If you ever need something from Japan, these guys have a decent stock of spare parts, they seem reasonably priced, and have been super quick both times I've ordered from them. In fact, when I ordered the bogies, an online shipping trace showed they left Tokyo a few hours after ordering and arrived on my doorstep 48 hours later. The Japanese are nothing if not efficient. It looks like the website don't just sell trains either, so they can be your one stop shop for radio controlled cars, model tanks, and erotic Japanese comics as well. If Dr. Luke is still tuning in, he may have some other recommendations. For the trains, Luke, the trains.The bogies look the part (although the external brake cylinders should probably go) and aren't bad as far as dimensions go either - a smidge small as you'd expect in both the overall and the wheels departments. Rapido style couplers - I can live with these for now (especially with corridor connections between coaches to hide things) and will put a MicroTrains knuckle at each end of the consist. Nice metal wheels roll freely thanks to copper pickups/bearings like those in modern N scale diesels, which would be handy if you wanted track-powered interior lighting.
Mounting these suckers is a little more tricky than usual because the bolsters are stepped (may not be clear in the pics) rather than flat all the way across, and then there are those copper tabs to cut down... I mounted them on a longitudinal plastic beam with some fat wood screws. If things get a lean or the wobbles, I'll attach some bearers down from the floor to sit on the flat mid-part of one of the bolsters.
So far, me likey.
2 comments:
Looks very tidy Darryl, although your lookout ducket looks to have slipped down the side of the van alittle.....
Now if you'd painted it dark blue with a red stripe you'd get an A+ !!
Gravity and age - its a terrible combination!
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