Dapol wagon kits

Due to a low budget I purchased 'Dapol' wagon kits for my OO railway, the kits are fine but the metal wheels supplied are not very good runners on my Peco Code 75 track, lots of derailments on pointwork.
Looking closely at them I noticed the flanges on these are quite thick, and when passing over points being finescale they don't allow much clearance for this type of wheel.
Can anyone recommend an alternative wheel set that would be compatible and allow better running on my finescale track.
Regards
Keefe

 

Hi Dave, I have used a back to back gauge I got from dcc concepts, doesn't make much difference, looking at all the other kits I have from Dapol their wheels are pretty much standard like this.

I also have Hornby 'Railroad Range' coaches which run better, the wheel profiles on these are more true to scale with a very thin flange width, but the problem with these is you cannot adjust with the gauge as they are securely fixed, the back to back on these wheels are slightly narrow which sometimes causes problems on point check rails, mainly on curved points.

When taking these pictures I would say its the flange profile that's wrong (see Pic), which shows excessive curve onto the flange which itself is pretty shallow.

I know you can buy wheel sets on ebay in bulk packs, but I'm at a loss of which ones to get.
Any suggestions
Keefe

Attached files

 

Hornby one shows no curvature and a deeper flange, big difference !

Attached files

 

Hi Dave, I checked through several ready to run wagons and found some of the wheels were not as bad as the one in the picture, must be a bad batch I got. Still I will feel better replacing them.

The ready to run one's have weights fitted but the kit models have none, the oil tank wagons are easy to weigh down as I plan to add some sand in the tank during assembly, other open wagons I may glue flat lead sheet underneath, all this should help keeping them on the track.
Regards
Keefe

 

Hi Kim
Many thanks for your advice, I buy most of my stuff from Hattons as they work out cheaper than any supplier I know in Australia, I will certainly look into buying the Bachmann one's you suggested, not a bad price
Thanks again Kim
Regards
Keefe

 

Hi Keith
Many thanks for your good advice, they certainly are expensive aren't they
I will probably do what Kim suggested and go for the Bachmann one's from Hattons, seems to me like a better deal.
Thanks again Keith
Regards
Keefe

 

whizzo wrote:

Yes your right there Dave, you can weight them down with 'Liquid Gravity' or some lead strips which I plan to do, I also mentioned in previous post the Oil Tank wagons can be partially filled with sand to get the weight you need.
Keefe

 

Toto wrote:

Thanks Toto, yes when I get round to building them I sure will let you all know how it goes, at the moment I'm building Metcalfe Kits to see what space they take up before I lay more sidings.
Building a small terminus station with goods area, industrial area and loco shed, I have the main running tacks finished, still need to ballast and weather track.
Oh, so much to do
Regards
Keefe

 

Keith M wrote:

Thanks for the good advice Keith, looked at lead flashing in my local hardware store (Bunnings) only comes in large rolls and is very expensive plus heavy!!.
I have some old fishing weights, was thinking if I could make a mold and pour out to make a thin sheet would maybe work, or just pour it into a metal baking tray, won't be fishing for a while as the nearest water is over 600 kms away!
My layout will incorporate a lot of shunting, I will definitely be fitting all my stock with Kadee's as you've done, will be expensive but I think well worth the trouble as tension lock couplings are nothing but a pain.
Which size Kadee's do you recommend to fit on Dapol Wagon Kits ? My track layout does not have very sharp bends, would say the tightest curve is around 700mm-750mm Diameter.
Keefe

 

Keith M wrote:

Thanks for the useful info Keith, about the Kadee's I am building a OO British layout based roughly around 70s-80s, wagons mainly Dapol Kits and a few RTR with NEM pockets.
I did hear that the Kadee #5 with gearbox was the standard to get so I recon I will buy these one's plus the height gauge, looking on ebay you can get 20 pairs of couplers for around $50-$60 AUD (£30-£36)
I watched a few You Tube video's on Kadee's, the thing that attracted me to them was the "Delayed Coupling" action with the magnets, great for a shunting yard. I also noticed Kadee do their own magnet to fit under the track, but it looks so big, I guess it would be a pain to fit and cause a lot of disruption to track that has been well laid especially if ballasted.
Came across this video, he fits really small neodymium magnets between the sleepers, once painted will be really hard to see, I plan to do the same with mine.
Installing Neodymium Magnets for uncoupling model trains
Regards
Keefe