Weekend Update 4/18/21

[EJN]

Under a 10x loupe, the MTL metal wheels don't look anywhere near as smooth on their treads (or other surfaces) as the lathe-turned wheels from ESM, Fox Valley or BLMA.  They don't seem to roll quite as well, either.  The  MTL wheels look to be sintered from metal powder, rather than turned in a lathe.  Some day, I an going to get around to doing quantifiable rolling tests, but at this point, my unquantified impression is that the MTL plastic wheels roll more freely than the MTL metal wheels.

I agree with this completely. I got a pack of MT metal wheels a few months ago, and they are nowhere near a smooth as some FVM wheels I have, or even Bachmann wheels, which are also lathe turned (the Bachmann wheels don't work on MT trucks due to the longer axle). One of the MT metal wheels was noticeably off-center when I spun it. I am going to try ESM in the future.

[peteski]

Under a 10x loupe, the MTL metal wheels don't look anywhere near as smooth on their treads (or other surfaces) as the lathe-turned wheels from ESM, Fox Valley or BLMA.  They don't seem to roll quite as well, either.  The  MTL wheels look to be sintered from metal powder, rather than turned in a lathe.  Some day, I an going to get around to doing quantifiable rolling tests, but at this point, my unquantified impression is that the MTL plastic wheels roll more freely than the MTL metal wheels.

That is correct.  Well, they are actually white metal castings coated with some sort of thick semigloss chemical browning agent.  MTL's original wheelsets were also made like that,  but the blackening was much smoother on them.  Like you said, those are *NOT* machined from brass or nickel silver like all the other N scale metal wheels.

[jpwisc]

I’m just prepping a Baldylox N Scale SD45-2B shell for paint. I need to add all the lift rings and hit it with one more coat of primer.
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[OldEastRR]

Is that a Life-Like DL-109 with rebuilt roof details?  Nicely done!

A Walthers issue of a LifeLike loco. The stock model not only had the wrong roof but obsolete striping for 1953 (my layout era). All the DL109s had had their roofs redone  by then. They also had their side vent/windows resized and moved, except for one: 0740, which stayed that way to the end. Which was lucky for me, as I'd painted and decaled the original shell before finding out about the new roof configuration. OK, reworking the roof was tricky but I could do it and repaint the roof without having to do any re-striping. Not so the sides. Then I discovered 0740 - whew!
I'm working on another DL109 which will have the full roof and sides conversions, then the ordeal of decals.

[Maletrain]

... I am going to try ESM in the future.

ESM wheels are the only ones available at the moment, pending Fox Valley getting some back in stock. You won't be disappointed with ESM wheels.

ESM wheels are certainly equal to the old BLMA or Fox Valley wheels.  But, they only come in the axle length that fits MTL trucks (0.540" or some say 0.0537").  So, I am still hoping that either Fox Valley gets them back in stock in other lengths, or ESM decides to "branch out" to some of the older Bachmann and Atlas lengths.

[nickelplate759]

A Walthers issue of a LifeLike loco. The stock model not only had the wrong roof but obsolete striping for 1953 (my layout era). All the DL109s had had their roofs redone  by then. They also had their side vent/windows resized and moved, except for one: 0740, which stayed that way to the end. Which was lucky for me, as I'd painted and decaled the original shell before finding out about the new roof configuration. OK, reworking the roof was tricky but I could do it and repaint the roof without having to do any re-striping. Not so the sides. Then I discovered 0740 - whew!
I'm working on another DL109 which will have the full roof and sides conversions, then the ordeal of decals.

Please post a how-I-did-it  thread when you rebuild that next DL109!

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Exactrail also has restocked their wheelsets which are right up there in quality with FVM. I believe ESM has wheel back detail which is absent with the others. But Exactrail is the only one what is doing 100 count bulk packs.

[jpwisc]

Exactrail also has restocked their wheelsets which are right up there in quality with FVM. I believe ESM has wheel back detail which is absent with the others. But Exactrail is the only one what is doing 100 count bulk packs.

You can get Tangent (same as the BLMA) in 100 packs.
https://www.tangentscalemodels.com/product/n-scale-36-inch-537-axle-length-all-metal-precision-wheelsets-100-pack-sku-503/

[nkalanaga]

Everybody:  Thank you for the info on MT wheels.  The quality issues might explain why they're apparently not making them.

I looked at Tangent, and it seems that all they have is 36" wheels, no 33". 

[peteski]

Everybody:  Thank you for the info on MT wheels.  The quality issues might explain why they're apparently not making them.

While MTL did seem to stop producing their metal wheels after the initial release, I was told (by a knowledgeable MTL person) that it was because the wheelset assembly process was too  labor-intensive.  As for the quality, I believe those are made the way MTL intend them to look.  It is just that I'm personally not all excited about cast white-metal wheels.

But it seems that MTL did find a way to improve their assembly process, because the new TBOX cars come equipped with MTL metal wheels.

[craigolio1]

Everybody:  Thank you for the info on MT wheels.  The quality issues might explain why they're apparently not making them.

I looked at Tangent, and it seems that all they have is 36" wheels, no 33".

Rapido appears to have stock of 33” and 36” metal wheel sets with the .540” axel for MT.

https://rapidotrains.com/products/parts-accessories/trucks-and-wheels

Craig

[bbussey]

http://www.esmc.com/9200/Item9201.html

http://www.esmc.com/9200/Item9202.html

[Bill H]

ESM wheels are the only ones available at the moment, pending Fox Valley getting some back in stock. You won't be disappointed with ESM wheels.

ESM wheels are certainly equal to the old BLMA or Fox Valley wheels.  But, they only come in the axle length that fits MTL trucks (0.540" or some say 0.0537").  So, I am still hoping that either Fox Valley gets them back in stock in other lengths, or ESM decides to "branch out" to some of the older Bachmann and Atlas lengths.

I recently bought a very large quantity of both the 33" and 36" ESM wheels and I am quite happy with them. Zero bad wheel sets in the entire bunch. In fact, I like them better than the Fox Valley wheels, where I had numerous issues of the metal rim not being well mated to the plastic insulator and the rim being misaligned or actually falling off.

Right now for me, the ESM wheels are the way to go for MT trucks.

Kind regards,
Bill

[sd45elect2000]

I recently bought a very large quantity of both the 33" and 36" ESM wheels and I am quite happy with them. Zero bad wheel sets in the entire bunch. In fact, I like them better than the Fox Valley wheels, where I had numerous issues of the metal rim not being well mated to the plastic insulator and the rim being misaligned or actually falling off.

Right now for me, the ESM wheels are the way to go for MT trucks.

Kind regards,
Bill

I be been buying these in large quantities also, I like them so I second Bill.

[pmpexpress]

I recently bought a very large quantity of both the 33" and 36" ESM wheels and I am quite happy with them. Zero bad wheel sets in the entire bunch. In fact, I like them better than the Fox Valley wheels, where I had numerous issues of the metal rim not being well mated to the plastic insulator and the rim being misaligned or actually falling off.

Right now for me, the ESM wheels are the way to go for MT trucks.

Kind regards,
Bill

+1