Installing metal passenger car rails - need help

[jviss]

Hi guys,

I purchased metal platform rails for my PRR passenger coaches; I have an observation car, a coach, and a combination car.  I purchased tow of these:

Rail - Gold (G Passenger Cars - Combine )
http://estore.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66_69_149&products_id=6038

and one of these;

Jackson Sharp Rail - Gold (G Passenger Cars - Observation )
http://estore.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=66_69_149&products_id=6035

I received them, and they are really beautiful.  On one car, so far, I've removed the plastic rails, which were pressed-in and 'caught' due to a split pin with barbs.  The metal replacement rails, however, do not appear to have any feature to hold them in the holes.  Are they cemented in place, or am I perhaps missing something here?

Thanks much,

jv

[RkyGriz]

I've been thinking about upgrading my passenger cars to the metal railings as well. I noticed from the pics of the railings that they would have to be glued in and my thought was to either try some hot glue or an epoxy such as Gorilla Glue Epoxy. I'd try the epoxy first, since the hot glue can get messy and sometimes doesn't stick to metal very well.  Hope this helps! Andrew
Oh, by the way, have you noticed how much Al is trying to get for the dummies on Ebay now? I paid $31.50 + shipping for mine. He's now asking $69.95 + $16.97 shipping. Wow! $87.92 total for a "dummy". I found a 10th Anniversary Edition Denver & Rio Grande #12(version 5)  in brand new condition on Craigslist and it only cost me $75.00 for a complete, working locomotive and tender. I think that Al wants too much money for what he's selling and what you get for that $87.92!

[jviss]

Hi Andrew,

Well, Al had what I wanted and I was happy to pay what he asked.  That's the definition of a marketplace.  You were lucky to find what you did!


BTW, I'm not a fan of Gorilla Glue.  I like cyanoacrylates, but this plastic is difficult stuff to glue things to.  How is this done on the ones that come with metal rails, I wonder?

jv

[Chuck N]

Over the past year I got four of the J&S cars, used.  Several had missing or damaged end railings.

I made a jig with a board and some small nails. With the jig I was able to bend the railings I needed, using brass rod.  I then soldered in the middle upright.  I used epoxy to secure the railings to the platform.

Chuck

[jviss]

Very cool, Chuck!  I like scratchbuilding.  It's hard to beat the parts from Bachmann on this, though, as it includes the brake wheels, etc.  The observation car rear railing would be a challenge, too!

[RkyGriz]

I have 8 of the J.S. cars (4 Denver&Rio Grande and 4 Virginia & Truckee) and have been tempted for the last couple of years to up grade them with the metal railings. That gets rather expensive.For me, the biggest drawback of the metal railings is that if they somehow get bent then they'll likely look bad when you try to bend them back. The plastic railings may break more easily, but they're cheaper and more easily replaced. I've recently gone and used hot glue on the undersides to make the railings stand up better on my J.S. cars. It seems to be working and the hot glue can be removed easily if I should decide to upgrade to metal.
I was thinking that the epoxy would be more of a universal type of adhesive. The cow catcher was broken off of my Hartland G Scale 4-4-0 when I bought it off of Ebay. I wound up having to send in the entire steam chest assembly as one of the rods on the steam chest broke during a high speed test( these Hartland locos are fast! Way faster that these Bachmanns! So are the Lionel G scale locos I own. They are smaller and somewhat lighter so they will not pull large strings of cars like the bigger, heavier Bachmann 4-6-0 locos will. ) and it wasn't a repair that you could do at home. I contacted Phil Jensen, designer of the Hartland (and Kalamazoo)4-4-0 locomotive, as he also still works for Hartland Locomotive Works as a repair tech. He had me return the part to him and did a fine job replacing the broken rod. He also re-attached the the cow catcher to the steam chest assembly,but it actually fell off right after I received it! I'm not sure which type of glue he used, but it obviously didn't work. I went out and bought the Gorilla Glue Epoxy and used it to repair the cow catcher. The repair turned out to be very strong and I believe that it's going to prove to be permanent. That's why I suggested that you try using it on your railings. I'm familiar with cyanoacrylate types of glue. They dry quickly and form a strong bond on most materials. Plastic doesn't seem to be one of them. I tried to reattach the cow catcher to my 4-4-0 several times with a cyanoacrylate-type glue , but the bond was weak and it always came off. The Gorilla glue was my answer to that pesky problem. Please let us know if you find a more suitable glue for attaching the railings. Good luck and have fun my friend! Andrew

[Chuck N]

Here are a couple of pictures of the railings.  In both they are on the car at the right side of the picture.





I repainted and relettered them for the C&S.  Stan Cedarleaf made the decals.

Here are the decals on the baggage/mail car.  the camera angle makes it look a little more lopsided than it really is.



Chuck

Here is a picture of the railing on the end of the coach.