Crankpin attachment question (HO scale)

[CG9602]

I'm at it again! I'm building another Garratt, this time from a much better manufacturer, only I seem to have misplaced the parts that are used to attach the crankpins to the connecting rods. It's HO scale. What would the members of the board recommend for a substitute or replacement?

Thank you in advance.

[Sperandeo]

It depends on what your drivers are drilled and tapped for, but the most common crankpins in HO scale are shouldered 0-80 screws. Bowser and Precision Scale Co. both offer these in various sizes (depth of shoulder).

Good luck with your Garratt,

Andy

Andy Sperandeo
MODEL RAILROADER Magazine

[BR60103]

Is this the DJH kit?
If the wheels are tapped for crankpins, they are probably a BA size. If they aren't lready tapped, you could use an American size screw with an unthreaded section or a bit of rod over it.
You might ask the people at Mainly Trains in the U.K.
www.mainlytrains.com
They carry an extensive line of parts. (usual discalimer)
--David

[Anonymous]

i herd that u can use screws that people put in their glasses , like them real small screws u could use them i guess , just though id let ya know...

[CG9602]

Yes, its a DJH kit. i was able to locate a suitable replacement much closer to home. It helps if one keeps the leftover, or any "extra" material from a previous piece of equipment. i've found that (so far0 the DJH is a much better kit to construct than the K's kit i ws buildong several weeks ago.

Again, thank you for the assistance.

[BR60103]

CG9602:
DJH has a good reputation. There were a couple of articles in British mags in the last few months about building them -- O scale ones.
Off topic: one of our members was showing kit building at a recent show and had another manufacturer's kit assembled. The kit instructions noted that the part for the firebox top (of a tank engine) was too short and a spacer was included. But the spacer wasn't big enough and he had to add another piece in as well. If they knew their part wasn't good enough, why not put one in that was?
--David

[CG9602]

I can only speculate. Perhaps the manufacturer looked at the cost of doing yet another production run of the item in question, and decided that it was cheaper simply to make a note in the instructions. I would be rather dissappointed if i were a customer and made this discovery about a kit that I had just purchased. It is also possible that the parts were not all placed in the kit at the beginning - very poor quality control at the production end of things. all in all, it would make more snese to me to go back and do a nother production run, this time of a correct spacer. Placing a note regarding a defect and then not correcting it the second time around is penny wise and pound foolish. Obviously, it is much less hassle to Get Things Right The First Time Around.