No Steering?

[AndyID]

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that many of the road vehicles (the vast majority I suspect) on model railways appear to have their steering mechanisms jammed in the "dead ahead" position. Surely some of them would have their steering turned a bit, particularly when parked?

 

Mind you, I don't much like the idea of bending the front axle on my models either!

 

 

[Spitfire2865]

Well, Id assume most people either build whitemetal kits or use Oxford cars. For the latter, Oxford would either have to put a steering hinge in their models, or have preselected angles, which may deter some sales.

Kits on the other hand, usually possible but that does limit it to a stopped or turning car, not a straight road driving car.

[Del]

I always kerb the wheels of my car when I park, but looking along the line in my street, every other car has the wheels straight ahead, so it really seems to be the exception.

[The Bigbee Line]

I always kerb the wheels of my car when I park, but looking along the line in my street, every other car has the wheels straight ahead, so it really seems to be the exception.

That's "old school". Do you leave it in gear as well? Maybe you should have explained that it prevents a run away if the handbrake is defective.

The other option is a brick behind a wheel.

[Del]

I leave it in Park as it's an auto. I do it more as a basic anti-theft measure.

In Park (but in gear when I have a manual), wheels kerbed, steering lock on. I saw it on TV just after I'd passed my test and I've always done it.

[Broadway Clive]

I believe some Britbus 1/76 scale buses had steerable front wheels, but otherwise the only RTR offerings I am aware of are the very expensive HO scale Faller system. I believe the front axles are obtainable as a spare part for about £15, and I was in possesion of one fitted to a static scratchbuilt 1/76 scale double decker. One drawback was that due to necessary slack in the linkage to accomodate undulations on an operating road system the wheels had to be slightly smaller than scale to avoid fouling the mudguards. This caused me to replace them with fixed wheels of the same size as the rears.

 

Below is a scratch built London Transport tree lopper that I detailed and fitted with turned front wheels for a friend's layout. The idea was for it to be parked on a hill with figures posed cutting branches from a tree, and the wheels turned to the kerb for safety as has been suggested. I wasnt clever enough to make them steerable though and they are stuck permanently at an angle with Milliput.

 

 

[mikeharvey22]

Some of the Corgi OOC coaches also had steering. Chunky mechanism, and like the Britbus version sometimes caused the wheels to have an excessive amount of toe out.

[Phil Clarke 1980]

I never use my handbrake I always leave it in gear my grirlfriend has got used to it now tho haha

 

it would be good if some of the cars and trucks had possible front wheels like some of the larger scales

[SRman]

I have built a few bus kits where I have deliberately drilled the front wheels at an angle and glued them to their axle parallel to each other but at a suitable angle. Leaving the axle free to rotate means that if the vehicle is not posed carefully it can look like it is drunk! Doing it this way means that the vehicle can be posed steering to the left or the right as desired.

 

I usually add a little Blu-Tack (or equivalent) to stop the wheels rotating too easily once I have posed them correctly.

A few of the OOC buses (some of their Plaxton coaches, like the Premier or Panorama, and the Bedford VAL with twin-steering front axles) have steerable wheels, as did some ABC/Britbus models. (I note Mike Harvey has mentioned these already).

One manufacturer of 4mm cars, TPM, allowed for posable front wheels but he has ceased making new kits, although there may still be stock of some of the existing ones. These are very finely detailed resin and white metal kits with etched components as well.

 

 

 

One other trick I have seen, and used, us to simply cut the front axle in the middle, then glue the two halves back on at an angle. The down side of this method is that there is no 'float' to allow for uneven surfaces.

 

Overall it's a bit hit and miss as far as provision for steering goes.