Passenger Car 2 Rail Conversion question.

Hi Andy. Your post is timely as I just got off the Northwest Short Line site (https://www.nwsl.com) and i think they'd be able to help you. You need to disassemble one of the trucks and measure the length of the axles. Check their site and find matching 36" wheelsets -- pointed or shouldered (blunt) axles and you should be good to go. Even at $25 per set assembled, you're probably better off cost wise than replacing trucks.

Hope this helps.

@roll_the_dice posted:

Will the Kline 2 rail passenger wheels be the best option to convert these to 2 rail?  Thanks!

That might depend on their cost and your economics, vs. what quality of trucks you find accceptable.

Thanks for the replies.

I think (I may be wrong) the Lionel has roller bearing wheelsets.  I don't have a press, so my thought was if the K-Line was a direct swap into the Lionel it would be easiest.  Then I could try and sell the Lionel trucks to offset the cost of the K-line.  The K-line trucks would be $40 per passenger car from Public Delivery.

I am not a rivet counter yet, so I am not overly concerned about them being 100% accurate on the trucks for the heavyweight car.

Now that I think about it.  Instead of asking if it was the best option.  I think I am looking for the easiest option at this point.

@roll_the_dice posted:

Thanks for the replies.

I think (I may be wrong) the Lionel has roller bearing wheelsets.  I don't have a press, so my thought was if the K-Line was a direct swap into the Lionel it would be easiest.  Then I could try and sell the Lionel trucks to offset the cost of the K-line.  The K-line trucks would be $40 per passenger car from Public Delivery.

I am not a rivet counter yet, so I am not overly concerned about them being 100% accurate on the trucks for the heavyweight car.

Now that I think about it.  Instead of asking if it was the best option.  I think I am looking for the easiest option at this point.

Easiest that fits your specs is probably your own solution - the K-line trucks, particularly since I'm quite sure that you'll be able to recoup some of that cost selling the Lionel trucks.

@roll_the_dice posted:

Thanks for the replies.

I am not a rivet counter yet, so I am not overly concerned about them being 100% accurate on the trucks for the heavyweight car.

"I am not a rivet counter YET,..." 🙂

So, if you think there's a chance you might become one, you may want to keep that in mind, too...no point in taking the easy route now, only to have to change things again later...(?) In any case, let us know how it goes.

Mark in (icy) Oregon 🎄

Looks like the Lionel and MTH trucks are getting close to scale length and detail.  The K-line standard streamlined truck was a shortie, modeled after a Chinese prototype.

When I two-railed my 21” K-Line cars, I looked for the bronze All Nation trucks, which could be had with wheels for eight bucks on the used market.  I also used Kemtron and Wasatch, but those are pricey.  And I had several unique UP sideframes cast in lost wax.

For me, the best way was a full length wood center sill, with appropriate cutouts for the couplers and steel floor truck bosses.  Then electrical pickup was trivial.

If you have turnouts, sometimes one  needs to make sure the new wheels chosen go through the turnouts without derailing. Just an often overlooked detail.

Thanks for the replies.  The K-Line trucks I am looking at are heavyweight trucks and look (to me) to be very similar to the lionel heavyweight trucks.

The Turnouts are a good point and something I will have to look at and consider.

I have never owned passenger cars and I have wanted some for a while now, but have never bought any. I have pre-ordered the Sunset SAL E6 in Classic color scheme and would love to have the silver comet passenger cars to go with.  I think GGD made some back in 2016 (not sure if they were Seaboard or PRR), but I haven't seen any for sale aftermarket.

Thanks John...I never did buy any Southern/Seaboard passenger cars, but I will look again and see what I can find.  Shoot me an email (in profile) with what you want for them.  Thanks

The K-Line 36" passenger wheel-sets are pretty good actually if you have the right recipient truck and axle pocket to mount them in. Ron H's question is a pretty good one too, there is always the appearance versus functionality issue lurking with aftermarket trucks or wheel sets on scale length cars, and switches and track work in general will surface those problems quickly.

What do the Lionel truck frames you have actually look like? My impression with the few I've seen is they're both measurably too short when scaled out and compared to the prototype often the wrong truck type/design, which is often the case with large run 21" cars. Stock K-Lines have that issue, as do other manufacturers like Weaver and Williams. I try and stick to the best facsimile of the car's prototype truck and failing that go with the best functionality and otherwise appearance.

Upon inspection of my 2-rail MTH Test Car (came with the GE ES44AC Hybrid Demonstrator) it looks like MTH used 33" wheels in their passenger trucks. IF (big if), they're consistent with MTH freight trucks, you may be able to substitute Intermountain 20050 scale wheels. Yes the wheels are smaller, but you may be able to manage the car height more easily. Just a thought considering that it's not really noticeable from more than a couple of feet away. Also, being single-insulated you can manage the electrical pickup more easily.

An option is to purchase two rail cars and paint them to the Southern scheme.  John

I just can't seem to pull the trigger on passenger cars...one day I will find some I can't live without!