N10 radial truck

Sorry this has taken so long to report on but between the last work being done and this write up being prepared we have another kitchen at DC. It was a three week job in July.......................

I suppose we've all been there...!

Those of you who follow these things will remember I said I was having a spot of bother with the radial truck. Well the problem was not so much with the truck, more I had not given much thought as to how it would be fitted and since the loco is now running I should really be looking at making sure the truck sits in the right place and does not foul anything. Forming the truck is a fairly easy, straightforward task and the result is seen above. It is quite simply two side  frames with a piece of PCB as a spacer; easy............ Note, the curved front. This is to facilitate easy movement around the pivot which will be in the centre of the curved section. 

All pretty good so far, however - look at the next couple of pictures. The one below shows the chassis on its side and just to the rear (left) of the rear axle you can see the problem. I did not take into account the fact the trailing truck might need a bit more room for its attachment to the chassis proper.

Above - The effect of this lack of planning can clearly be seen when you look at the side view of the truck in the position it should be when attached. The front of the truck is deflected down by the section of chassis spacer just to the rear of the rearmost driven wheels which in turn forces the rear of the truck up and into contact with my strengthening nickel silver plate on which the motor mount is soldered. (I do wish my planning was better....!) If I was kind to myself I could always argue the chassis was designed as an 0-6-0 so there was always going to be a bit of fiddling around to get things right. 

Above can be seen the result of a spot of judicious hand 'milling' using a mini drill and a dental burr in an effort to put things right. A section which is almost the same size as the front of the truck has been removed and allows it to sit snugly underneath the chassis without any suggestion of its movement being hampered by the motor mounting plate. 

In this view can also be seen my now standard method of securing loco bodies, bogies and pony trucks etc. Anything that once was fixed with a screw I now, and for some considerable time, have been securing by means of a 'mini bolt' or a nut on to a stud. In this particular instance a 14BA screw protrudes beneath the motor mounting plate fixed from above and a 14BA nut retains the truck being screwed up using a box spanner of appropriate size. If a screw were needed then a piece of 14BA screw would have had the slotted end cut off, a nut soldered on and a miniature bolt would be the result. It's a lot easier to place a nut into a box spanner and offer it up to a stud or hold a mini bolt in the box spanner and insert into a threaded hole than spend infinitely longer fiddling with a small screwdriver and searching around on the floor for the ones that escape....! (note; if the picture is enlarged it is possible to see on the bottom right of the nut part of an 'N' gauge coupling spring which goes between the main chassis and the top of the truck to help ensure the truck stays in contact with the rails)

Below is the result of my endeavours. This picture should be compared to picture No 3. The radial truck sits a lot happier beneath the extension of the chassis and I can now get on with making more progress on the cosmetic side of things such as balance weights. Thereafter I'll be seeing if I can manufacture some 'removable' brakes.

Mick S.