Derailing tank car[:(!]

[Anonymous]

Can any one help me?This tank car derails on every switch or dimond. It is A roundhouse ADM. I have put P2K wheels on it. It also has Kadee copulers. [:(!][:(!][:(!][:(!][:(!]

[Anonymous]

More info please

Type, make, model, coupleers, where it's derailing, ect.

Jay

[Anonymous]

Off the top and w/o any infor sounds like a wheel set replacement

[Anonymous]

Are you using the right size wheels??

[dharmon]

Does it happen at a certain place...turnouts, crossover, when being pushed? Talgo trucks or body mounted couplers?

First I'd check gauge on all the wheels.
Next check swing on the trucks to see if they catch on anything.
Then I'd temporarily swap the trucks with a known good car to see how both the other car and the tank perform.
If it passes all these, then I'd check coupler movement and height...

[BNSFNUT]

Check the car's weight. I have found that most tank cars are to light.

[dknelson]

Not only are many tank cars too light, but due to their construction the weight we do add makes them a little top heavy. Mantua had the right idea years ago -- the tank was in two parts, the bottom that attached to the frame was metal and the top part was plastic. But that did create a pretty obvious seam.
Dave Nelson

[ndbprr]

Here is what I do on all cars for weight. I guess I'm just getting cheap but I fill them with plaster before asembling them. Tank cars are one of the worst cars for derailing and this has helped immensely. After doing two or three box cars and covered hoppers you soon learn how much is needed. Any that leaks out is just wiped off with a damp rag before weathering. May not be the highest tech solution but it is easy. I once decided it may be better to cast a square log and cut off pieces to put in box cars that approached NMRA weight levels but then I had the dust and glue to contend with so I went back to just pouring it into an upside down shell.

[Nieuweboer]

I built several Roundhouse Tank Train tank cars and found out that if the saddle and end sill are not perfectly positioned the truck shows poor
riding quality and is prone to derail. There is no solution than to carefully remove both the saddle and end sill and repostition them.

[bluepuma]

Lack of Weight caused my N scale tank cars to derail like that too. I considered lead fishing sinkers or BB like balls. Plaster through a hole in the bottom might be just the thing, seal it with wax or such to set upright to harden. Humm... model power cars!

Light weight, had the cars been properly weighted 33 years ago, might not have put
the train away so long.

[cacole]

You can't always blame the wheels -- it could easily be the coupler trip pin hanging down too low and catching on the turnouts and crossovers as the car goes through. I've had that problem several times, and the trip pin is always the first thing I check. Roll the car through a turnout or crossover by hand and watch the coupler trip pin to make sure it is not catchng on frogs, etc.

[eastcoast]

WOW.
On the lighter side of your problem, maybe it's the liquid inside.
You know how it sloshes back and forth and side to side ?
Well, sometimes the wheels come off the tracks and miss
the joint and derail. Now, this could be a HUGE MESS if it spills.
In the meantime, try to add some weight to the bottom and see if
it fixes the problem. OH, and DO NOT ADD LIQUID !!! (funny)
ken_ecr

[dharmon]

QUOTE: Originally posted by eastcoast

WOW.
On the lighter side of your problem, maybe it's the liquid inside.
You know how it sloshes back and forth and side to side ?
Well, sometimes the wheels come off the tracks and miss
the joint and derail. Now, this could be a HUGE MESS if it spills.
In the meantime, try to add some weight to the bottom and see if
it fixes the problem. OH, and DO NOT ADD LIQUID !!! (funny)
ken_ecr

Yeah...cause if you think the new RTR models are expensive.....just wait till you have to buy a HO scale HAZMAT clean up crew...talk about expensive, not too mention all the inevitable 1/87 scale lawsuits that will arise as the result of a tank car derailment....your budget will be gone right there....

[CBQ_Guy]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bluepuma

Lack of Weight caused my N scale tank cars to derail like that too. I considered lead fishing sinkers or BB like balls. Plaster through a hole in the bottom might be just the thing, seal it with wax or such to set upright to harden.

I've read about something similar but using sand instead of plaster.