Easy Bulb Change for Tabbed Window Passenger Cars

[lynbrookyankee]

I've never gone to Freeport for repairs; I've had good results at Trainland. You can  email me @ [e-mail].

[Train-O]

lynbrookyankee,

I'd like to tell you my adventures with the only place in Lynbrook, U.S.A.

Unless, you want to go to Freeport, etc.

Ralph

[gunrunnerjohn]

They have three monkeys that change the bulbs.

[lynbrookyankee]

Thanks for the great hint. In the past I have actually brought my Pennsy MPC cars to Trainland for bulb replacement - maybe they have 3 handed guy in the back. . .

[Train-O]

gunrunnerjohn,

Thank you for your reply, now I know what to expect.

Now that I'm older, I'm all thumbs, but my wife will say it's not just now!

Ralph

 

 

[gunrunnerjohn]

Not really.  I've opened about a dozen of them this way and changed the lighting to LED lighting, never had any issues with breakage.  They're actually pretty flexible.  The sides of the car do bow out some as you are taking the top off, but they are not damaged in any way.  Just don't get carried away, it's only necessary to release all of the catches at once and then slide the top off.

 I can tell you that it's impossible to open them using Lionel's instructions!  I fooled with them for the better part of half an hour when I tried opening the first one, finally decided to work out an alternate method of opening them.

[Train-O]

gunrunnerjohn,

If, the car is made of plastic, wouldn't the latches be prone to damage?

Ralph

[gunrunnerjohn]

Looks exactly like a method that I posted months ago in another train forum.  I don't know what those guys were thinking with the design of the latches on those cars, but the factory instructions suck and don't work!

 

While you have the roof off, install LED lighting and never have to take it off again.

[Texas Pete]

The November issue of the magazine has a question and answer, on page twenty six, regarding roof removal of tabbed window passenger cars, such as the Polar Express, and apparently early MPC heavyweight cars as well, for the purpose of replacing a burned out light bulb.

I developed a method that greatly simplifies the task.  It is posted on the J&C Studios O Scale Archive:

http://www.jcstudiosinc.com/BlogShowThread?id=663&categoryId=779

Pete