Handrails on my 2026 & 2036

[ezmike]

 I have a 2046 and it has silver handrails, looks really cool. I'm thinking about adding them to my 2026 & 2036. The loco shells have the holes near the nose and in the cabs but I noticed that the 2046 has guide rings along its body. I would imagine that they are necessary to hold the rail in place and they look good too. Any ideas how to do the same for the other two locos? Can it be done?

[lionelsoni]

I don't have a suggestion about the stanchions.  But, when I need a railing, I tin-plate a brass rod.  I wet the brass with tin (lead-free solder) and then wipe it with a paper towel while molten.  This gives a sort of matte finish with a white metallic color.  And the brass is easy to work with.

[bfskinner]

ezmike,

On some of my locos the guide rings or stanchions appear to be nothing more than small cotter pins. The "eye" of the pin should be just large enough to accept the wire for the handrails. For a totally add-on project one would have to drill small holes in the boiler; insert the cotter pin through the holes; separate and bend back each leg and press them flush with the inside of the boiler. Then insert the wire "handrails".

I have found suitable wire (piano wire?) at my local hobby shop. The thinner the wire the easier the forming of the rails, and the smaller and easier to work with the cotter pin.

[trigtrax]

The 1949 version of the 2026 actually came with hand rails. And the rails themselves are carried by some parts guys.. I don't know if they also have the cotter pins. The 2036 is the same boiler casting as the 2026 so you can do both with the same parts.

[ezmike]

Thanks guys, next up, decide if I'm up to the challenage of drilling the holes for the cotter pins and then find out who has the parts. Stay tuned.