American Flyer model 420 finger issue

[vikes88]

Can anyone tell me where to purchase the correct top & bottom e-unit fingers for an AF model 420 locomotive? 

The fingers I have seen for sale are bottom fingers that are centered and top fingeres offset to the right...the fingers on an AF model 420 are centered on the top and offset to the left on the bottom.

Thanks in advance for any information anyone can supply.

 

                                                                                                                       Mike

[lionelsoni]

If you can't find replacements, and the fingers you have are simply worn out, there is a work-around that works for both for Flyer and Lionel:  The finger ends in a semicircle that typically wears in two at its middle.  You can get a second life out of it by slightly flattening the angle where the semicircle connects to the straight part of the finger.  This both exposes the middle of the remaining quarter circle to the drum and moves that contact point closer to the correct distance from the root of the finger.  Of course, you also have to adjust appropriately the pressure of the re-tread finger against the drum.

(Beware that some Flyer aficionados take offense at the Lionel term "e-unit".)