Wheels and Axles

E1 Wheels - 4 November 2016

This E1 wheel set has been derived from the T9 wheel described below by reducing the number of spokes from 22 to 20. I don't have a drawing for the E1 wheel but its profile looks very similar to the T9. The balance weights are included as on the prototype and each wheel is different. The centre is a tight fit on the rim. I have not glued it as yet. It is printed in Shapeways FED.

I have included the stub axle as part of the wheel but I forgot about the overlap of the D pieces with the centre part of the axle so the back to back is 2mm short! I also need to make the stub axle a tighter fit on the stainless steel tube used for the axle bearing surface.

I have included a hole and inset for a 16BA nut and bolt for crankpins. I am not a fan of running coupling rods on screw threads so this needs more thought.

Created: 14 July 2015

Here is my first attempt at 3D printing a T9 wheel centre. It is araldited into a finescale 19.5mm diameter tyre and pushed on to the standard driving axle used for our finescale wheels. It is printed in Shapeways FUD and coloured using a permanent marker pen.

The next step is to increase the diameter so that it is a tighter fit into the tyre. That should enable it to be glued with Loctite 601 which is easier to handle than araldite. I will also try printing it in Shapeways FED which has a higher resolution than FUD.

This is my first attempt at parts for a self-quartering split axle. There are three 3D printed parts mounted on a 1mm drill. These are printed in Shapeways FUD. The right hand half includes a 1/8" OD sleeve cut from tube available from Eileen's. The left sleeve has been left off so that you can see the joint.

The left hand half is coloured using a permanent marker to make it easier to see the parts. The right hand part is identical to the left hand part. The centre is 1/8" OD and wide enough to mount the final gear from a High Level or Branchlines gearbox. That and the D interfaces provide insulation for split axle pickup and self-quartering.

The next step is to print the end as part of the centre of the T9 wheel. That should keep the wheel nice and square on the axle.

Two variants of the centre part will be needed, one for left hand lead and one for right hand lead.