How I Fixed the Wheel Gauge and Added a Working Front Coupler to a Bachmann N Scale 2-8-0 Locomotive

[@pacset2]

Nice work Dan

[@DanielCortopassi]

Thanks so much!

[@JB-ud6vm]

Very cool, this also reminded me of the narrow gauge engine you're working on, hope to see an update on that somewhere down the line.

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm hoping to get back to the whole Siren Creek project and narrow gauge locomotive sometime soon. The hangup has been our cats, and designing a cover that will keep them off it while still allowing operation. I'm glad you liked the video. Thanks for watching!

[@Trains-With-Shane]

Excellent work! I've only messed with steam stuff really once as i'd bought a non running loco that had rods that had fallen apart and messed up quartering. For a novice like me it was a monster pain to repair as I only had diesel experience. It's not perfect but it;s close enough. Also very glad to get a little action on the Siren Creek layout! I'm still very much looking forward to your continued work on that.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Steam engines can be difficult to work on because of the quartering. I try really hard not to mess that up, as it can be a real pain to get everything back in alignment otherwise. I have one of the NWSL quartering tools, which helps in some situations. I'm hoping to get back to work on the Siren Creek soon. It needs to be kitty proofed, and then I won't have to worry about structures and scenery getting destroyed. Thanks for watching!

[@154Colin]

You do some awesome work!

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for watching!

[@lucgagnon5241]

Course I liked it ! It's always interesting to watch your videos. I'm really not a N scale lover but it's a good thing to learn the most you can. Hopefully you had your engine worked in very tight curves without derailing. Keep on your good work !

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked the video. The re-gauging techniques would work in other scales, though a larger puller might be required. The NWSL one actually works better for HO. The locomotive works well on my little layout. Handlaid track always needs a little tweaking, so I think once I get that done it will work pretty well. Thanks for watching!

[@lucgagnon5241]

@@DanielCortopassi After I watched your latest video yesterday night, I watched again the one you did with Rapido's bulkheads. I watched closely when you got the first car (BCOL) out to the box before you removed the clear plastic cradle. It's possible to see bulkheads moving in many parts. Especially the one at far right of the screen !!!! What I still don't get is the "silence radio" from Rapido themself. They should at least came out and apologize to all the modelers who bought those cars. A BIG shame on them. I know They're working hard and are putting a long a time and energy on research to produce models as close as it's possible to prototypes. It's no excuse again to sell broken models as expensive as they're use to do.

[@struck2soon]

Great modelling as always Dan!

[@DanielCortopassi]

Thanks so much!

[@billlinge4598]

It's good to see the Siren Creek layout again, and I have always loved the steam engines. Thanks for showing us these tips. Looking forward to seeing more of this layout, including the narrow gauge, but I realize you have lots of irons in the fire, including getting started on the new HO layout in the train room.

[@DanielCortopassi]

The Siren Creek has been on hiatus for a while because of our cats. I am working on a cover, so I'm hoping to get back to it fairly soon. And yes, I always seem to have too many projects. I'm glad you liked the video. Thanks for watching!

[@jack9989]

Great work as always!

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked the video. Thanks for watching!

[@deborahweber7166]

Any chance of a video detailing the decoder installation ?

[@DanielCortopassi]

This one is already done, but I could maybe open up the tender and show the placement of the electronics. I don't have another one, unfortunately. Thanks for watching!

[@deborahweber7166]

That would be great just to see where the components are positioned

[@paulkirkmanMYTRAINS]

Very nice. Quite small !!!!

[@DanielCortopassi]

It is. I had to be careful not to lose some of the tiny parts. Thanks for watching!

[@LeahCortana]

To that 2-8-2 Steam Locomotive

[@DanielCortopassi]

Hopefully I answered your other comment. Thanks for watching!

[@MrGarthah]

nice job what decoder did you use for conversion and what speaker and how was it mounted i am interested on how you made your connections at headlight and pick ups on tip of engine chassis

[@DanielCortopassi]

I did this engine some time ago so it's a LokSound Select micro, if I recall. It's been a while. I did add an ESU Power Pack to it to prevent stalling more recently. I scrapped the original Bachmann wiring and hardwired everything with very small gauge wire. The decoder is in the tender, so there are six wires going into the locomotive, two for track power, two for the motor, and two for the headlight. The Bachmann tender has good trucks that pick up power from all wheels, so there are wires inside the tender for those as well. I also wired in the new backup light, which I installed using a 402 sized LED in a white metal casting. Thanks for watching!

[@davidrichie9570]

Aren’t the Turnouts awfully sharp for an 8-coupled loco with all drivers flanged? Nice trackwork.

[@DanielCortopassi]

Because of the small size of the layout, most of the turnouts are built with a curved leg that's the same radius as the curve they lead into. The tightest radius on the standard gauge is 10 inches, on the dual gauge spur that leads to the wharf. That's fairly sharp but still bigger than the 9 3/4 inch radius that some commercial track uses. The engine works fine on that, so it should go through the turnout. I think some of the flangeways need to be widened slightly with a file. I'm glad you like my trackwork. There's a series of videos on building the Siren Creek layout here on the channel if you haven't seen them, where I show how I did it. Thanks for watching!

[@TheTransportationFanfromCA]

Hey Daniel it’s me another Daniel. I have a promblem i recently bought an n scale 2-8-0 and when it arrived the front micro trains was broken. And the coupler box is glued onto the pilot. What should I do?

[@DanielCortopassi]

Great name! Unless Bachmann changed their pilot design on these, it sounds like someone must have done something like I did and modified the pilot. If you can get the coupler box open without destroying it, you could try just replacing the coupler parts. Otherwise I'd say that you'd need to very carefully remove the coupler box. I'd work slowly, especially if you have to use sharp tools to get it off. Then you could probably do what I did and use a 2004 coupler. I'd recommend using a small screw, like the 00-90 screws Micro-Trains supplies with some of its couplers. It will make for a stronger installation. Good luck and thanks for watching!

[@TheTransportationFanfromCA]

@@DanielCortopassi I’ll try

[@TheTransportationFanfromCA]

Edit it was successful also I’m trying to make my 2-8-0 into an N de M model for that I need the correct smoke box with the marker like and front bell. I don’t want to spend money on a bachmann 4-8-2 shell since I don’t even know if the boiler front fits, what should I do do you have any recommendations?

[@DanielCortopassi]

@@TheTransportationFanfromCA I am not that familiar with N de M locomotives, so I'm not sure what help I can be. If the smoke box that's on the engine is the correct size, you could maybe just change the details, with a new bell and markers. If it's more complicated that's harder. It sounds like you think the Bachmann 4-8-2 shell might be close to what you need. If you know someone who has one and was willing to let you, you could maybe make a mold of it and cast a new smokebox. Micro Mark and probably other sources sell the materials to do that kind of thing. 3D printing is another option. It might be worth doing some research to see if anyone else has already made a 3D printable file of the engine you need, or something close.

[@TheTransportationFanfromCA]

@@DanielCortopassi ok thanks

[@MP-oh5eo]

This is some great engine and you did an awful work on it. I would like to equip mine with a sound decoder (it's already DCC after market equiped)

[@DanielCortopassi]

I'm glad you liked the video. There's enough room in the tender for a small sound decoder and speaker. I even fit a capacitor in mine, which has been well worth it. Thanks for watching!

[@lotsatrains]

Nice job but such a shame that the gauge is not properly set from the factory but then again Bachman has never been my favorite brand of model trains I always have liked the looks of their trains but the quality is hit or miss.

[@DanielCortopassi]

I agree that Bachmann can be hit or miss on quality. This particular engine is a good runner, and it's a good size for my little N scale layout. You're right that I shouldn't have to fix the wheel gauge. I hope Bachmann fixes that issue if they do any more releases. I got this engine quite a while ago. I'm glad you liked the video. Thanks for watching!

[@LeahCortana]

But what som e are here with this that you are not satisfied

[@DanielCortopassi]

Model manufacturers really should get the wheel gauge right. Train models need to have the correct wheel gauge to operate well. So no, I'm not satisfied with that. It's something that shouldn't need to be fixed. Some people might not care about the front coupler, and that's fine. I want to use this engine for switching, so the coupler is a necessity. Thanks for watching!