Athearn BB truck mounting screw(-up)?

[GP18m]

Hi folks,

I guess I have overtightened the truck mounting screw on an athearn bb freight car. It just turns and turns but doesn't tighten the truck enough.

Anybody have tips to fix it?

 

[LongIslandTom]

You can drill out the bolster with say a 1/8"-diameter drill, glue in one of those sprues from a model kit (might need to trim the sprue to 1/8" diameter to fit), and once the glue dries, drill it out with a #50 drill and tap it for a 2-56 screw. You can then screw the truck onto the repaired bolster with a 2-56 screw. Voila. :thumb:

 

[doctorwayne]

Another way to fix this is to insert a piece of strip styrene into the hole, about .020"x.020" or .010"x .030" should work. Trim off the protruding end, install the truck and screw, then tighten (not too tight) the screw and you're done. (This might also work using a thin sliver of wood, as it's an old carpenter's trick.)

Wayne