I recently acquired a deluxe version of the Western Coil Zephyr with added window glazing, handrails and mail pickup arm. The body has the motor stud coming up by the exhaust stacks and is fastened with a cotter pin as it should be. The wheel sets appear to have scale wheels with solid axles. There is a roller power pickup on the motor.
I started to clean up and polish the cars and found that the cast bolsters for the power car and Pullman wheel sets are different than the one for the observation car. They have an extra piece in the casting with a vertical groove in it, then a metal curved piece screwed to the casting to make a vertical cylindrical shape.
When I took the roof off, I found two wires soldered to the side of the light socket( which would make them negative), ending with the wire soldered to a brass stud that can move within a non ferrous tube. Both tubes were wrapped in electrical tape. The tubes could fit within the cylindrical grooves on the bolster, but why?
I did read in a TCA article that Western Coil did make sets for outside the rail power pickup.
Has anyone seen a set like this before?
And as other owners have asked, does anyone know of where new paper vestibules can be found?
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