replacement parts

[jaweichert]

where can i get hex sholder screws for locomotive wheels?
I have sever different ho steam locomotives the are in need of repair

[richg]

What brand/age of loco?
Metric or SAE threads.
Older USA made loco will pretty much be SAE threads. Newer produced overseas, usually China now will be Metric.

Rich

[Doneldon]

jaw-

Most everything produced overseas at any time is metric. Be careful because it is very easy to use small SAE and metric interchangeably except they aren't really interchangeable. In some cases it might not matter much but you're talking shoulder screws so I assume you need screws for a drive train. In that usage the wrong screw will screw things up (sorry) (not really, but polite) (not that either) and fail. Then you'll need to retap the screw holes and make sure you have the correct fastener. That takes lots of time and you may still wind up with a defective loco which has to be sent out for repair.

I suggest taking your screws to either a major LHS where they'll have the crews you need, or a huge hardware store where they have countless bins in the back of the store filled with every size, shape and material screw you could ever imagine. And several which you haven't. These places may well have what you need despite the fact that you're looking for something much smaller than what most hardware store shoppers want.

Good luck!
                                                    -- D

[richg]

Some like me have taps and screws for SAE threads. Some years ago I bought tap and drill sets from Micro Mark for 00-90, 0-80, 1-72, 2-56 screws, nuts, washers of each size. You might not need all those. A couple pin vises are needed. I sometimes substitute if I loose the Metric screw. I re-tap to the next size up. It does happen.
Shoulder screws might be an issue.
Again, what brand of loco and which particular loco?

I know NWSL has Metric stuff and there are model railroad companies on line that will have the required hardware but we need more info if you are still around.

Rich

[Jim Banner]

UTS (Unified Thread Standard, the machine screws and bolts commonly used in the US and Canada) and metric machine screws, both with a variety of heads, lengths and materials, are easy to find on line.  Odd and rarely used sizes are a bit harder to find.  But shoulder screws - that is a whole different kettle of fish.  There are so many possible diameters and lengths for the shoulders that they are usually made to order for a specific task.  In that case, the only off-the-shelf source of supply would be the original manufacturer of the locomotive, if he is still in business, if he had the foresight to have extras made up, and if he is interested in selling them.

Sometimes a shoulder screw can be replaced by a regular screw plus a piece of tubing.  Chances of finding the exact size of tubing is pretty slim, so you will probably have to make a piece of the required inside diameter, outside diameter and length.  Sometimes the o.d. of the shoulder is so close to the o.d. of the thread that the wall thickness of the required tubing is too thin to turn with a conventional lathe.  Then there is another trick that often works.  A nut that fits the screw (or is it then a bolt?) can be turned to the o.d. of the shoulder and then faced off to the length of the shoulder.  I usually run a mating screw through the nut and into the end of a rod that has been drilled and tapped to receive it.  Then I turn the nut along with the screw head down to the required diameter.  Finally, I cut off the screw head and face off what is left of the nut to the required length.

If you are lucky enough to have a watchmaker's lathe at your disposal, you can make the required shoulder screw from a suitable piece of hex stock.  I am not so lucky, but using the method above, I can make #0-80 shoulder bolts on a 14" lathe.

If you want to read more about screws and threads than you ever wanted to know, have a peek at this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screw_thread

Jim