Out of gauge front pilot truck

If you have another engine that does not derail the front wheels compare the two. If not set the engine on the track and see how much side to side play the wheels have. If there is too much width they will tend to ride up over the rails. If too narrow you may see the same thing. I set up mine where there is just a little clearance on each side.

Rob

Ok but how do you adjust is there some kind of screw or something to adjust them in and out

Can you not just press the wheels on the axles to move them by hand or is there a spacer between the wheels?

Ray

It's the blue comet by mth it has a dual axle and they are mounted on a solid plate. The axle run through that metal plate.it looks like the axle has a flat bump that hold them in place. Not much room for moving.





> On Feb 20, 2015, at 8:10 AM, O Gauge Railroading On Line Forum <alerts@hoop.la> wrote:
>

My new Polar Express decided to misbehave in this way. I measured the rear trailing truck axle and found the inside of the flange to the inside of the flange was 1.112".

 

The pilot was 1.05, but it wanted to roll over the points on two switches coming out of a curve. Too much side to side play.

 

getting the axle out was no big deal. What I didn't have was a jaw puller to move the wheel properly. Then if you move it too far, you need the cups and the press to push it on so it's straight.

 

So, you need a set of similar wheels (postwar, MPC or modern) that do not roll over to measure. (What oldrob said) The wheel shapes changed.

 

I don't want to tell you how I got around not having the proper tools, but it was an adventure. At least I have a digital caliper.

it sucks because all my trains work no problem and this one train is my daughter only train that I had bought her and she wants to run it and it will not navigate the 022 switch with out the truck jumping. My daughter loves the blue comet and she and I are frustrated over this. Because on my old layout I didn't have this problem.

You are missing the spring on the screw, where the pilot attaches to the engine.

 

Gene Anstine

Is it the railking? Check the diameter of the flanges. They may be larger for an O scale wheel than an 027 wheel. You are running 027 track, yes? the rail height is lower.

 

It may just be the flanges hitting.

 

Sorry, I just looked at your plan, you have O

 

The axle has to come out to adjust it, if that is what's needed. Side plates off and pop the c-clip on the pin. then the real fun will start.

No sping is there

I use a hammer, a small wrench that is about the size of the wheel, and a block of wood to move the wheels in or out. You need to get creative.

Rob

No running o scale track 031 turn and 022 track and yes railking

Ok, I'll fess up. I spread the jaws on my small vise just wide enough to sit the flange on with the vise jaws closed as close to the axle as I could get it and used a piece of thick plastic on the axle point(you can't bugger that up) and tapped on the axle end with a small hammer to push it through the wheel(moving it closer to the end).

 

needless to say, that's not precise, and trying to split the difference on each side resulted in the wheels being to wide.

 

Then, I used sockets like wheel cups and tapped them closer. One on the bottom and one on the top in a vertical arrangement. The first attempt cocked one wheel. Again, not precise and square like a press.

 

I eventually got the wheels straight with the adjusted width. problem solved.

If you don't have the tools or knowledge to fix the wheels, I would find someone who repairs trains to do it.

Yes I think so if I destroy my daughter only train I could be in hot water.

Here's what the real deal looks like to help you improvise

see attachments

perhaps you could swap the axles if the front most one is narrower than the rear axle.

 

The side plates and c-clip are not a problem. measure both and put the wider set in the front most position. A ruler with 1/16ths should give you an answer.

Or you could put the spring on, that is missing, and not mess with the wheels.  It will put the needed pressure on the truck so it doesn't ride up.

 

Gene Anstine

Here are the parts for your engine, including the missing spring.

 

Blue Comet Parts

 

 

There is a spring on there you saying there should be 2 springs 

Not worth messing with IMO.  Since the front truck is easily removable, I would just order a new truck from the MTH parts department.  Assuming the new one works correctly, you could ship your old one back to them to be repaired, and then you would have a spare.  Not sure how old your loco is, but I have to put this back on MTH.  Unless it really got jammed in a fall from the table or a derailment, the wheels must have been out of gauge from the factory.

 

They've made the RailKing CNJ P47 Pacific in several road names, so you might have to paint the replacement truck blue to match.  They might even use the same 4-wheel lead truck on other RailKing steam locos.  IMO this should be a $10 part and a screwdriver repair.  -Ted

I looked at the second photo again with a close up of the front wheels. It looks as if the brake caliper is protruding past the flange.

 

Can the side plates be reversed to put that on the rear? Perhaps that is what is hitting.

I only see one spring on either truck in the manual

I would compare a known  good  MTH freight truck's flange with the pony trucks on your engine. (Atlas"O" trucks are good as well). Try and set the  flanges on top of each  other. It looks to me in the first pic the left wheel front  is  not on squarely.  I use a good vice  for pressing the wheels closer .Making the flange wider can be a bit of a problem.  You can  do it by placing the wheel on top of the vice  and gently   taping the axle.

 

take the truck off and push it through some of your switches. It'll give you an idea of what has to be done. (if anything) 

bigdofjeff1,

Did you resolve the derail issue on the Blue Comet?

Not yet been busy with wiring. I did stretch the spring a little .