Hi, we are looking for a means of lifting our passenger cars up a bit off of the trucks to gain more track clearance, we have tried spacers between the frame and truck base which helps a bit but makes the cars wobbly, any suggestions would be helpful, I will post some pics.
George said:
Hi, we are looking for a means of lifting our passenger cars up a bit off of the trucks to gain more track clearance, we have tried spacers between the frame and truck base which helps a bit but makes the cars wobbly, any suggestions would be helpful, I will post some pics.
Use larger diameter wheels.
George, can you confirm the scale/gauge of the photo? This looks more like a 1/8 scale or so car. A bit of additional information will also help. What is the round connection directly above the truck bolster/springs? Is that a connection to the car body?
You mentioned you added shims, apparently at the king pin with out additional stabilization, as you mention the car was ‘rocking’. Lifting the car with shims on the king pin would also require the addition of slide bearings on the bolster to accommodate the additional space at the outer section of the bolster.
George,
as Bob referred to:
Lifting the car with shims on the king pin would also require the addition of slide bearings on the bolster to accommodate the additional space at the outer section of the bolster.
The prototype RRs use the slide bearings on their trucks mounted on the outer end areas of the freight truck bolsters but on passenger trucks some use an equalizer ( for lack of better terminology) on the outside of the truck with a slide bearing mounted to the underside of the car floor.
In the below pic note the two gray pieces of plastic I’ve added to my passenger truck. The arched bit mounted to the truck side frame and the T shaped piece below it. You can allow them to touch or leave a small 1/16"-1/8" gap to minimize the rocking of the cars. The prototype surfaces bear on each other.
Note the way they look on a real car:
