Track gauges

snipped-for-privacy@spambtinternet.com said the following on 17/05/2006 23:59:

I don't know the exact details of the Scalefour Society roller gauge, as I use their triangular gauges, but would it be possible to adapt one of those if it is made up of a basically a threaded bar with washers and spacers?

I have a couple of old P4 threaded bar gauges so I may have a crack at "adapting" the spacers. Fortunately double 0 doesn't require me to work to fractions of a millimetre so my amateur efforts may bear fruit.

snipped-for-privacy@spambtinternet.com said the following on 18/05/2006 12:51:

Worth a go.

One of the common misconceptions about modelling in P4 is that you have to work to fractions of a millimetre. You don't!!!! You just work to the gauges, same as you do in any other scale.

But the P4 gauges have already been set for you, to a fraction of a mm.

You suggested he *make* a gauge. If he wanted to make one for P4 he

00 is a lot more forgiving and doesn't require the same close tolerance.

MBQ

Hi Bruce,

Yes it does. 00 track gauge is sixteen millimetres and a HALF!

regards,

Martin.

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snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com said the following on 18/05/2006 13:55:

Exactly - you just work to the gauge without caring what the actual dimension is. The point is that the end user doesn't need to be able to measure or work to two DPs.

But he doesn't want one for P4, he wants one for OO that isn't readily available. If he wanted one for P4, then the type he wants is readily available, so he wouldn't have to make one.

That is very true. I wouldn't recommend P4 to someone who just wanted to play trains, although many of us do just that (sorry, "have operating sessions"!), but there are plenty of stories on here of OO stuff falling off the track as well! The good thing about OO standards is that there are so many to choose from, whereas with P4 you just have the one :-)

And yes, I do have a Hornby Thomas the Tank Engine in P4...

Martin Wynne said the following on 18/05/2006 13:58:

...or 0.6496". Whew - that's even more decimal places!

Maybe that's why it doesn't work all that well :-)

Jim.

/Pantomine mode ON Oh yes it does /Pantomine mode OFF

-- Bruce Fletcher Stronsay, Orkney

Bruce,

OK, wait till the next message appears saying my xxxxx loco won't run through yyyy pointwork - we'll refer the writer to you. :-)

Jim.

"Martin Wynne" wrote

Not only that, but a critical dimension of setting wheels and track, is knowing what your wheel back-to-back clearances are, and also what your flangeways are, and indeed ideally what your flanges are. There's nothing especially chichi about finescale except that those dimensions ARE specified quite robustly, and finsescalers DO have a set of gauges and expect to use them. If X and Y don't equal or exceed Z, the result is airborne trains.

Many a RTR OO user expects stuff to work out of the box simply because it comes from a branded manufacturer, and so plonks it on the track, sees it come off at the first set of points, and howls in despair at this newsgroup. Wheel gauge? Wassat?? they say when challenged, despite it being common knowledge that Hornman/Bachpol just fling on wheels straight out of the factory crate, and no retailer, or very few, actually opens those factory boxes and check that the minimal standard of 14.5mm btb is actually present at every axle. EM and P4 being builders' scales, this check is actually performed as the wheels go on before the stock hits the track.

Production engineers call it the "five-legged lamb principle": if you don't measure it, you can't expect to make make more than one of it. Howls of contempt and "elitism" duly expected from the mint-boxed fraternity, as when I last mentioned it here.

Tony Clarke (EMGS member: because it does what it says on the tin)

At a recent British train show in Canada, I purchased one of two boxed Hornby LMS dining cars on sale for $25. When it wouldn't sit on my track, I checked the wheel gauge and found it was close to 18mm. Someone must have adjusted them to run on EM or P4, although the coach is otherwise as new. It was easy enough to readjust the plastic wheels to run on 16.5mm; I tried substituting Hornby metal wheels, but they were too small in diameter and the axles weren't long enough. I suppose I could look for some 14mm dia. metal wheels.

In message , Tony Clarke writes

What would you suggest that they do. Send the item back as 'not fit for the purpose,' rectify the fault at their own expense ignoring any warranty constraints, or just give up the hobby in disgust. As to howling in despair at the newsgroup isn't that the modern British way - whinge, while and do nothing.

Are you suggesting that the retailers become the QC departments for these particular manufacturers? What's more important how do you expect them to recover any costs involved?

Most of the RTR products provided by the UK mainline manufacturers are expected to be precisely that. Fit for the purpose and RTR. If not they are 'not fit for the purpose' and should be returned.

Most model rail enthusiasts are not production engineers surely, or any other kind of engineer for that matter. They expect a product to do exactly what it says on the box. The fact that we have prominent manufacturers producing over rated garbage should be a great cause for concern for all of us and papering over the cracks by attempting to rectify manufacturing defects is certainly not the best way to solve the problem. According to your theory Hornby and others of the ilk should be including wheel gauge sets with every loco soon :o)

Cheers.

Now stop being snappy we are having fun !

Cant really blame manufacturers for such poor quality control when theres such a high number of locos that never get out of the box - is it not somewhere around 70%. Dont know about RTR, more a case of neverTR. Dont forget that manufacturer's priority should be to make money.

My local shop asked me to check out a new black 5 that had been returned as a none runner. Certainly was a jerky beast until gave it some oil as per instructions, then ran sweet as a nut. So give everyone a BTB guage then better nip round and do the check for some of em.

Simon

The gauges you describe are made by Exactoscale.

They have a website.

Best of luck

Dave

snipped-for-privacy@spambt> I've been using the Double O Gauge Association (DOGA) finescale

Dave, Thanks for that but the Exactoscale gauges (4XX TG01) on their website are for 18.83mm gauge, I'm looking for gauges for 16.5mm gauge. Bruce

They used to offer '00' amd EM so maybe they have some left.

I also once enquired about a special 16.2mm gauge and they offered to have some made for me. So it may be worth calling them and asking for

Best of luck.

Dave

Thanks Dave, will give them a call.