HELP, my face fell off !

Is it held on with a magnet? Don

Is there a screw around the engine. If there is a hole with threads on the top of the boiler then it's held on the a screw like many of the old 027 engine. Could we see the other side of the front? Don

I believe there should be a tab on the back of the smokebox front.  A screw goes through that tab and then up and into the threads you saw at the top of the smokebox.  The shell needs to be removed to access that screw for assembling as I recall.  Essentially a cleaner looking version of the postwar method of a screw through the top of the boiler and into that tab.

Here's a new one for you, might need to resize a bit   

I don't see a screw hole between B.face and stack. Check for a magnetic pull, at that square boss at the top of the opening(normally a attaching boss screw comes down thru) It may now have a magnet/steel block in it. And look at the B.face and and door on the rear (and show us the backside of the face/door as Don suggests, please)

 O'Bill might like ol' down to earth Thomas.

 But I'm wondering if something a little more from the earth might be prefered?

I lost  my shots of it lit up.  

  Seriously, a second boiler door might change the whole flavor of an engine without harming the original. 

Sometimes a different face isnt hard to find with alternative headlights, class lights, door detail, feedwater heater up high or on the pilot beam/boards or ...gone, skipped... etc. that can swap dirrectly on a loco.

The boiler dia. has to match for sure. Then maybe they attach the same, or maybe you are fabricating a new attachment point on the new door..?

Really, #1 the boiler dia; #2 minor hassles...-diameter lips/steps/bosses vs depths/etx.; are the possible concerns for using one for a swap or bashing on an extra B. door. 🤓  I.e. some dremel grinding and/or JB Weld work too the door only, and command it to fit.   

Should be a screw, either on top or the bottom that holds the boiler front on.

Sorry for the delay.  The chief dispatcher sent me to town.  The block inside the boiler top is threaded.  I went fishing for a parts diagram I once saw, but the Lionel site is temporarily down.  Taking the last photo gave me a greater appreciation for what BRIANSILVERMUSTANG must go through for his great close-ups.  It is hard to turn this engine belly up for anything.  I had a pool noodle moment but stayed on topic.  Anyone had a Lionel Mikado apart?  I can't stand the horror.  To the train shed (original box) she goes.  Out comes the MPC era steamer pulling a post war whistle tender. 

The screw goes in from the inside, you have to take the boiler shell off.  It probably just fell out.  It should be a fairly common screw size, don't recall off-hand, but I think it's an SAE screw and not metric.

Thanks Gunrunner,

I will post photos.

Odenville Bill posted:

It is hard to turn this engine belly up for anything.  I had a pool noodle moment but stayed on topic.  Anyone had a Lionel Mikado apart?  I can't stand the horror. 

I have a Lion Chief Plus Mikado (yours looks to be one also, in the photos).  In the instruction book that came with mine, Lionel shows the location of the 4 screws that attach the boiler shell to the frame.  2 near the front in the steam chest, and 2 near the back of the cab.

You could simply break loose the screws, lay the loco on its side on a soft towel or piece of carpet foam, then finish removing the screws.  The shell should then come easily off the frame.

That being said, I haven't had the need to take my shell off yet.  But if Lionel shows the screw locations for shell removal in the owner's manual, it really can't be too awful tough or intimidating for the average owner to remove the shell.  Shouldn't be any horror to it. 

Those are very easy, the only wire in some models is for the headlight.

Thanks again y'all.  I'll open her up after dinner.  

  You can make a makeshift engine cradle from some towls, and/or foam and a miter block. Maybe a scrap of gutter nailed onto a wood base..etc. 

For one locomotive, just take a large towel and roll it from both ends.  Place the two rolls next to each other on the bench, instant engine cradle.  You put the roll on the bottom, it won't unroll that way.  No towels were harmed in the making of this graphic.

Here's the "Junior" version.

Nice.

You've got to "know where your towel is" if you expect to make it I guess 

 ☁️🐬🐬🌫️☁️🐋🐋🌫️🌤️🐬🌫️🐬🌫️    --- !!🦐🦐😋🦐🦐!!---

    🤓👨‍🔬     🔬🐁🐀🔬🐁🐁

Once you get the boiler off you're still missing the screw that holds the boiler front on. Looks like a couple dabs of hot glue on the inside flat surfaces of the boiler front would hold it in place just as well as the screw. 

Jerry Nolan posted:

Once you get the boiler off you're still missing the screw that holds the boiler front on. Looks like a couple dabs of hot glue on the inside flat surfaces of the boiler front would hold it in place just as well as the screw. 

With a bit of luck, maybe the screw is still inside the shell somewhere.  If not, then hot glue is still an option.

  Oh, so they flipped the screw over, and swaped jobs; enlarging the thread hole and threading the old bore to rid the shell of an exposed screwhead. Nice.

 Find your screw on the track fast with a strong magnet.

  Blue loctite or a dab of hot glue on the screw head after seating it should be enough to hold it in place. (I sometimes use the tiniest bit of red on  two threads closest the head and under the seat of the head.

  If you need a little heat to soften loctite for removal, but flame is a scary proposition; wipe a soldering iron tip real clean and use that.

  Silicone, caulk, or paint on just the head's top  and mating surface work well as a "swedging"loctite too.

  Hot glue usually peels back pretty easy. But it depends on the glue type; some are soft, some hard as rocks and the hard ones don't come off nearly as easy. 

  I doubt you need to glue the face to boiler end unless the tab or boss is damaged. I'd still repair/make a new bracket... Secure the screw better and let it do it's job .

This is a lot of work just to replace a missing screw!  Find the correct size screw, put it in, drop the shell back on the locomotive.

gunrunnerjohn posted:

This is a lot of work just to replace a missing screw!  Find the correct size screw, put it in, drop the shell back on the locomotive.

That makes too much sense.  Where's the fun in that? 

Somehow you just knew he had a screw loose! 

Farmer Bill,

I am much like my old Model T.  Screws come loose, parts fall off, and if I'm not leaking, I'm low on everything.  But I'm still moving.

I solved the case of the disappearing face plate.  I did as suggested.  I placed the locomotive on a rolled towel in a miter box.  The four screws holding the shell were fall-out loose.  I reattached the boiler face with two dabs of silicone adhesive I had on hand.  This morning I checked what screws I saw.  The front truck screw was loose too.  All is good.  We have our face back in place.  It has NO traction without the shell. 

Thanks for the wisdom again guys,

Bill

Odenville Bill posted:

I reattached the boiler face with two dabs of silicone adhesive I had on hand. 

Just curious, why didn't you just put the missing screw back in?

I could not find it John.  I crawled all over my board with a flashlight and a small magnet.  I wanted to do it right.  The silicone I used is left over from automotive projects.  It can be removed with moderate effort and will not harm paint.