After languishing in my workshop for nearly a year my much modified Accucraft Ruby is back in service this week. The trucks under the tender had a nasty habit of collapsing due to the weight of the water tank, pump and batteries. Despite brass bushes in the axle boxes and packing washers to reduce side play the plastic frames were simply not up to the job. I could not find any suitable brass trucks and so I made my own.
This is a photograph of the first completed truck with the bending jigs and part ready for the second one.
Clear blue sky today was the ideal opportunity for a test run and to film the return to service.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GSnZx42rrE
The second half of the film features my first venture into 1:32 scale with a rake of MTH passenger cars and a pair of F3 diesels. I am very impressed with the cars, but the diesels still need more work. I have made a temporary conversion to battery power, but the battery pack I am using is not of sufficient power. Hopefully a more effective source of power will be sorted out in the next few weeks.
David
This is a photograph of the first completed truck with the bending jigs and part ready for the second one.

Clear blue sky today was the ideal opportunity for a test run and to film the return to service.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GSnZx42rrE
The second half of the film features my first venture into 1:32 scale with a rake of MTH passenger cars and a pair of F3 diesels. I am very impressed with the cars, but the diesels still need more work. I have made a temporary conversion to battery power, but the battery pack I am using is not of sufficient power. Hopefully a more effective source of power will be sorted out in the next few weeks.
David