I have a couple of freight cars on my layout, some Athearn and Walthers, that have stripped out holes where you screw in the trucks. Is it able to be repaired or are those pieces of rolling stock a total loss?
You can easily repair them. There are a couple of ways. The easiest (in my opinion) is to fill the hole with plastic filler putty. Wait till it dries overnight and drill and tap the hole for the right screw size.
I did this with a covered hopper that was made by ExactRail. There was one truck screw that wouldn't stay in from the day I bought. I fixed it with the filler method and it been going flawlessly ever since.
The other way is to glue some styrene tube, trim it till it's flush and drill/tap it for the screw.
So, you are in luck. Keep those cars a rollin' down the rails.
Will
To the site NS SD40E.
If the screw still has a little bite left, put some old fashion model glue on the screw tip. Install with truck on the car and let it sit for 10 minutes or so. If that does not work then you will want to fill and tap the hole.
With Athearn cars, you can buy new frame's only. I have replaced about 7 of mine. Mounting point had worn down and could not get the coupler height right. They where around $3.00 or so, but it has been a few years.
One thing I started to do a few years ago when installing the trucks is but a small drop of oil down the screw hole and where the truck mounts as well. All so leave the trucks lose, say to where you have a 1/8 of a inch play side to side. Car will track better and you will not strip anymore screw holes.
Cuda Ken
I hate Rust
Also, if you assemble these from kits, to prevent the problem in the future, tap the hole with a regular tap rather than rely on a self tapping screw, and substitute a regular machine screw of the appropriate size. I've found this gives you much better quality threads, especially in metal but even on plastic frames, which you'll be less likely to strip out.
I usually use Evergreen Styreen 1/8" diamener tubehttp://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/269-224
Drill out the screw hole with a 1/8" drill. Insert the tubing and mark a cut about 1/16 to 1/8 inch above the bolster (this will provide a pivot for the truck). Cut the tube and glue in the hole. When the glue is dry, drill and tap for a 2-56 machine screw. This is the standard screw that Athearn has been using for years.
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
Any of the permanent methods suggested will work well. For a quick fix, cut a couple of lengths of small styrene strip (.010"x.020" or similar) and drop them into the screw hole - they should be long enough to extend to the top of the hole, but not beyond. Put the truck in place and install the screw. The strip material will provide enough interference to keep the screw in place until a more permanent fix can be done.
Wayne
I have maybe a couple of dozen of so cars that have had the truck mounting screws stripped out, one of the pitfall of buying rolling stock at train shows. So I went through the pains of drilling tapping and inserting helicoils to all of them making for a now strip proof mount. A bit of work but something to do while watching TV at nite. You can accomplish the same thing using a 2-56 machine screw and nut. Simply super glue the nut to the floor of the car.after removing the car body of course.Once the glue has set you can run the screw in and out as often as you please. One of the guys in the club said he uses nylon locking nuts as they don't loosen up as easy.
Kadee sells the drill and tap for 2/56 and a couple of other sizes.
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
This is what Walthers lists for Kadee tap & drill sets. Note that 2 drills are supplied. The small one is for the tapped hole and the larger is if you need a clearance hole for the screwhttp://www.walthers.com/exec/search?category=&scale=&manu=kadee&item=&keywords=drill&words=restrict&instock=Q&split=30&Submit=Search