Sn2 Trains

Jeff Bissonnette developed an Sn2 Diamond Archbar Truck and made it available on Shapeways under the designer name of Farmington Shops. Here is the email he sent to the Sn2_Trains groups.io list in January 2019.

Hi Guys,

Finally got over (gave up really) my feud with Shapeways and decided to offer the “Diamond Arch Bar” Sn2 trucks I designed up for sale to the public.

Here’s two shots of an assembled truck, with a sprue of 8 trucks (enough for four cars) behind it.  The sprue has all the parts to complete the 8 trucks.

The trucks are three piece, two side frames and a bolster.  They can be held together by glue, or screwed as shown in the photos.  They require two packages (per sprue) of Micro Trains/Kadee HOn3 wheelsets to complete.  I highly advise screwing them together.  It might be more work, but it helps with making any adjustments if you need to.

For optimal assembly and rolling quality, I recommend the following…  Please note, I am not affiliated with ANY of these vendors/suppliers and get no kick-back or benefit from these recommendations.  Just trying to save you guys the time required to research this on your own.

Screws can be purchased from a Chinese supplier on ebay here:

Here’s a screen shot of the listing on ebay:

Also…  Highly recommended and pretty much a “must have” if you want your trucks to roll well, purchase either a #000 combination countersink/center drill from here:

https://timesavers.com/i-9531250-0-020-000-centerdrill.html

Or the much more expensive, though possibly more effective, Micro Mark “Truck Tuner” tool

Either of these tools are required it you want your trucks to roll well.  The printed bearing surface is not smooth enough to promote smooth rolling capability and the surfaces MUST be cleaned with either tool prior to assembly.  Failure to clean the bearing surfaces will result in less than optimal rolling quality.  The trucks will still roll, but not very well (compared to what they would if you cleaned the bearings out).

I hope to provide a descriptive tutorial on preparation and assembly of the trucks over the next few days…  You guys are under no obligation to purchase anything, just want to put the trucks out there in the event that they might be useful to others.

Final pricing is $30 per sprue of 4 pair of trucks.  You can still purchase the Micro Trains HOn3 wheelsets on ebay for about $9-$12 per package (two packages per sprue).  You’ll end up paying about $12 to $13.50 per pair of trucks, not including shipping and purchasing the optional (but highly recommended!!!) tools/parts.

Jeff

Jeff answered questions on the Sn2_Trains@groups.io list

Hi Bruce,

  Thanks for buying some…

  The best thing to clean the parts is Mineral Spirits.  Soak the sprue(s) in it for a few hours minimum, then remove and either let the parts air dry or blow them off with compressed air to speed things along.  I’ve also heard that “Bestine”, which is a solvent for rubber cement, works well, but you con’t let the parts soak for a long time in that.  I’ve found that Mineral Spirits is safe and works well.  I’ve left parts soaking for over a week (forgot about them), with no ill effects.

  As far as painting (though you didn’t ask this) I use cheap Krylon primer (they make a plastic compatible primer that is about $3-$4 per can at Home Depot).  I favor black as an under coat, but whatever you use, it’s best to spray the trucks after you assemble the side frames.  Don’t forget to mask off the bearing holes.  Brush paint, or spray your preferred color over the primed parts.

  For weathering…  I recommend against dry brushing.  While Shapeways FXD (what’s now “Smoothest Detail Plastic”) is pretty decent with detail, the surface is still a little rough.  Dry brushing will only accentuate that (ask how I know).  Spraying on a weathered rusty black, solid dark rust, then use a wash of black or dark brown artist oil in odorless paint thinner.

  Also…  Resist the urge to go at the prints with files, sandpaper and/or emery boards…  Removing any material from the simulated metal strapping of the truck is only going to weaken the print and potentially result in something breaking.  The truck frames are pretty robust, so long as care is taken, just don’t do anything to weaken what’s there.

  Also #2…  Keep in mind that these trucks are not “foreground models”.  They are down and dirty, moderately detailed trucks that will roll very well if the proper prep steps are taken in their assembly.

  I still hope to have a fairly detailed tutorial on their assembly sometime in the next few days.  A little busy this weekend with a volleyball tournament (son #2), but I hope to spend some time on it tonight.

Jeff

The full thread is here: https://groups.io/g/Sn2Trains/topic/29060493#6615