American Flyer Broken Diecast Truck Frames

[LEE OLSON]

I have a number of broken AF trucks in which the diecast side frame has separated from the rest of the truck. In previous times, I have tried to re-swedge the frame onto the truck without success. I also have tried ACC but that seem to only work when there are  perfect mating surfaces. Epoxy glue was messy.

So what do you fellow AFs use to make this what-I-assume to be a common repair? And for those of you with wondering minds ----- no, I did not break them as I know better how to change out the axles or wheels.

Thanks, Lee in Tucson 

[lionelsoni]

I think I may have had a similar problem with a truck on my Lionel GG1.  The zinc sideframes have bosses on top that are staked into holes in a steel top plate (bolster).  The pictures I see of AF trucks seem to be similar.  I filed the boss down so that it was flush with the top of the steel plate, leaving enough to securely locate the sideframe, then drilled and tapped the boss to accept a screw.  You may need a smaller screw than I used; but the principle should be the same.

[AF53]

Never had this happen but you might want to give Doug Peck a call.

http://www.portlines.com/

Please keep us posted.

[cbq9911a]

I had this problem with a Lionel LLC Flyer log dump car.  I replaced the broken sideframes with modern parts (past 2 - 3 years) where the sideframe is screwed to the truck frame.

[rrlineman]

if you are asking about original AF trucks, here is what I was taught by a old timer 40 years ago. used a #52 drill bit to drill thru the stamped metal frame into the side casting. it has to be dead center. the 52 drill bit is a hair smaller then the brass body pins used to hold the freight cars and cabooses together. take your time. after drilling put a drop of medium thick super glue like Jet on the casting where the hole is drilled. some will go into the hole. push the pin from the top of the frame into the casting. using a 4 or 6 inch pair of channel locks makes it really easy and you can control the force. If you drilled right then it will be very tight to the casting. and the drop of super glue assures it. the head if the pin is very small so you don't really see the repair once it is on the car frame. and you can always dab some flat black paint on the head to hide it further. if you want you can also us the S171 screws from the smoke unit. but the screw can be a pain to screw down unless you have a proper sized flat screwdriver so the slot doesn't get stripped out. this will not work for action car frames that are notched for the slide shoe pickup. no metal to work with on the casting. hope this helps. Mike

[lionelsoni]

I think it would be easier to drill the sideframe casting (and tap it if you take my suggestion) separate from the bolster rather than through the hole in the bolster.  And there should be no difficulty in tightening a machine screw into a tapped as opposed to untapped hole.