Quartering RTR wheels

[John CutlerParticipant]

I submitted a follow-up article on converting the Dapol B4 for the Newsletter and discovered I was writing a Manual Sheet (be warned!).

There are no replacement finescale wheels of the same appearance currently available so it is aesthetically preferable to re-use the Dapol wheels. Normally I would use a GW wheel-press to quarter drivers but the Dapol crankpins preclude its use (one could insert brass rod to fit tightly in the crankpin holes to use in the jig but I am not sure I would trust that; doubtless some readers have a usable technique; please enlighten!). John Simpson, the Manual editor, asked how to quarter these wheels, and I realise there is not much info around (what there is tends to be buried deep in other articles). Unfortunately space constraints precluded the use of my response in the B4 Manual Sheet. So for the benefit of novices and anyone else looking to quarter RTR wheels for the first time, here is my preferred method.

I use a Bill Bedford quartering jig, available from Eileens for £6.60 (soldering required): https://www.eileensemporium.com/materials-for-modellers/product/quartering-jig-4mm/category_pathway-1286

Note it is not available from Mousa Models. The attached photo shows the jig in use.
I have lined up the centres of the crankpin holes in the jig.They do not have to be at exactly 90 degrees. So long as they are the same for <i>all</i> axles, the quartering should work. You might prefer to use the jig with the crankpins in place; this means the quartering will not be at 90 degrees but will still work (unless any of the pins are of a different diameter). Note the mirror (ladies compact) is not strictly necessary but is extremely useful (and not just for quartering; I use it to check the passage of locos and rolling stock over my dodgy turnouts, for example).
After quartering, hold the wheels when screwing in the crankpins; otherwise the quartering may slip, especially if there are plastic bushes or axle inserts.

I hope this of use.

If anyone has other thoughts or techniques for quartering, please contribute.

 

 

 

 

• This topic was modified 1 year, 9 months ago by Steve Young.

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[Trade OfficerKeymaster]

The method I have used in the past, before I got my hands on a GW wheel press, I got from, I think a Tony Wright video. It is a similar idea as the Bill Bedford jig but just eye balling it

Assuming you are mounting the wheels directly in the chassis:

Mount one wheel, then the second one at approximately 90 deg. Squint through one wheel and line up a spoke on that wheel with a spoke or gap (depending on odd or even spokes). Make up the second axle and put pace the coupling rod on the crankpins. check smoothness of running. Twist a wheel on the second axle slightly until smooth running is achieved. Continue with further axles in the same vein. A bit fiddly I admit and you have to be careful not twist the wheel of true.

Doesn’t work on solid wheels!

Of course if you want to be really pedantic you need to research which side is the leading side 😁 Now that is a debate that could trigger a few arguments

 

john

 

[John CutlerParticipant]

The eye-ball method is exactly the one I first used for the B4. However, tightly curved short spokes, an uneven number of spokes and a lot of solid wheel all conspire towards failure. The B4 failure was not complete but running was not smooth. Requartering using the Bill Bedford jig was a lot easier, especially in conjunction with the mirror, and improved the running considerably.

Having got so used to the GW wheel-press, I had almost forgotten about my old Bill Bedford jig. But it will now be my tool of choice for RTR wheels. Ultrascale do not like anyone using the GW press on their wheels and state its use invalidates their warranty. I am not sure why (does anyone know?) but I have some of their wheels that seem to have slipped on their axles so I will probably use the BB jig for them (no, I do not have the equipment or skill to pin them permanently in position afterwards). Unless someone has a better quartering technique?

Incidentally, for anyone worried about soldering up the jig, precision soldering is not required! So suitable for a novice or the cack-handed like me.

 

 

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