What will be a recommended alternative to A-Lines adhesive weights? Most of the ones I see out there say they are wheel balancing or tire weights. I am specifically looking for 1/2 oz. for HO scale. I have used them before and they are perfect and do add a tremendous amount of weight!!!
I use 1/4 wheel weights. They work just fine and you might be able to get some free. I went to a tire shop one day and ask the manager if I could but a stick or two. He gave me 3 for free. You can all so buy them from a NAPA store, I think about $1.00 a stick and there is 8 or 10 weights per stick.
Cuda Ken
I hate Rust
I have not had good luck with the adhesive holding the weight in place. I have used the adhesive weights in the past to place weight on the underside of the pilot trucks on steam engines, and they invariably fall off after a short period of time. So, now I have resorted to using the sheet lead weights, cut to fit, and held in place with epoxy.
Rich
Alton Junction
Not adhesive but it works. I use lead roof vents that I cut up as needed and glue the pieces in place. This enables me to cut weights to fit any space.
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FOr closed cars, I just use pennies and superglue them together. You'll not find a cheaper weight. Befor ebuilding a car, I'll stack all the components (metal wheels instead of the supplied palstic if applicable), and add pennies to the scale to get the weight to the NMRA recommended amount. Nearest multiple of 2 or 3 (so weight is evenly distributed). I then glue the pennies together in 2 or 3 stacks and let it dry whle I start on the car. If there are 2 stacks, I center them over the truck centers, if there are 3 I put the third in the middle of the car. Typical use, Branchline Yardmaster cars need approximately 10 pennies to bring them up to recommended weight. 2 stacks of 5. 10 cents worth of some other weight would not be as much actual weight.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
I use steel washers (that I buy in bulk at the hardware store) attached with Walther's Goo. And I place them on top of the pilot truck, not under it.
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alloboardWhat will be a recommended alternative to A-Lines adhesive weights? Most of the ones I see out there say they are wheel balancing or tire weights. I am specifically looking for 1/2 oz. for HO scale.
rrinker FOr closed cars, I just use pennies and superglue them together. You'll not find a cheaper weight. Befor ebuilding a car, I'll stack all the components (metal wheels instead of the supplied palstic if applicable), and add pennies to the scale to get the weight to the NMRA recommended amount. Nearest multiple of 2 or 3 (so weight is evenly distributed). I then glue the pennies together in 2 or 3 stacks and let it dry whle I start on the car. If there are 2 stacks, I center them over the truck centers, if there are 3 I put the third in the middle of the car. Typical use, Branchline Yardmaster cars need approximately 10 pennies to bring them up to recommended weight. 2 stacks of 5. 10 cents worth of some other weight would not be as much actual weight. --Randy
Randy,
I too have used pennies, epoxied together, for years and they work great. I also use this arrangement to temporary hold small pieces together that are being glued when clamps might cause some damage.
Wayne
Modeling HO Freelance Logging Railroad.
LION uses old Liontype slugs and/of printer's leads and slugs. Alas these seem to have gone the way of the buggy whips, but you may find a print shop that is willing to give them to you. We have sold all of our printing presses (save one old offset press that we thought we might use again--we will not, the Xerox machine is far too easy for printing) but we are left with 100s of fonts of lead type and with the leads and slugs that went with them. The LION just sticks them inside of his cars with silicone caulk (that makes them easily removable) The LION likes HEAVY cars, and his trains are short enough not to make any difference in performance.
Also swiped from the print shop are the brass and copper thin spaces. The bigger ones are of little interest to the LION, but the 6, 8 and 10 point spaces make fine electrical pickups and can be used in many places where a little brass shim is needed.
I do not think that anybody is making lead type anymore, but I suspect that many shops are still using the stuff, but even hobbyists seem to have abandoned the craft. If you cannot get the parts, you cannot have a hobby. Our type is far to valuable to just melt down or to just throw away, but the plain truth is we no longer have any presses that could use the stuff.
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I have used pennies in covered hoppers for years...
Also have used the stick on tire weights; the Tool Man sells them at good prices on the Texas train show circuit.
I make my own sometimes with double sided tape and lead sheets or sinkers(fishing-- I mold into shape I want).
Richard
I use 1/2 inch and 3/8 inch washers that I purchase in bulk from Menards or Lowes. I weigh each washer and mark them as .30, .25, .20, .15 and .10 ounces and attach them with double sided tape or clear latex adhesive caulk. Cheaper and more accurate than ALine or any other stick-on weights.
Works just fine for me.
Len S
I use peel and stick tire weights. Adhesive designed to hold the weight on a spinning tire is not going to let go on your rail road.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
Phoebe Vet I use peel and stick tire weights. Adhesive designed to hold the weight on a spinning tire is not going to let go on your rail road.
Dave, my old Athearn "Hustler" might give those tire weights a real challenge as that little monster could really move.
I just use pennies and super glue or latex caulk. Even with the price of the adhesive, pennies remain the cheapest source of compact weight out there. I tried NAPA but they weren't much help. They have small batches of wheel weights in their catalog (under $20) but the clerks I talked to claimed these aren't available. Of course, they would be quite happy to sell me an $80 box of weights in stock. Since a metal washer the size and weight of a penny will likely cost you about 15 cents, its just simpler to use the pennies. I also save the expense of the gas needed to drive to the hardware store.
Hornblower
A good source for lead weights would be stained glass shops. They sell a lead channel that could be used for weighting.
Another source might be stores that deal in teaching supplies. Years ago, when I was in grade-school, our science class made batteries using lead strip and cardstock.
I was able to obtain a few yards of thin lead from American Science and Surplus in Chicago. (I visited the store and had to ask a clerk. He went into a back room and came back with a roll of lead strip, which IIRC, was sold by the yard or foot.)
It's been a while, but I've seen lead wool at hardware stores. This might be useful when trying to pack some additional weighting into locomotive domes and other tight spaces.
Dan
I found a supply of steel adhesive wheel weight through Wurth.
They're better than the lead ones that are currently available as I don't have to worry about my son handling them.
Gordon
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