and he notes - Not t' pull the pin on couplers but has anyone considered the non-scale appearance of S Gauge wheels? None of the suppliers offer a 33 or 36" wheel with the correct contour.
While the front face appears to be correct the rear is not. Prototype wheels have a contour not a flat surface and older cast wheels have 'brackets' or ribs to facilitate cooling as well as add strength. Here is a photo of a cast wheel set offered in H0 (these would have been used on older cars): http://www.trainsetsonly.com/page/TSO/PROD/920-21254 Drawings of this type wheel can be found at (scroll down to 33" car wheels): http://prr.railfan.net/diagrams/PRRdiagrams.html?sel=whandx&sz=sm&fr= Modern forged wheels in use for the last fifty or so years have an inside contour which can be seen here: http://www.vintagemaineimages.com/bin/Detail?ln=15236 On this site we find an animated view of a roller bearing truck (place the cursor over "Railroad Products" and click on "wheels"): http://www.amsted.com/ Here is a prototype supplier with an interesting exploded view of a roller bearing truck http://www.railserve.com/jump/jump.cgi?ID=3790 Many years ago Culp Bros. offered a die-cast freight car wheel with ribs but no one has done so since. Even the brass imports have turned wheels and while the front is contoured, the back is not. http://www.modeltrainwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page_ref_id=75 The same is found at SHS and AM: SHS (scroll down and click on "Wheelsets") http://www.showcaseline.com/index2.html AM (Scroll down to trucks): http://www.americanmodels.com/misc/wheels.html It might be impractical for a manufacturer to offer a die-cast ribbed car wheel (although it could be done in lost wax) but surely a forged wheel with a contoured back is feasible even on a screw machine. Just a thought of course - but it seems that so much attention is paid to couplers and yet we ignore the very foundation of a railroad car - the wheels! Raleigh on a boring night in Maine... ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
