Scalefour Forum

The Society has for some time been considering having some form tools made to enable RTR OO wheels to be re-profiled to P4 standards. The question has been raised as to how many people would want such a thing? The use would mainly be for steam loco wheels. The point has been made that anyone who wants to do this firstly needs the skills and the equipment to do it, and if they do want to do this sort of job should they not have the skills to make the tool anyway? I do not necessarily support the last point.

The tool would be a simple form tool so would not stand sharpening since that would change the profile but it should last a long time doing the job for which it is designed. The price has not been determined since it would depend on how many we order in a batch but might be around £30.

Expressions of interest without any commitment or promises to deliver are invited.

Terry Bendall

Hi Terry,

Simple answer - Yes please

Longer answer - Still yes but have you thought about (I'm sure you have) things like shank size of the tool, material (HSS or Carbide) and whether left or right hand or, put another way, flange to the left (headstock facing) or right (tailstock facing)? I guess this would depend on the approach preferred by the machinist. The work I did on some Bachmann 9F wheels a few years ago had the flange to the left (i.e. headstock end) but that job involved removing the flange completely and replacing with new steel tyres.

I also agree with your view that it should not be taken for granted that those with the skills would make their own form tool. Speaking personally, I probably could, but then that is time not spent on building the loco. Time saved is valuable when we start getting on a bit...

Cheers...Morgan

I would buy one.

Terry,
I have a pile of AG wheels that are EM. If I can reprofile these to P4 it would save me more than the proposed cost of the tool.

I also wonder if the 3D wheel printing enthusiasts could use this for sizes not available fro our few sources of wheels.

John

I would buy one.

Gordon Luck

Terry,
With a boxful of EM wheels gathering cobwebs at Geordie Works a profile tool could be very useful. So .... yes please.

Regards,
JHW

I’d buy one Terry,

Having inherited a Peatol lathe I’ve worked out how to narrow the wheel and reduce the height of the flange but rounding the resulting square flange to a consistent level gives me the fear and doing it with a file held against the spinning wheel seem a little bit dangerous.

Cheers

David

Hi Terry,

Please put me down for one. Hope to learn eventually how to use something like that so should buy one whilst they are available.

As a matter of interest there is a German company who sell them for other profiles and the cost you mention sounds appropriate.

https://www.fohrmann.com/en/railway-modeling-tools/

I have purchased silver soldering items from these guys before and they have good quality stuff.

Ralph

Yes please, I’d buy one.

David Murrell

+1 from me Terry.

Online tuition from an expert in how to use it too

Thanks,
Alastair

Yes please Terry

Yes please Terry, I've booked a course for Lathe and Milling this November at the local Uni'. I wonder if Santa will bring a Lathe and Milling Machine?

As long as Lapland doesn't become a Covid hotspot with Santa grounded indefinitely

My hand is up at the back.

I know of at least one other member that is in desperate need of a wheel profile tool.

P

Me too please Terry!

P.S...with a 6mm shank.

Interested, but I think any form tool should have a bit of guidance on lathe rigidity needed. I suspect the lightest lathes might struggle with a form tool.

I usually do wheel rim turning by estimates of cone angles, with a bit of a radiused tip to a tool for the corner between flange and tyre tread. Its always worked for me. But a single operation form tool would be quicker.


- Nigel

And one for me please Terry.

Tony Comber

Yes please Terry.

Philip

Thats a yes please from me too.

I'm interested.

Side note, I saw an article somewhere. The author made a form tool by turning a disk, then cutting a notch in (with suitable rake). My point is, that tool was able to be resharpened many times. Not sure of the design being contemplated, and I'll buy it either way, just offering a comment from the peanut gallery.

Cheers
Stephan

Yes please for me Terry

Stephan.wintner wrote:I'm interested.

Side note, I saw an article somewhere. The author made a form tool by turning a disk, then cutting a notch in (with suitable rake). My point is, that tool was able to be resharpened many times. Not sure of the design being contemplated, and I'll buy it either way, just offering a comment from the peanut gallery.

Cheers
Stephan

That article was from Sid Stubbe/MMRS, 1960s IIRC. Could be a reference on the MMRS website.

And me too!

Best wishes,
David

I ought to add (having just read Morgan’s post again) that my machine is an old Unimat SL, so will ideally only take 6mm square stock in the tool holder. Now I know of course that this machine is probably not going to be man enough to use a form tool in the normal way, but I would probably only use it for the final finishing and checking.

I already have had some success with reprofiling wheels by eye, and anyway it seems to be to be worth a try at the very reasonable estimated price.

Philip

Terry Bendall wrote:The Society has for some time been considering having some form tools made to enable RTR OO wheels to be re-profiled to P4 standards. The question has been raised as to how many people would want such a thing? The use would mainly be for steam loco wheels. The point has been made that anyone who wants to do this firstly needs the skills and the equipment to do it, and if they do want to do this sort of job should they not have the skills to make the tool anyway? I do not necessarily support the last point.

The tool would be a simple form tool so would not stand sharpening since that would change the profile but it should last a long time doing the job for which it is designed. The price has not been determined since it would depend on how many we order in a batch but might be around £30.

Expressions of interest without any commitment or promises to deliver are invited.

Yes please from me.

ralphrobertson wrote:....As a matter of interest there is a German company who sell them for other profiles and the cost you mention sounds appropriate.

https://www.fohrmann.com/en/railway-modeling-tools/...

A matter of regret that Fohrmann never saw fit to make them for P87 as well, so I went to Teichmann for that, plus had some more specially made.

The Fohrmann wheel holding tool is also useful, but took six weeks-plus to reach Britain.