MTH PS2 Steam Drawbar

Make your own. I use steel and blacken it. Just find some scrap laying around. A hacksaw, file, and a drill bit is all you need. 

Pete

You can also use plastic, thats what I used.

It would vary depending on engine type, so does your engine have a parts diagram on the web?  G

I would probably make it out of 1/16" fiberglass sheet, I keep some around for this kind of stuff.  It's super strong, and pretty easy to whack into whatever shape you need.  Obviously, making it from brass will work as well.

I used another similar generation PS2 locomotive and pulled the drawbar to measure and came up with the following using my digital calipers:

78mm Long
7.55mm Wide
2mm Thick

I went to Lowes to look for some brass or metal to make my drawbar but the best I could find was some ~1/16" thick "welding plate." I used a chop saw with a metal cutting blade to cut my plate into a rectangle (took far longer than I had hoped - chop saw was not ideal for the application but it's the only heavy duty metal cutting tool I have as I didn't thing the dremel would cut it (pun intended)). I then used my vice and a dremel to grind down the bar to the shape close to the MTH part, then I drilled my two holes in my drawbar, before giving it an even coat of black metal spray paint.

End result worked the charm, can't even tell it's not the original piece unless you pull it off the locomotive and inspect it.  That being said, all told it probably took me about 1.5 hours worth of effort (not including the time spent milling around Lowes looking for materials).

Would I do it again, I'd probably use ABS plastic from Plastruct or Evergreen... alternatively I do have a jig saw with some metal cutting blades, but I'm not sure the jig saw blade is substantial enough to cut through 1/16" steel.

Here's a photo of the locomotive on the tracks (angle doesn't show the drawbar, but I figured it's a good photo of a good looking loco):

Glad you were able to do the job.  Truthfully, I don't know that I'd use plastic, I'd use my 1/16" fiberglass.  It's very easy to shape with a Dremel with carbide burrs, and also easy to drill.  However, it's way stronger than any plastic.  To rough cut it, I use a carbide radial arm saw to make a slim piece of stock.

GRJ, I'm guessing it's not necessary to have a good ground connection between the engine and tender that you favor fiberglass. Would this be correct?

gunrunnerjohn posted:

I would probably make it out of 1/16" fiberglass sheet, I keep some around for this kind of stuff.  It's super strong, and pretty easy to whack into whatever shape you need.  Obviously, making it from brass will work as well.

Source for these boards?  You use the same stuff for your smoke unit and pickup roller mounting?

Plastic is plenty strong enough, Kadee couplers are way smaller.  Only downside is if you need the extra grounding, and I don't think that is a problem with PS2. I use 1/16" plastic sheet from hobby shop. 

Dave Zucal posted:

GRJ, I'm guessing it's not necessary to have a good ground connection between the engine and tender that you favor fiberglass. Would this be correct?

That would be correct, and a loose drawbar isn't going to give you a solid connection either.  If you want a connection, run a wire.

superwarp1 posted:

gunrunnerjohn posted:

I would probably make it out of 1/16" fiberglass sheet, I keep some around for this kind of stuff.  It's super strong, and pretty easy to whack into whatever shape you need.  Obviously, making it from brass will work as well.

Source for these boards?  You use the same stuff for your smoke unit and pickup roller mounting?

Garolite Micarta Phenolic G10FR4 Sheet .063" (1/16") Thick x 12" x 12", 3 Pcs, eBay: 111001839155 is one source.

This is the solution I've been looking for when it comes to shortening the drawbar on a few of my 3rdrail engines that need isolation from ground due to the tender shell being the TMCC antenna.  Thanks John.

When you cut fiberglass, you'll need carbide blades or you'll be replacing them very quickly, it'll eat up a steel saw blade in short order!   Don't ask me how I know this.

superwarp1 posted:

This is the solution I've been looking for when it comes to shortening the drawbar on a few of my 3rdrail engines that need isolation from ground due to the tender shell being the TMCC antenna.  Thanks John.

In this case the post on the tender is on the frame which should be isolated from the body already. You can use fiberglass but it not really needed.

Any old PC board would work here. In my case I probably have enough copper clad board to tile a gymnasium.

Pete 

How big a gymnasium Pete?

Norton posted:

superwarp1 posted:

This is the solution I've been looking for when it comes to shortening the drawbar on a few of my 3rdrail engines that need isolation from ground due to the tender shell being the TMCC antenna.  Thanks John.

In this case the post on the tender is on the frame which should be isolated from the body already. You can use fiberglass but it not really needed.

Any old PC board would work here. In my case I probably have enough copper clad board to tile a gymnasium.

Pete 

On older 3rdrail engines like my Niagara, the frame is not isolated.  There's a plastic grommet in the drawbar keeping the tender from grounding out which is glued in.  Instead of finding a substitute for this grommet I'll just build a new drawbar to the spacing I want.

That is why mth drawbars have a solid wire that holds contact on tender pin for continuity.  G

Since both the 6-pin and 10-pin drawbar have a ground conductor, I question if that solid wire is really for grounding.  The articulated post on the tender makes VERY POOR contact on the two units I checked, the only ones that were handy.  I sure wouldn't want to count on that post and wire for a proper ground.

If that fiberglass dulls a saw so fast, what about the drill bit used for the holes?

A "Drill Doctor"? Or do you grind holes with a grinding ball bit?

(I know it does dull cutters fast, and saws are hard to sharpen. I'm mostly just curious what your solution is to dull bits. Sharpen or toss um? (Jobber bits are cheap enough, but they aren't even close to my fav.s., even compared to a regrind they often seem too soft for me)

I use the titanium coated drills, and so far I've drilled countless holes in fiberglass and they still are as sharp as ever.  I didn't think that would make a difference of HSS drills, but clearly I seem to have been mistaken.

Yes, when a drill bit does gets dull, I toss it.  I have a large box of drill bits that I bought years ago, still working through those.

I use solid carbide drills for fiberglass boards. You need a drill press though as they will break if you look at them cross eyed.

Pete

I'm sure those work well Pete, but I get lots of mileage from the titanium coated bits, and I can buy 20 of them for the price of one carbide drill bit.

Lots of mileage for sure. Most I have had for 40 years now.  They are actually labeled "circuit board drills". I did notice the price is considerably higher these days.

Pete

That makes perfect sense, circuit board drills have to make thousands (tens of thousands?) of holes in FR4 or similar fiberglass stock, they have to last.  I saw them for $6-$7 each, I don't drill that many holes.

I like to use titanium also. 

I label my carbides as "glass bits". A carry over from helping Gramps make custom gauges. (Talk about hard to cut without a shatter. We'd weight the drill press handle slightly and walk off, checking progress between other work, then fliped it,  going in from the other side to avoid edge chips)

 They do have titanium saw blades too.

A grinder is usually my choice for cutting fiberglass though.

I looked for carbide tipped blades for my bandsaw, but I haven't found any at reasonable prices.

Yes, FR4 board is a bear to cut! I also once tried using a bandsaw...and the blade sparked. Shearing it is about the best. 

For the folks needing continuity thru a FR4 drawbar I'm sure could rig up something using the copper clad stuff. 

I'm not seeing the need for a conductive drawbar, anything that is counting on that loose a connection for a frame ground reference needs some design work!