since last week i have been running my track cleaning train for quite some time. the 3 mainlines and the engine facility are now cleaned. the trains run smooth again. unfortunately the manifest train with the prairie shadows hoppers still causes derailments. changing all the wheels just helped the run freely but didn't improve tracking. i first changed the setup of the train from 4 engines in front to 3 engines in front, 47 cars, 2 more engines, another 40 cars. this helped in one location but still caused issues at other spots. running trains with other cars cause no issues so the derailments are definitely caused by the prairie shadows hoppers. i took a few off the layout and weighted them. 31 grams each. . i expected them to be lighter since light cars are usually the culprits. disassembly is pretty straight forward. pull both trucks off and then unscrew the tiny screws. they hold the bottom in place.
then pry the bolsters off from the frame. caution ! they tend to fly a long way...
after that the bottom of the car can be removed.
either remove the hot glue dabs and add all new hot glue or simply reheat the dabs for reuse.
as said, these cars are 31grams only.
unfortunately i didn't take a picture of the additional lead in place. but as you can see from the images there are 4 spots where one can add additional weight. after this treatment the cars come in at 40-42 grams. (39 grams without the trucks). why not constant 40 grams ? the lead i'm using comes from a small u-shaped profile. i just cut off a bit without a jig. that's why some of the pieces are a bit smaller/larger than others and thus causing the weight difference.
weekly work report..........12/15/2024
Posted - 12/15/2024 : 17:51:47
. i expected them to be lighter since light cars are usually the culprits. disassembly is pretty straight forward. pull both trucks off and then unscrew the tiny screws. they hold the bottom in place.
