay.

Edited November 8, 2019 by Sir TophamHatt

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

Aha! It's not the drawhook that is the problem, but the representation of the screw link coupling fouling the Kadee.

 

Did GWR locos of this date have a little hook under the bufferbeam well toward one buffer onto which the coupler end can be hung? That's a good solution to prevent it fouling the Kadee. Five minutes DIY to add a hook from handrail wire or similar.

[Miss Prism]

7 hours ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

Did GWR locos of this date have a little hook under the bufferbeam well toward one buffer onto which the coupler end can be hung?

 

I'm not sure when the little hook on the underside of the left-hand side of the bufferbeam came in, but it wasn't until c 1910  (????). Before that, the standard practice was the hook the coupling's outer link into the open jaw of the hook.

 

[MG 7305]

Dear Sir Topham Hatt (Fat Director/Controller)

 

In principle, the operating coupling should take precedence over any decorative ones such as a (scale?) draw hook, after all you are trying to run a railway with a  serious shunting function.  Alright, then I recommend that the perpendicular element of the Kadee (behind the coupling element) should be parallel (in line with) with the front of the buffer faces; the photograph shows the Kadee is too long; one of the benefits of the Kadee system is that it gives a shorter coupling distance compared to the hook and bar system used by Bachby .  This set up works with radii down to 26"" or less and can be achieved with selecting the right NEM length from # 17-20.  I find # 19 works for most Bachmann rolling stock but eyeball it to check.   Next, the coupling "claw" should be set at the same height as the Kadee standard gauge you have in your photograph, trust me, this lesson cost me a fortune in scrapped Kadees and I now have 270 Kadee fitted vehicles which obey the "Get it Right First Time " Law.  The photo shows the Kadee drooping far too low.

 

This has meant that many of my locomotives and other vehicles do not have prototypical drawhooks (they get in the way) but on the other hand my railway runs well and I can shunt as the Kadee advertisements would have me believe. 

 

Finally, if your vehicles suffer from coupling droop as per the photograph, then glue them in.  Dapol coupling attachments are the worst criminals here.  I cannot recommend "Loctite All Plastics - 2g + 4ml" enough, see Amazon/Wickes or whoever.  It works like magic for polyurethane  and is a two stage process.  First wipe the surfaces with the Activator, wait 20 seconds and then glue as normal.  Job's a good'un.  I have 270+ vehicles on my layout, all Kadee,and many glued this way.  I hang 25 box  vans + Brake Van behind the tender and they go up a 1 in 50 incline without trouble.  Give it a try.

 

Whatever you do, do make sure your Kadee couplings are horizontal, in line with the centre line of the track and are set at the correct height from the start, if you are adjusting the height of the pig tail to make it work you will have grief; 270 vehicles cannot be wrong.   

 

Best regards

 

Julian

Edited November 8, 2019 by MG 7305
Grammar

[Sir TophamHatt]

14 hours ago, MG 7305 said:

The photo shows the Kadee drooping far too low.

 

It's being pushed down by the decorative coupling the loco, but it may be too low anyway.

I think the first thing is perhaps to get that fake one off first and then see where I am with the Kadee - thanks

 

Edited November 9, 2019 by Sir TophamHatt

[Hilux5972]

It should just pull out. I believe the hook itself is a metal part so can withstand a fair amount of pressure with pliers. I always remove the rear cosmetic screw link to allow the coupling hook to operate freely. 

[Welchester]

As far as I can remember, the coupling hook is plastic. If you don't want to remove it, you could squeeze the upper link of the coupling apart and the coupling should drop off, leaving the hook in place.

[Hilux5972]

I think if you remove the NEM pocket there is space behind the buffer beam to get a pair of pliers and push the hook out from that side. 

[locoman462]

I am amending appearance of my 3440 'City of Truro' to reflect the period it ran in BR days between 1959 to 1961 using photgraphs taken at the time. This has entailed removing the buffer beam number and also the need to repaint the 4 sand boxes in front of the splashers from GWR ( Brunswick ) Green to Indian Red to match the frames.

Whilst the sides of the sandboxes were obiously Indian Red, does anyone know if the tops and filler caps were the same colour or perhaps Black. It is difficult to tell from contemporary photos due to the angle they were taken at. Comments appreciated.