How did you improve your rolling stock?

[kndy]

On 2/28/2023 at 4:10 AM, Kamome said:

I see. Brass air hoses for n scale always seem difficult to locate. Not sure how I feel about ¥13,800 for 100 but brass wire is pretty cheap. 

 

This blog may also assist you. 

 

https://ameblo.jp/791p39m160/entry-12615308687.html

 

I can be given 100 of those tiny, tiny, tiny air hoses for n scale and I would lose them all.  [the sadness when you know your eyesight isn't that good when installing hoses becomes a frustration in the hobby].  

[Kamome]

Fitted the first 28-270 knuckle couplers to add a working body mounted working coupler to the front of some of my Kato SLs.

 

First off was the C56. As I sometimes use this as a banking locomotive, I needed the big ugly fixed knuckle on the front. 

 

The pony wheel detail has been added back as well as the guard irons, which are not able to be fitted with the included alternative knuckle.

 

I needed to glue the peg into its relevant hole and then glue this in place on the front of the C56 once I had confirmed the coupler height was correct. The housing has an open section so any minor inaccuracy when shaving off the plastic from the coupler leads to some droop. Other SLs have an enclosed square hole so should be more secure. The coupler head is larger than the included dummy but it looks better than the standard one and works. 

 

Before

 

 

After

 

[cteno4]

So good Doh lesson relearned last night tricking out some Tomytec trains last night. I was watching tv and lazy so did not pull out my usual working tray and the piece of velour to drape over my lap to catch stray bits. All was well up until the point I took off one of the tiny fenders to transfer the pho coupler and I was sure I dropped it in the lid of the train box with the other parts, but when I went to put it back on it was not there… I had remembered hearing something ping on the floor when I reached for the glue in the drawer to my side at one point and figured damn it’s on the floor. I did double check he lid again and all over my clothes a couple of time. So off to 15 minutes on my hands and knees with the flashlight looking for the part all around the chair. No luck… damn it’s a painted train and painted as well so no easy replacement! Grumble, grumble, kick myself in the butt a couple of times and get back to working on the train. Well there in the lid sits the bumper… 

 

im blaming it on the model train gremlins.

 

if I had just spent a minute to set up right I would not have assumed ignoring the usual small part safety setup had caused me to loose the part when I never had lost it.

 

jeff