John J Moderator
 Conductor Posts:766
 Send Message
 | | 09/30/2008 5:15 PM |
| Ok Whom is using roller bearing wheels on their rolling stock? Which ones are you using? ( I don't want to know why your not using brand X) I Just want to know what brand works best for you. Do you have a link to your supplier? | |
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Trains
Omaha, Nebr.
 Foreman Posts:286
 Send Message
 | | 09/30/2008 5:37 PM |
| John J, The only roller bearings I use are on my battery cars. I don't think it would make to much difference on rolling stock. I think some power graphite on the axle ends helps. I lubed all the axles when I changed over to metal wheels and they roll pretty good. Oh I use San - Val wheels they are a little stiff at first but they loosen up after some running. | | I'm in a hurry to get things done Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun All I really gotta do is live and die. I'm in a hurry and don't know why! | |
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lownote 1st Class Member Arlington VA
 Conductor Posts:555
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 | | 09/30/2008 5:42 PM |
| | I have ball bearing wheels on three Bachmann J&S coaches--for power pickup. The Bachmann cars came with those awful scrapers, copper tabs that rubbed on the flanges. I got three sets of of Gary Raymond bachmann sized wheels with power pickup, and put one axle on each truck. The cars run much much better--they were nearly useless, between the scraping noise and the drag, irritating to run. Now they are smooth and quiet. I'm very happy with the wheels, they cause me zero trouble. If they weren't so expensive, I'd maybe convert my aristo heavyweights to ball bearing wheels. | | Evading the Midas touch of expertise
 http://chnm.gmu.edu/courses/magic/westover/ | |
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Spule 4
2nd Class Member
 Foreman Posts:482
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 | | 09/30/2008 5:53 PM |
| | LGB on one of the postal cars, they are nice, but expensive now. | | Garrett
"She'd been in Belgium, she told me...Studying the pyramids. It took her years to find out that there were no pyramids in Belgium." | |
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Enginear
 Brakeman Posts:49
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 | | 09/30/2008 7:31 PM |
| I had to custom build a set of trucks for a dummy engine. I found it was easy to rigid mount the outside axles and let the middle ones loose for cornering and unlevel track riding in grooves. So the fixed outside axles are roller bearing and the dummy rolls better than any other car I own!! Joe | | | |
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StanleyAmes
 Brakeman Posts:70
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 | | 09/30/2008 8:07 PM |
| I use Aristo Craft ball berrings in many of my Accucraft cars. I remove the brass bushing ans the ball beering just slips in. Stan Ames | | | |
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altterrain
silver spring, md
 Foreman Posts:478
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 | | 09/30/2008 8:10 PM |
| I have tried both Al Kramer's and the Aristos. Al's were not so good (put them on battery car). The Aristos are great. I have used them on my older AristoClassic C-16 tenders and USAT Overton cars for power pick up.
-Brian | | Presidents of
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East Broad Top Moderator Centennial, CO
 Conductor Posts:601
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 | | 09/30/2008 11:52 PM |
| This will be of absolutely no direct help, but hopefully the mention will jog someone's memory...
There's a guy out here in Aurora Colorado who does ball-bearing installs for most large scale trucks. I have not used his services personally, but I've pulled cars equipped with his trucks. He's a unique combination of great price and great quality. Unfortunately he's lacking a memorable name, so I'm at a loss to pass that along. If there's anyone who remembers who this is, please post.
Later,
K | |
 Tuscarora Railroad Friends of the East Broad Top | |
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Torby 1st Class Member North Chicago 'burbs.
 Engineer Posts:1664
 Send Message
 | | 10/01/2008 6:26 AM |
| | I have Aristo BB wheelsets in 3 of my sierra coaches. Very smooth. | |
"If Christianity was something we were making up, of course we could make it easier. But it is not. We cannot compete, in simplicity with people who are inventing religions. How could we? We are dealing with Fact. Of course anyone can be simple if he has no facts to bother about."-- C. S. Lewis | |
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lownote 1st Class Member Arlington VA
 Conductor Posts:555
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 | | 10/01/2008 6:28 AM |
| | Do the aristo BB wheels have a power pickup tab? | | Evading the Midas touch of expertise
 http://chnm.gmu.edu/courses/magic/westover/ | |
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altterrain
silver spring, md
 Foreman Posts:478
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 | | 10/01/2008 10:39 AM |
| Posted By lownote on 10/01/2008 6:28 AM Do the aristo BB wheels have a power pickup tab? Yes they do, Mike. -Brian
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Treeman 1st Class Member POLK CITY, IOWA
 Foreman Posts:156
Send Message
 | | 10/01/2008 12:04 PM |
| | JJ: Stan had mentioned, when at Marty's that he thought the Aristo BB wheel sets were as good as the LGB's that are nearly impossible to get these days. They do have electrical pick up tabs that won't do you much good. I recently purchased some San Vals and noticed they had some side play in them. | | Mike Kidman Tree Farm | |
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markoles 1st Class Member Lancaster, PA
 Conductor Posts:810
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 | | 10/01/2008 12:29 PM |
| | I have LGB BB wheels and Aristo BB wheels. THe Aristo BB wheels need to have a load on them to work well. Luckily, they are used by the snow plow and I have a brick in the back for weight anyway. When it was new, it would roll on its own. Now that it has seen a few years in service during snow storms, it kind of seems like the wheels 'freeze' up in the off season. Not sure if the balls are rusting a bit or not. Maybe it is just my imagination. | |
 Mark Oles Millersvillanova Railroad, Lancaster, PA | |
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Greg Elmassian 1st Class Member Carlsbad (San Diego), CA
 Engineer Posts:1225
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 | | 10/01/2008 8:23 PM |
| I've met him at various shows, nice guy and knowledgable. Regards, Greg | |
Be sure to visit my site, lots of technical tips and modifications, and you can search for topics and key words. Click here for Greg's web site | |
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Madman 1st Class Member Pennsylvania
 Foreman Posts:306
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 | | 10/01/2008 9:22 PM |
| All of my rolling stock has ball bearing wheels.
Mostly LGB. Although on a few pieces I have SanVal BB wheels. | | Dan Padova | |
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jimtyp 1st Class Member Centennial, CO
 Conductor Posts:720
Send Message
 | | 10/02/2008 9:17 AM |
| | I used regular wheels with Ball Bearings inserted into the side frames from Phil's Narrow Gauage: PNG | | livin' la vida loco | |
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W3NZL 1st Class Member
 Brakeman Posts:85
Send Message
 | | 10/02/2008 11:10 AM |
| FWIW to anyone, The guy from colorado, GB trains, or whatever, I heard last spring that there were serious health problems with either hinself or his wife... No idea whether that was true, or whether the situation has resolved itself or not... He didn't come to the show at York this year, and that was the reason given me by Harry Hartman.. I use the LGB wheels when I need electrical P/U, and the GB bearings for heavy cars... Mark, using any of these BB wheels in a wet environment is definately a no-no... Paul R... | | | |
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pimanjc 1st Class Member Jim Carter - Wichita, KS
 Foreman Posts:450
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 | | 10/03/2008 6:56 AM |
| I have used the San Vals on several cars. On Aristo Streamliners, I had a problem with the truck side frames dragging on switches because the wheels have a smaller diameter than the OEM. They work fine on freight cars. Mostly, they are used on heavy cars like a battery car. Another approach I have used is to drill and insert Aristo truck BBs. It requires drilling out the journal with a 15/64 drill. The three auto carriers I ran at Marty's have had their trucks outfitted with the BBs. The third variation I use is Aristo factory BB trucks. As said above, the BB trucks are not as good as individually rotating wheels, but do create a significant improvement of non-BB trucks. JimC. | |
 "Never promise more than you can give. Always give more than you promise." ~JC "You don't stop laughing because you grow old, You grow old because you stop laughing." ~AU Charter Member of the Roundhouse Irregulars | |
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BarrysBigTrains 1st Class Member
 Brakeman Posts:10
Send Message
 | | 10/05/2008 9:32 PM |
| JJ, I'm not sure you have made the distinction obvious..........Roller Bearing (much more expensive than Ball bearing).
I have done this on one car many years ago, the roller bearings were mounted in the journals of metal trucks.
The roller bearings were $4.00 each (in 1992). Barry - BBT
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Torby 1st Class Member North Chicago 'burbs.
 Engineer Posts:1664
 Send Message
 | | 10/06/2008 6:43 AM |
| | Oh. Pardon. Yes, I have ball bearings, not roller bearings in my coaches. | |
"If Christianity was something we were making up, of course we could make it easier. But it is not. We cannot compete, in simplicity with people who are inventing religions. How could we? We are dealing with Fact. Of course anyone can be simple if he has no facts to bother about."-- C. S. Lewis | |
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