SouthPennWhere do you get Belleville that small?
I cheated. Drill & ream a hole the right ID in a piece of annealed mainspring stock, then use a mandrel for the OD. Mating punches give you the taper, then harden and temper to spring blue using a watchmaker's bluing outfit: a little silver sand over a heat source like an alcohol lamp.
Where do you get Belleville that small?
Thanks
What was taught to me years and years ago:
The car needs three-point support, with good compliance over the range of accommodation. I found that a light Belleville-style spring washer, cone tip toward the screw, with a little beeswax or other material on the threads, worked well in supporting without binding on rotation. Not that much more difficult to make the inner hole 'clear' a fixed tapped post and thin cylindrical shims so the truck screw could be tightened like a phone cartridge screw and still allow the bolster to 'work' a bit with Belleville action and still swivel.
The other end wants side bearings, and those are another conversation. It seems to me that there may be enough self-centering on tilt with a spring washer in each truck to get by -- it is no worse than carefully adjusting a non compliant screw and bolster arrangement just until you feel no play...
Can you add a small plastic washer?
Chip
Building the Rock Ridge Railroad with the slowest construction crew west of the Pecos.
If the screw bottoms out and you need to shorten it, be sure to put a nut on the screw BEFORE you cut the screw. That way, when you take the nut off it cleans up the threads so it will go back in.
If it is the right size, Atlas makes some plastic screws that are easier to cut than steel or brass.
Good luck,
Richard
I'm not sure what Bowser cars you are working on but, make sure after you shave down the boss that the screw will not bottom out in the boss before it gets tighten down on the truck. Is the hole drilled clean though the bottom of the car? A brass rod with a thinner diamater then the screws hole should let you know how deep the hole is.
My quickie depth gauge tool is .032 brass rod with an eye on the upside, slid in side of .062od. x .032id. brass tube about 2'' long. Slightly bend the rod to create drag in the tube. Insert the rod in the screw hole (boss) and slide the rod down till it bottoms out, then slid the tube down to the boss top edge. Remove the "tool", look at the rod sticking out of the tube and that is the depth of the screw hole.
Simply shave-down the boss until it allows the screwhead to contact the truck's bolster. You can then adjust the tightness of the screw to allow the amount movement you want. I find that a fine file is the best tool for this operation, but if the boss is especially high, you could use a #17 chisel-type blade in your X-Acto to remove a portion of the excess height, then finish with the file.
Wayne
Anyone have a method to tighten the truck screws on Bowser cars, so that I can get one truck to not wooble? It seems the screw seats in the boss before it can tighten against the truck. If I can tighten one truck, the car will not wobble. Thanks