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Axle wipers for freight cars?

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  • Member since
    December 2003
  • From: Anaheim, CA Bayfield, CO
  • 1,829 posts
Axle wipers for freight cars?
Posted by Southwest Chief on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 1:05 PM

I need to pickup track power for some freight cars.  They have plastic trucks with Intermountain metal wheels.

JayBee used to make some really nice axle wipers in their lighting kits, especially their Athearn caboose lighting kit with wipers that fit Athearn freight trucks.  Unfortunately these have been long out of production.  Their passenger car lighting kits came with wipers that look like this (in use on my customized Intermountain Hi-Levels):

 

Does anyone make axle wipers specifically sized for Athearn fright cars?  I much prefer axle wipers to wheel tread wipers.

Thinking about using phosphor bronze sheeting and cutting my own.  What do you use to cut this material?

Matt from Anaheim, CA and Bayfield, CO
Click Here for my model train photo website

  • Member since
    March 2007
  • From: South Carolina
  • 1,719 posts
Posted by Train Modeler on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 1:40 PM

I've gone to using .015 brass/copper wire and soldering a electrical wire to it and then drilling and inserting it into the truck.  

Just did a crane this way. 

BTW, those JB sets were good.

Richard

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Pennsylvania
  • 709 posts
Posted by nedthomas on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 2:19 PM

Micromark sells a miniature tin snips for $15.40 item # 82525.

You can use an old scissors to cut thin metal but they may not cut paper after you use them. Keep them just to cut metal.

  • Member since
    November 2005
  • From: Phoenix, AZ
  • 693 posts
Posted by woodone on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 2:58 PM

Here is a place that might be of some help to you.

 

http://www.sbs4dcc.com/nscalerepairparts.html

  • Member since
    March 2007
  • From: South Carolina
  • 1,719 posts
Posted by Train Modeler on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 3:15 PM

Those HO scale pickups for sale by SBC on Ebay look interesting.    Have you tried, do they raise the car up too high?

  • Member since
    February 2008
  • 8,879 posts
Posted by maxman on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 3:35 PM

Southwest Chief

I need to pickup track power for some freight cars.  They have plastic trucks with Intermountain metal wheels.

JayBee used to make some really nice axle wipers in their lighting kits, especially their Athearn caboose lighting kit with wipers that fit Athearn freight trucks. 

Bowser makes a caboose lighting kit, item 74060, that sounds like it could be workable for you.  For a description, scroll to the bottom of the following link: http://www.bowser-trains.com/hocars/n5/n5.htm.  The kit includes bronze pickups that wipe on the axle and are mounted in a similar fashion to what is shown in your picture.  If you don't need the entire kit, maybe they'll price the pickups separately.  I have a friend that uses them on his cabooses for track occupancy purposes.

  • Member since
    December 2004
  • From: Bedford, MA, USA
  • 21,483 posts
Posted by MisterBeasley on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 4:03 PM

My LHS guy showed me some that he made.  It looks very similar to the picture above, but he made it by simply bending and snipping a Kadee coupler pocket spring.

It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse. 

  • Member since
    December 2008
  • From: Mount Vernon WA
  • 968 posts
Posted by skagitrailbird on Wednesday, February 16, 2011 5:15 PM

Several variations are shown here:http://www.trainaidsa.com/shop-accessories.shtml

Good luck!

Roger Johnson
  • Member since
    February 2004
  • From: Elyria, OH
  • 2,586 posts
Posted by BRVRR on Thursday, February 17, 2011 7:32 AM

I was in the same boat a few months ago and couldn't find what I wanted at a reasonable price.

I have long used home-made wipers of .005 brass or soft copper or bronze wire wrapped around the metal axles on Athearn passenger cars.

A recent project to light a couple of Athearn BB bay-window cabooses lead to using Kadee coupler springs as wipers.

This link will take you to the What's New page on my website where I have a few pictures posted of my caboose project. It may help or give you a few ideas.

http://www.intergate.com/~acoates149/What's%20New2.html

The brass wipers I make are shown on my Rolling Stock page. Unfortunately they are just shown as components, but the photo might help. Click on the link below and scroll down the page.

http://www.intergate.com/~acoates149/SL%20Passenger%20Consist.html

Hope this helps. Good luck.

Remember its your railroad

Allan

  Track to the BRVRR Website:  http://www.brvrr.com/

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