hon30critterIf you compare doctorwayne's caboose handrails with mine, you can clearly see how much better the 0.0125" phosphor bronze wire that he used looks
Anyway, thanks all. Very grateful for your help.
-Matt
Returning to model railroading after 40 years and taking unconscionable liberties with the SP&S, Northern Pacific and Great Northern roads in the '40s and '50s.
crossthedog hon30critter If you compare doctorwayne's caboose handrails with mine, you can clearly see how much better the 0.0125" phosphor bronze wire that he used looks Yeah, that looks nice, and Henry used even smaller (0.015). I might get some of both and play around, but I wonder if .015 might be too small to properly stay in the holes that are already in the caboose. Anyway, thanks all. Very grateful for your help. -Matt
hon30critter If you compare doctorwayne's caboose handrails with mine, you can clearly see how much better the 0.0125" phosphor bronze wire that he used looks
Yeah, that looks nice, and Henry used even smaller (0.015). I might get some of both and play around, but I wonder if .015 might be too small to properly stay in the holes that are already in the caboose.
I would go with the .125 wire, Tichy also sells the curved and rectangular grabs along with the wire and the grabs are .125, you can use gap filling CA which will take care of the larger holes drilled in the car.
Rick Jesionowski
Rule 1: This is my railroad.
Rule 2: I make the rules.
Rule 3: Illuminating discussion of prototype history, equipment and operating practices is always welcome, but in the event of visitor-perceived anacronisms, detail descrepancies or operating errors, consult RULE 1!
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Looks like I type too slow. I deleated some wording here that was mentioned above that I did not see/read till this posted stayed put. Error, error.
I have an assortment of Phosphor Bronze wire in these sizes from smallest to largest, .008", .010", .015" and .020" . A project will come up in the future that will need this size or that size. Don't over look other sizes. I also keep in stock, brass, steel, piano/music wire and magnet wire.
PC101 Yeah, that looks nice, and Henry used even smaller (0.015). I might get some of both and play around, but I wonder if .015 might be too small to properly stay in the holes that are already in the caboose.
If you're re-working an older car with oversized holes, I've found that it's quite easy to re-drill the holes with a suitably-sized drill bit, then use some similar-sized Evergreen styrene rod, dipped into lacquer thinner, to plug the hole...let it sit for a minute or two, then slice-off the excess, and re-drill to suit the wire that you wish to use.
Wayne
crossthedog Before everyone gets too excited telling me what kind of measuring tools I should borrow or buy, maybe that energy could be better spent helping me understand how to read the one I already have. My dad left me this -- I guess it's a caliper, not a micrometer? -- but I don't know what the smallest ticks represent. In the photo, it's open to 2 numbered units on the shaft made up of 25 numbered units each around the handle. This looks like way more than two millimeters to me, but I'm not very metric, so the single ticks on the shaft I don't know what they are. the ferrous metal railing beside the brake wheels is .022”. Thank you Bear. I'm sure it's the same.
Before everyone gets too excited telling me what kind of measuring tools I should borrow or buy, maybe that energy could be better spent helping me understand how to read the one I already have. My dad left me this -- I guess it's a caliper, not a micrometer? -- but I don't know what the smallest ticks represent. In the photo, it's open to 2 numbered units on the shaft made up of 25 numbered units each around the handle. This looks like way more than two millimeters to me, but I'm not very metric, so the single ticks on the shaft I don't know what they are.
the ferrous metal railing beside the brake wheels is .022”.
Thank you Bear. I'm sure it's the same.
Jim (with a nod to Mies Van Der Rohe)
up831it's been a long while since I've used one, but if I remember correctly the hash marks on the shaft read in 1/10000 of an inch or .0001.
I'm pretty sure that each of those hash marks is 1/1000 of an inch, or 0.001.
PC101I have an assortment of Phosphor Bronze wire in these sizes from smallest to largest, .008", .010", .015" and .020". A project will come up in the future that will need this size or that size. Don't over look other sizes. I also keep in stock, brass, steel, piano/music wire and magnet wire.
Magnet wire is great if you want to hide wiring for headlamps on brass locomotives. I use 34 AWG (0.006" OD). Both will fit through a #80 size drilled hole and are barely noticeable.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
up831it's been a long while since I've used one, but if I remember correctly the hash marks on the shaft read in 1/10000 of an inch or .0001. Hope this helps.
Jim,
Correction: Those are one thousandth (1-mil) increments; hence the "0.001" on the side of the micrometer in the photo. Each rotation is 0.025" (25-mil) and will expose one tick per rotation on the vertical shaft. Four rotations yield 0.100" (100-mil), which you can just see the "1" on the shaft. The gap in the photo is 0.200" (200-mil)...
hon30critter Hi Bruce, Have you used phosphor bronze wire? It is quite a bit stiffer than plain brass but is is still easy to bend and solder. I have found that brass wire bends too easily so that you have to be very careful when handling a model with brass hand rails. With phosphor bronze, you can be pretty clumsey (which I usually am) but nothing gets bent. Cheers!! Dave
Hi Bruce,
Have you used phosphor bronze wire? It is quite a bit stiffer than plain brass but is is still easy to bend and solder. I have found that brass wire bends too easily so that you have to be very careful when handling a model with brass hand rails. With phosphor bronze, you can be pretty clumsey (which I usually am) but nothing gets bent.
Cheers!!
Dave
Hi, Dave.
Yes I have used it, but I happened to have brass wire on hand in the appropriate size. After I posted, I noticed phosphor bronze was mentioned ahead of my post, and I'll defer to that expertise.
Regards,
Bruce
crossthedog The good part was that the folks at REI handed me a new replacement tool without even asking questions. -Matt
The good part was that the folks at REI handed me a new replacement tool without even asking questions.
Matt,
Nice that they replaced the tool. I have a few cutters now with dings in the blades and I have no idea who manufactured them. Just chalk it up to an expensive learning curve.
Ummm, small correction, Matt, 0.0125” is smaller than 0.015”. I also think that I need to add some perspective to this wire thickness discussion. Decimal inches HO scale inches 0.0125 1.1 0.015 1.3 0.020 1.7 0.025 2.2 0.030 2.6 Now due to doctorwaynes influence I do use Tichy 0.0125 phosphor bronze wire for making grabs, steps etc, but when making the railing for my car ferry, I used .020” brass wire because it came in longer lengths requiring less soldering. To be honest, as Matt is only replacing one railing, I’d recommend using the original 0.022” or at the least, 0.020”. As a “3 foot” modeller am I going to quibble over, or even see well enough, the difference between 1 and 2 HO scale inches? Currently on the work bench, 0.0125" phosphor bronze wire. 0.0125 by Bear, on Flickr 0.020" brass railings and stantions. 0.020" railing by Bear, on Flickr Cheers, the Bear.
I also use the .0125 wire for the grabirons on the roofwalk laterals, but also add a soldered-on support at the bend...
(if you click on the photos, they should enlarge)
...and a couple other things to do...
I also built several of these small crossing shanties where there are no crossing gates...just a former railroad employee, who may have been injured on the job, and then later assigned as a crossing tender...
...but then decided to add some handrails to the "wooden" porch, using Evergreen .035" styrene rod...
...then used a small round file to create "pipe fittings"....
...and one of several that are on the layout...
All very nice, Doc. The ladder rungs are mind-boggling, such small detail. My dad would have loved the ladders. He was all about the jigs.