[SAMPSON]

Hi,

Here's a 1/24th scale rail car made from a Merit Jag D kit. I got the car from the UK years ago. I think 1/24th scale rail cars are rather rare. I'm not sure but I believe there was a club in the UK which ran 1/24th scale rail cars instead of 1/32. I bet Tony or some others would have information of this. The car is nicely made. I like the steel wheels & the tires say SIMANCO.

Thanks,
Bernard

 

[CJA]

Ey Up,

Very nice, "S".

If I were you, I would tease that yellow wire away from the motor !!.

Looks to me like the motor frame is "live" direct from the second pick-up !!.

How is the rear axle held in place ?.

vbr Chris A.

 

[SAMPSON]

Hi Chris,the rear axle has a tube on either side of the gear around it which is soldered to a small brass chassis which is also attached to the motor.Oh thanks for the advice on the yellow wire.

Thanks,Bernard

 

[Houses]

Yes, the second pick-up seems to have direct contact with the motor body and, through motor body and the spring, current goes to the lower motor brush, as usual with the RX motors, but the yellow wire seems to connect the first (central) pick-up and the upper motor brush, so I would say it has to be there. In any case the car is well build, that brass subchassis is a good idea to insure proper gear mesh, far better than relying on the plastic chassis.

Eduardo

 

[dgersh]

A wonderful car Bernard.

There were a couple 1/24 rail clubs in Britain, according to the magazines, and in a way I've often wondered why it didn't catch on more, given the ready made supply of wonderful bodies. Guess the wheels and tires were a problem, and like you I'd like to know where these came from...

Don

 

[mac p]

Hi Sampson, looks like a nice find and a car worth hanging on to.
Having looked at the car, i wondered if it was really ment to be raced
or just a "lets build a rail car " project.
Why i say this is that the rear power pick up is VERY small, once the car
was anything other than traveling in a straight line it would have fallen
off the return rail, they tended to be much wider than on your car, that is
if it was ment to be raced.
The rear tyres are of the " O " ring type, although there was not much
choice to be had on the Tyres front we did realise that having a reasonable
"footprint " did help to some degree, therefor the tyres would have been
" flatted " so to speak.
The guide " U " would also be a cause for concern, as it is so short it would
have brought about steering "flutter ".
If the front axle had been solid , without steering the car would have run
quite well.
So all in all, an interesting car from the very early days worth hanging on to
but as above i think it may be some one,s attempt to get a car up and running
just for the hell of it.
Good luck
Mac P

 

[CJA]

Hi Mac,

I follow your thoughts there, but maybe, cos it wasn't a brilliant performer it survived, and we can see it today !!.

vbr Chris A.

ps: "houses", I know of course that the yellow wire has to be there, I was referring to the fact that the bared end at the brush seemed to be touching the frame !!. Dead short.

 

[dgersh]

Thanks for the feedback Mac! I fixed your typo, so deleted your following post where you pointed that out.

I did kind of wonder about the relatively narrow pickup on the return side, but if I remember right, a lot of the earlier rail cars had those, and it was gradually that racers realized they needed the metal area as much as the footprint... but I could be wrong!

Any idea where those tyres/wheels came from? Seems to be one of the main sticking points for rail cars...

Don

 

[mac p]

Ho Don, not sure about the tyres and wheels, as you know, in
the dark ages there was no infrastructure, you grabbed bits
where and how you could from anywhere,
What makes me feel this is a "suck it and see " car, it was realised
as the cars got quicker, the father forward the return pickup was
the less sideways travel that pick up made therefor staying in contact
with the return longer.
From the pictures the return contact is a hell of a long way back,
in this form it would be scribbing a very wide arce, not good !!
Mac P

 

[SAMPSON]

Hi,i think i figured out the mystery of the tires. Simanco an older name used by Singer sewing machines. SInger MANufacturing COmpany=SIMANCO.

The tires used on the rail car are actually bobbing spool winder rings ! Thats why there is no tread & the sizes of the winder rings & the rail car tires match perfectly. Again another example of the ingenuity of our early electric race car pioneers.

Now we still need to figure out where the wheels came from. Thanks,Bernard

 

[dgersh]

Good detective work Bernard! Who'd a thunk it?

About the pickups, I realized I have Exhibit B in my own collection: a Merit Mercedes conversion from about the same era: (you're more than right Mac! makes no sense to put a small return wiper way behind. in fact on Bernard's car, is there a wiper at all for the rail, or it it just the u-shaped guide that does the contact?)

 

[Houses]

"CJA", Sorry!! Should have realized you did mean that...

 

[mac p]

Ah Ahhh Don thats a clearer pic of how things should be.
With the long rail contact wiper one could hang the tail out
without loosing power.
With the return wiper closer to the guide shoe the arce it travels
is greatly reduced .
The motor wiring seems to be connected to the kingpin, having no
direct and solid connection to the shoe i would think the power was
very intermittent.
This takes me back to thinking it was a "first try " car therefor
a VERY early offering as car setup was generally known to most.
Mac P

 

[CJA]

Ey Up Guys,

Sampson's car has the shoe picking up from the guide rail, I can just make out a wiper, within the shoe itself !!??.

It then has the rearward wiper picking up from the lower rail, to one side, think about it !!.

Don's car is the other way round, the front wiper picks up from the lower rail, the rear wiper from the guide rail !!.

That lesson was learned VERY early on, before I was born !!??. Eh Mac ??.

vbr Chris A.