I have an old (c. 1970's) Tyco 0-6-0 Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe (with Power Torque!), hehe.
I pulled it out of storage and was running it on my son's little track when the Jack Russell decided to eat a fly. As she snapped at the fly she knocked the engine over. In doing so, the springy thing on the back coupler broke off and the two snap connections in the back that holds down the shell have broken off too.
1. Can I still get an old Tyco coupler....or would I want to upgrade possibly, and to what?
2. Any ideas on how to hold the back of the shell down onto the 'frame'....I guess that's what you'd call it. Right now it is only held down by the screw in front.
Any info would be much appreciated.
Mike/Nightshade
The old Tyco coupler is a common type, an X2F with a small pivot hole. Life Like may still market these. If not I'll mail you a couple of them.
The shell should stay on the frame with the front screw holding it down (I'm assuming you're talking about the plastic boiler model with tender, not the metal side tank one. I believe that Model Power has parts available for the old Mantua/Tyco line. If it is the plastic one with the backhead cast on and a spearate cab, the part number is 2317 which Model Power listed for $10.88 in 2002. Check their website under Mantua Classics, on the steam locos they're the same company and parts as Tyco.
www.modelpower.com
Thanks Tom. I'll look into it. It is the one with the separate cab that can be removed by itself. I might purchase a new boiler to have for the future. Unfortunately, I got this engine just before I took my layout down. It's oer 30 years old and hasn't got 2 hours of run time on it! Hehe.
On a sidebar.....how can one tell if a steam loco has capability for smoke? I have another old Matua 0-4-0 (Pennsylvania) but no paperwork or box for it. Was just wondering....This one doesn't have a coupler to the tender but has a plastic strap and wire running to it.....not sure what that means.
Nightshade wrote: Thanks Tom. I'll look into it. It is the one with the separate cab that can be removed by itself. I might purchase a new boiler to have for the future. Unfortunately, I got this engine just before I took my layout down. It's oer 30 years old and hasn't got 2 hours of run time on it! Hehe. On a sidebar.....how can one tell if a steam loco has capability for smoke? I have another old Matua 0-4-0 (Pennsylvania) but no paperwork or box for it. Was just wondering....This one doesn't have a coupler to the tender but has a plastic strap and wire running to it.....not sure what that means. Mike/Nightshade
Most of the Mantua/Tyco steam locos with the cast metal boiler didn't have provision for a smoke unit, the screw that mounts the boiler comes in almost directly below this to mount the boiler. On the larger ones (pacific, mikado), the screw goes down through the smoke stack, making installation even more difficult.
The Mantua 0-4-0 is connceted to its tender by a fiber (sort of heavy cardboard) drawbar for the mechanical connection, and a wire for the electrical connection. The loco has the drivers on one side of it grounded to the frame for pickup from one rail, and the tender has the wheels on the opposite side grounded to its frame. The fiber drawbar insulates the loco frame from the tender frame. Since both loco and tender are required for electrical pickup, the only way you normally can separate them is to remove the drawbar screw. The tender should have a regular coupler on the opposite end.