Ever Make Your Own Loco/Car Parts?

Oh, yes...all the time...for the two Lionel 0-8-0's I kitbashed, and for assorted other

rolling stock, and will have to on this Grande gas electric kit, where the kit included no

metal parts.  I have to fabricate round roof mounted fuel tanks, probably from styrene

or brass tubing, and their mounts.  Some brass parts are on order.

Yes. I have made sheet metal motor and headlight mounts for customized tin plate loco projects. I once took a notion to "super detail" a Marx 1666 and fabbed a feed water heater and other detail parts from pieces of PVC pipe that been heated and made into a flat sheet.

pics or it didn't happen Andy......

When necessary, yes. I had to fabricate a couple  of brackets from brass when I was converting a brass engine to DCS, and I made a set of brass leading truck axle bearings for a Lionel steam locomotive when the plastic ones kept breaking and Lionel ran out of parts. I try to avoid making parts unless I absolutely have to, since it's a very time-consuming activity. 

I'm now looking at the need to fabricate a roof for a Richart mine loco. I got a killer deal on a whole Richart mine train, but the locomotive is missing the roof. I'm still hoping to find something I can adapt, but if necessary I can cut a piece of sheet metal and roll it into shape on an improvised mandrel. Attaching it will be a problem, but I can think of a couple of ways to deal with that.

Yes, this old 822 Lionel caboose was missing one of its trucks, so I fabbed one.  It was added as a junque piece to an auction lot, but just needed repainting in addition to the truck.

This is the second one of these I have done. Modified a Lionel 252 paragraph to mount and lock in place on a Dorfan 53 locomotive. I solder a small piece of brass to the bottom of the  Lionel piece and bend it over creating the locking tabs needed for Dorfan. This loco is now running and ready to go back to it's owner.

Steve

Nice examples, guys!

Tom

I was wanting a set of three axle trucks for the tender for my Torpedo project. I couldn't find any on the bay, and I'm glad I didn't.This was so simple I can't believe I never thought of it before, and I can't be the only one to think of it. Just took two truck frames together, and held them together with the journal cover.Been running it around for a few days and still nice and tight.

Daryl, if you had painted the original truck, you'd never be able to tell which one you fabbed.

I was given a Lionel 262E and the diecast chassis frame had disintegrated into many broken bits.   I made a new frame from tinplate.   I know reproductions  are sometimes available but as I am overseas it was cheaper to make my own. 

I guess this qualifies...at least on the toy train side of the hobby...

http://www.littleglitterhouses.com/MakingTinTrainCars

Howard...

Howard, 

   Very nice. Please post some more pictures of your work. How many would you estimate that you have built so far?

Tom

  About the extent of my fabricating has been handrails and a roof for a building  .

Out of tin i made a roof for a roofless prewar 156 electric .

It was not very hard as i have another that i a was able to measure from.

Martin