OK - I'm about ready to throw this thing against the wall! I've had every visible screw out, and the darn shell still won't budge! What's the magical incantation I'm supposed to use to get this sucker apart?
Yes, I found those - there are five visible screws in the underframe, in addition to the coupler screws. I've had them all out and still can't get the shell to separate from the chassis...
Frank Eva
The screws usually come in pairs. If you found one under the fuel tank, that would be for the motor. The body screws are usually under the trucks. Did you see any clips like the new Athearn have? Did you try to rock the shell off. It might be a very tight fit. Or, any handrails that go through a hole in the cab wall might be keeping it from coming off.
The instructions say that all you have to remove are the coupler screws and the screws under the fuel tank - what they really mean is the visible screws BEHIND the fuel tank - there are only plastic plugs in the fuel tank itself, and these are probably hiding the motor screws. Obviously, you don't want to remove those. They didn't say anything about body screws under the trucks, but I found and removed those as well. The entire shell is supposed to lift off, like 99.9% of Proto 2000s, so handrails aren't an issue.
Actually, the fully assembled version doesn't come with the coupler pockets installed - just a plastic holder to keep it from rattling around inside the box. I did, however, remove the screws for these - they are then used for the coupler pockets.
I've finally found the answer, and if you're interested, I published an article about the SD24 at my website (see the signature)...
There are only two screws that hold the body to the frame. The one between the front truck and the fuel tank on the engineers side. The second is above the rear truck between the first and second axels on the firemans side. Also the coupler pockets must be removed. Then you really have to pull on the shell cause its a really tight fit.
Gordon
On Sun, 18 Apr 2004 17:59:39 -0500, "Frank Eva" wrote: I've got the same problem. I've got 2 of them , I've done everything you've suggested and they don't come apart Bill
I finally got mine apart, and here's how I did it: I removed all of the screws - there is even one under a truck that you'd need a magnetic screwdriver to get back in. This will release the underframe from the chassis weight, and you can use a pliers to grab hold of the weight and pull it out. Just be careful you don't stretch the wires so far that they break.
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