Kato FEF3 pilot too light

[Paradise275]

Hi Gang.
My FEF3 pilot comes derailed easily. Is there a way to weigh it down so it doesn't pop out so easily?

Rick

[peteski]

Rick,
there were couple of threads on the forum about the problem.
from April 2022: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=53877.0
Older:https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=49448.0

[Paradise275]

Thanks Pete.
We do use a lot of Picco switches on our club layout and that seems to be where the derailments happen. Will have to attend to that problem as well. Will also look to see if the truck is pointing in the right direction. So many things to think about!!   LOL

Rick

[peteski]

Thanks Pete.
We do use a lot of Picco switches on our club layout and that seems to be where the derailments happen. Will have to attend to that problem as well. Will also look to see if the truck is pointing in the right direction. So many things to think about!!   LOL

Rick

Yes, Peco switches have flangeways which are deep and rather wide. IIRC, they are deeper than needed even for MTL pizza-cutter wheels.

While the Kato wheels look really good, they are not happy going over Peco switches.  The low-flange narrow-tread wheels of the FEF-3 literally fall into the flangeways at the frog.   I don't  know if the other treads mention it, but one option is to make the flangeways shallower by gluing piece of evergreen strip styrene on the bottom of the flangeway.

[propmeup1]

Funny how things work. i have two FEFs and never have an issue running over my Peco or Atlas old and new Atlas which have shallow frogs vs the ones from the 70 that I still use.  The new Atlas do not like the old pizza cutter flanges at all which I still have on many older cars.

[peteski]

Funny how things work. i have two FEFs and never have an issue running over my Peco or Atlas old and new Atlas which have shallow frogs vs the ones from the 70 that I still use.  The new Atlas do not like the old pizza cutter flanges at all which I still have on many older cars.

On my friend's layout, if the FEF runs slowly over a Peco frog, you can see the drivers "fall" into the flangeway.  It doesn't derail, but it doesn't do it very gracefully.

[propmeup1]

I have noticed they are very sensitive to all bumps and any gaps.   Just one will pull with ease 50 loaded hoppers up my 1.34% and using Soundtraxx as they climb the chuff vol increases which sounds very cool. Lets you know they're working.