Time for another A1A chassis update
Another update on the long-running A1A chassis update
In my last update I mentioned I “might” need to redesign how the gear boxes of the A1A chassis were put together, to give the gears more space to avoid the ever-present gear binding issue. That’s now come to pass, but it led to another round of other issues - specifically how the new longer gear boxes would fit within G8 (DB/DBR for NZR people) locomotives, and not foul the couper boxes. This led to further design iterations and… well, here we are at the end of September and still no production version of the chassis. Yet.
Sorry for this - it will likely take another two to three weeks to iron out the last of the issues with the new bogie design with the chassis before serial production can begin. The good news is the additional time taken has mean the chassis now has bearings on all driving axles, and reliable pick-ups.
Meanwhile, I’ve had a strange complaint on Facebook, a platform known for strange complaints. One commentor on my Facebook page said the chassis should be thrown in the bin, based on when he last saw it… 20 years ago. I pointed out that that couldn’t have been possible, and he’d likely confused my chassis with another one. But he was insistent, citing the components as out of date and low quality.
Most of the components I’m using are available online in various places to purchase. I did this to standardise the parts as much as possible so that, in the event parts need replacing, they’re readily available. I don’t think this means the components are out of date.
I don’t mind the feedback, but this one was particularly weird and unhelpful. In the end I messaged the commentor privately but have not had a response.
Meanwhile, the related development of the DL class chassis is almost completed. As you can see from the picture above, test fitting is now completed with bogie side frames now in place. The last remaining issue is making sure the loco sits on the track correctly, there is a gap of 1.5mm which is noticeably higher than other locomotives. The good news is it turns out the headstock is too short, so this isn’t a prototypical issue as such. I will now make the headstock taller, which will adjust the coupler height to its correct position. Phew!