Welcome To
Foothill Model Works

P.O. Box 470, Willits, CA 95490-0470, USA
(707) 459-5587, 9am to 5pm (Pacific Time, GMT-8), Mon. - Sat.
info@foothillmodelworks.com

Welcome to Foothill Model Works’ new home on the net! This set of web pages is designed to provide our customers and friends with an online reference to our company and our products. Always a work in progress, please check back here from time to time. We now have our entire catalog of currently shipping products presented online. Drop me a line and tell me what you think or what other information you would like presented here.

See the “” link button on the left for information on ordering from FMW and how to contact us.

New Products!

O/On3/On30/On2 Griffin Wheel Co., 26″ Single Plate, Chilled Iron Wheels (in Celcon®)

Wheel grinder track at West Side & Cherry Valley (Photo by Jerry Kitts, November 1978 at Tuolumne), filled with trucks using this Griffin 26″ single plate wheel. (No, we have no explanation for why the West Side thought it was OK to grind down the surface of chilled iron wheels.)

Pacific Car & Foundry, connected-truck, log car trucks from an ex-Swayne car. (Photo by Jerry Kitts, May 1978, at Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad.) The first axle has this Griffin single plate wheel. The West Side had a habit of using any available wheel in any truck, as needed, so long as the diameter matched. We’ve even found a truck with four different wheels, including one A. Whitney & Sons wheel from the 19th century!

New, scale, Griffin Wheel Co., 26″ wheels! And we do mean scale (O Scale to be exact, gauge to be determined by axle length, just like the real thing). These are very accurate copies of their 1920’s, 26″ single plate, chilled iron wheels as ordered for and used on the West Side Lumber Co. These wheels are based on exacting measurements of those preserved in the Roaring Camp & Big Trees collection in Felton, California. We even cut the wheel tread to an exact match of period M.C.B./A.A.R. recommended practices (no mangling to match RP25 here). Also note as you look at the photos and read the captions, these wheels are only 0.5417″ in diameter (aka the detail really is that small)! Production has begun and the first batch has already shipped!

Griffin 26″ Wheels Sets (FMW-4011-On3) installed in MacLeod Western T-17-2 Truck w/FMW-4000 Wooden Brake Beams, FMW-4004 Truck Brake Levers, and FMW-4007 Celcon® Bearing Inserts. (Yes, I did replace the cast brake rods with 0.0156″ wire. And, yes, I know the tops of the two levers aren’t suppose to be connected. I do it that way to keep the rods from interfering with the operation of the trucks - it doesn’t show on the finished model.)

Griffin 26″ Wheels Sets (FMW-4011-On3) installed in MacLeod Western T-14 Truck w/FMW-4000 Wooden Brake Beams, FMW-4004 Truck Brake Levers, and FMW-4007 Celcon® Bearing Inserts. (Yes, I did replace the cast brake rods with 0.0156″ wire. And, yes, I know the tops of the two levers aren’t suppose to be connected. I do it that way to keep the rods from interfering with the operation of the trucks - it doesn’t show on the finished model.)

Works in D&RGW trucks too! While the vast majority of the D&RGW’s wheels were Griffin 26″ Washburn pattern wheels, they existed for so long and had so many cars, that you can find examples of just about every kind of wheel. Including paper, single plate, and even turned steel wheels. Though they obviously got their wheels from the Denver plant, not the Tacoma plant.

Griffin 26″ Wheels Sets (FMW-4011-On3) installed in a San Juan Car Co. D&RGW, 3′ 7″ Freight Car truck in brown. (Axle holes in San Juan trucks have to be drilled out as they are designed for a shorter, pointed axle.)

Griffin 26″ Wheels Sets (FMW-4011-On3) installed in a Grandt Line Products 3056 D&RGW Narrow Gauge Passenger Car Truck with Cast Steel Bearing Bolster w/3057 Brake Set. (With brake beams lowered to correct height for 26″ wheels.)

Front and Back of the new wheel. The wheels are shot from the center of the wheel, so there aren’t any nicks in the flange or along the rim. Nor did we use knock out pins. The letters were cut with a 0.003″ diameter end mill for scale 1/8″ thick letters! As the lettering cast into this wheel indicates, Griffin’s foundry in Tacoma, Washington cast this wheel specifically to order for the West Side Lumber Co. (WSL) on February 20, 1922 (the prototype for this specific wheel was serial # T263445). The “T1” refers to the taped measurement of the diameter of the wheel. I have no idea what the “G” and “3G” refer to.

A cross sectional view (cutting Celcon® isn’t easy). This does show off the how closely the model follows the contours of the real wheel, including the filleting of all of the edges.

Assembled Wheel Sets (On3). We follow Cliff Grandt’s axle design for On3 - an exposed axle 1/16″ in diameter with an overall length of 1.165″. We’re using thin-walled, stainless steel, hypodermic tubing to simulate the straight, 5″ diameter axles of the prototype. They are not effected by under-track uncoupling magnets.

Griffin 26″, single plate wheel being measured and photographed at Roaring Camp & Big Trees, Felton, CA, on February 10, 2012 (10 days short of 90 years after the wheel was cast).

Produced in a bright, metal-like color, these wheels are cast in Celcon®; a high strength, wear resistant acetal copolymer similar to Delrin®. Unlike the styrene wheels of old, these wheels don’t pick up any more dirt than metal wheels, roll just as freely as metal wheels, and are much quieter to boot. And because of the way we designed the wheels and axles, it is relatively easy for us to make custom wheel sets to any gauge and axle length. Just keep in mind that we aren’t able to produce pointed axles (so use in San Juan Car Co. trucks are out) and our fine-scale wheels don’t work with the NMRA’s 5 foot gauge “O Standard.” Though they should work well with the NMRA’s Proto-48 standard. While no set-up fees or minimums are required, all custom wheel orders will be final - no returns or refunds - and our regular shipping/sales tax charges apply.

Griffin Wheel Co., 26″ Single Plate, Chilled Iron Wheels (in Celcon®):

These wheel sets include four axle sets in the following gauges. Recommended for use in Grandt Line Products, MacLeod Western, and most brass and white metal trucks. Not recommended for use in San Juan Car Co. trucks or any truck that uses pointed axles. All sales of custom axles are final and are non-returnable/non-refundable.

Gauge	“Back-to-Back” Wheel Spacing	Axle Length	Description	Stock No.	Price
On2	0.416″	0.915″	NMRA Standard On2 on NWSL Length Axles	FMW-4011-On2	$10.00
On30	0.566″	1.025″	NMRA Standard On30 on HO Length Axles	FMW-4011-On30a	$10.00
On30	0.566″	1.165″	NMRA Standard On30 on On3 Length Axles (for use in On3 trucks)	FMW-4011-On30b	$10.00
On3	0.666″	1.165″	NMRA Standard On3 on Cliff Grandt/NWSL Length Axles	FMW-4011-On3	$10.00
Custom	Specified by Customer	Specified by Customer	Wheel sets built to customer’s specifications	FMW-4011-Custom	$10.00

Griffin Wheel Co., 26″ Single Plate, Chilled Iron (in Celcon®) Scenery Wheels

Does your junk or clutter pile need detailed, scale wheels? Does your wheel or car shop need a supply of new or used wheels? Does your snow plow or boom car need counter weights? Well, look no further! As we switch from styrene to Celcon® in our plastic press, the first few castings will get the occasional streak of styrene. And while these wheels can’t be used in our wheel sets (the styrene will separate as the wheels rub against the rails), these beautiful, highly detailed castings can still be used as detail parts! These wheels have gone through our normal clean-up process and then we’ve bored out the wheel centers to the correct, 5″ diameter hole; eliminating the “faux” axle protruding from the wheel front; and leaving the full, correct wheel casting. Ready for your favorite color of rust!

26″ Griffin Scenery Wheels:

Includes 8, Celcon®, 26″ Griffin Wheel Co., single plate wheel castings, suitable for scenery or detailing use only.

Stock No.	Description	Price
FMW-4011-Scene	Set of 8, Celcon®, 26″ Griffin single plate wheel castings.	$3.00

Extended Knuckles for Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO Couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO Couplers
and Kadee® #803 On3 Couplers

From Left to Right: Standard Kadee® #26 coupler (unmodified), Kadee® #26 w/FMW-4009 Short Extended Knuckle, Kadee® #26 w/FMW-4008 Tall Extended Knuckle, Standard Kadee® #803 coupler (unmodified), and Kadee® #803 w/FMW-4010 Extended Knuckle.

Introduction:

Extended knuckle coupler installed in link & pin draw head on the Robert Dollar shay, Roots of Motive Power, Willits, CA, 5/20/2005. Yes, the draw head IS mounted upside down; No, I don’t know why. It was that way in service.

A common complaint we hear from our customers is the fact that they have trouble finding cars whose coupler height matches the very low coupler height of Bachmann’s On30 locomotives and freight cars. (It’s the Bachmann cars that are off, by the way. They’re set to NMRA HO standard gauge height, which quite low for O scale.) While this problem can be somewhat alleviated using couplers with offset heads, real railroads found a solution to this problem ages ago: extended knuckles. Oddly enough, there is no “standard” coupler height in prototype railroading in the United States. The F.R.A. rule-book only specifies that there has to be less than a 4″ mismatch in relative coupler height. Remember, prototype cars can have new/old wheels, different trucks, different draft gear, different couplers, and can be empty or fully loaded. All which effect where a coupler ends up relative to the top of the rails. Coupler mismatches were far more common before WWII on standard gauge railroads and was fairly common throughout the history of narrow gauge and industrial railroading; particularly in the logging industry.

Bachmann 2-6-6-2 Tender w/Kadee® #27, Medium Shank Underset coupler and FMW-4008 Tall Extended Knuckle installed; coupled to a completed, On3, FMW-2211, Proto-Freelance, 2400 Gal. Tank Car Kit (equipped w/factory Kadee® #26, Long Shank Centerset coupler). The tender is near completion on conversion to an On3, Oahu Railway #85 style, oil burning locomotive.

Completed, FMW-2219, On3 Coal Car Kit w/Kadee® #26, Long Shank Centerset coupler; coupled to a Wiseman Model Services, On3 Vertical Boiler Shay C.N. #21 (equipped w/factory Kadee® #5, Medium Shank Centerset coupler with FMW-4008 Tall Extended Knuckle and slotted shank modification installed).

Key Imports, HO standard gauge, 3 truck, Feather River Shay w/Kadee® #47, Medium Underset Shank coupler with FMW-4009 Short Extended Knuckle.

Partially completed, Grandt Line, On3, 18 Ton, 0-4-0 Porter with Tender Kit 93063 w/Kadee® #803, On3 Coupler with FMW-4010 Extended Knuckle and slotted shank modification installed. Sunset, D&RGW C-16, “On3” Gauge, #223 2-8-0, (mid-conversion to oil burner) w/Kadee® #803, On3 Coupler with FMW-4010 Extended Knuckle.

The patterns for these parts were made by Dave Squire, an accomplished pattern maker who has done work for PSC and The Back Shop. In fact, if you’ve been around narrow gauge modeling long enough, you probably own some of his excellent work already and don’t even know it! Foothill Model Works is proud to add this incredibly useful part to our line of detail parts.

The FMW-4008 Tall Extended Knuckle and the FMW-4009 Short Extended Knuckle were originally designed for the old, “whisker spring” McHenry™ HO couplers, they also work in Kadee®’s line of HO couplers that use the #5 head (i.e. #3, 5, 9-11, 16, 21-29, 31-39, 41-47, & 49), Bachmann® E-Z Mate® HO couplers, and in McHenry™’s current line of coil spring HO couplers. (The pivot area of the knuckle may have to be thinned on modern McHenry™ HO couplers.) The FMW-4008 Tall Extended Knuckle is approximately 0.270″ to 0.280″ tall (a standard Kadee® #5 knuckle is 0.155″ tall) and is best used on O scale equipment or in smaller scales where you have large differences in coupler heights. The FMW-4009 Short Extended Knuckle is approximately 0.200″ to 0.205″ tall and is more suited for S or HO scale applications.

The FMW-4010 Extended Knuckle is designed to fit Kadee®’s #803, On3 coupler. It is approximately 0.300″ to 0.310″ tall (a standard Kadee® #803 knuckle is 0.188″ tall). It is ideal for larger O scale narrow gauge equipment like the D&RGW’s large roster of locomotives.

These lost wax castings, were cast in “white bronze” (a material similar to brass) that is strong, long wearing, and has a silver color which will allow the exposed areas of the part to look like steel (rather than yellow color of brass). When properly installed, these castings retain all practical benefits of a fully functional Kadee® coupler while offering a simple and prototypical solution to the coupler mismatch problem!

Installation Instructions:

While the prospect of disassembling and reassembling an HO coupler may seem daunting at first; in reality, it really isn’t as hard as it looks. All of these couplers operate in exactly the same way as Kadee®’s #5 style head, so the instructions are essentially the same for all of them. Mostly, it’s the shanks that are different (and, obviously, the overall size, in the case of the #803s).

For Factory Draft Gear (Unmodified Shank):

Remove the coiled spring from the side of the knuckle with a pair of tweezers and put it in a safe place.
Remove the iron trip pin wire. While this can be done with a pair of needle nose pliers, the easiest way is using a wheel puller.

Trip pin being removed using wheel puller. Be sure to fully support the head using a plate with a small hole in it. We used an old screw with the pin ground down to about the same diameter as the trip pin wire.
Measure your trip pin wire and the drill pivot point hole one drill bit size larger. Always double check your particular trip pin wire, or, if in doubt, start a couple sizes smaller and work your way up.

For the FMW-4008 or FMW-4009 Extended Knuckles:
- Kadee® uses a 0.040″ iron wire trip pin, so use a #59 drill bit.
- McHenry™ uses a 0.039″ iron wire for a trip pin, so use a #60 drill bit.
- Bachmann® uses a 0.038″ iron wire for a trip pin, so use a #61 drill bit.
For the FMW-4010 Extended Knuckles:
- Kadee® uses a 0.045″ to 0.046″ iron wire trip pin, so use a #56 drill bit.
Drill pivot point hole here.
Test fit knuckle in shank housing. The pivot portion of the knuckle should fit as cast, but might require thinning on some non-Kadee® couplers. The best way to test fit the knuckle in place is to use a scrap piece of brass wire the same size as your trip pin wire to temporarily hold the knuckle in place. Using an unmodified coupler as a guide, check to make sure the knuckle closes all the way. The side of coupler shank housing may need to be shaved with a razor blade or the casting filed down to allow the knuckle to close all the way.

The edge(s) that will need to be modified so knuckle closes all the way.
The iron wire trip pin you removed in Step 2 has two ears mashed out of its sides where it attaches to knuckle. These will need to be filed down until they are slightly fatter than the rest of the wire, but NOT down to the same size. These ears will be what holds the knuckle to the trip pin. Supporting the head of the coupler and using an unmodified coupler as a guide as the rotation of the trip pin relative to the knuckle, reinstall the knuckle and press trip pin back in place. You will be forcing the fat part of the trip pin into a hole that is too small for it, so some force will be required. Grip the trip pin just outside of the shank housing and press it in a little bit at a time. Never grab the free end of the trip pin and press from there. (You’ll bend the wire and send the coupler flying!)

Trip pin “ears” that will need filing.

Pliers being used to insert trip pin wire a little bit at a time.
Replace coiled spring with a pair of tweezers.

For Slotted, Link & Pin Draw Head (Modified Shank. Only Use with Centerset Shank Couplers.):

Follow Steps 1-5 as above.
File or shave using a razor blade, the fillet in the inside corner, between the back of the head and the top of the shank square.

File this inside corner square.
Drill a hole through the shank, centered on the shank, up against the back of the head, to accommodate the mounting pin for the slotted shank addition. Measure your mounting pin and the drill a hole one drill bit size smaller. It needs to be a press fit! Always double check your particular mounting pin, or, if in doubt, start a couple sizes smaller and work your way up.

For the FMW-4008 or FMW-4009 Extended Knuckles:
- Use a #77 drill bit.
For the FMW-4010 Extended Knuckles:
- Use a #74 drill bit.
Drill here.
Measure the pin used in your slotted, link & pin draw head. Drill one drill bit size larger, through the detent cast into the slotted shank extension casting. Be careful to keep the drill bit square to the part.
Remove the slotted shank addition casting from the sprue and file the end to match the curve cast into it.
Press the mounting pin on the slotted shank addition casting into the hole drilled through the shank in Step 3. Using the same drill used in Step 4, drill through the center of the shank, through the hole drilled through the slotted shank addition casting.

Drill like this.
Trim the coupler shank to match the length and shaper of the slotted shank addition casting. Note: the factory shank on #803 couplers will have to thinned, from the bottom, to fit you particular draw head!

Shank trimmed and rounded.
Replace coiled spring with a pair of tweezers.

Tall Extended Knuckle Replacement Castings for Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO Couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO Couplers:

Includes one pair of lost wax, “white bronze,” tall (approximately 0.270″ to 0.280″ tall) extended knuckle castings that can used to convert Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO Couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO Couplers. Also included is an optional pair of lost wax, “white bronze” castings to convert a pair of Kadee® style coupler shanks into scale, slotted shanks suitable for mounting in a locomotive, link & pin draw head.

Stock No.	Description	Price
FMW-4008	Pair of tall, extended knuckle replacement castings for Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO couplers.	$6.50

Short Extended Knuckle Replacement Castings for Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO Couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO Couplers:

Includes one pair of lost wax, “white bronze,” short (approximately 0.200″ to 0.205″ tall) extended knuckle castings that can used to convert Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO Couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO Couplers. Also included is an optional pair of lost wax, “white bronze” castings to convert a pair of Kadee® style coupler shanks into scale, slotted shanks suitable for mounting in a locomotive, link & pin draw head.

Stock No.	Description	Price
FMW-4009	Pair of short, extended knuckle replacement castings for Kadee® #5 Head, McHenry™ HO couplers, or Bachmann® E-Z Mate® Mark II HO couplers.	$6.50

Extended Knuckle Replacement Castings for Kadee® #803 On3 Couplers:

Includes one pair of lost wax, “white bronze,” (approximately 0.300″ to 0.310″ tall) extended knuckle castings that can used to convert Kadee® #803 On3 Couplers. Also included is an optional pair of lost wax, “white bronze” castings to convert a pair of Kadee® style coupler shanks into scale, slotted shanks suitable for mounting in a locomotive, link & pin draw head.

Stock No.	Description	Price
FMW-4010	Pair of extended knuckle replacement castings for Kadee® #803 On3 couplers.	$6.50

New Additions!

Zimo DCC!

We’re now proud to be Zimo DCC delears! Check out the link on the sidebar to learn more about this superb line of DCC sound decoders!

New MacLeod Western Parts!

Doug’s added some new parts to his line of styrene detail parts. Three new tank car tank ends, three new NBW castings, one new queen post, and three new trucks! Head on over to our MacLeod Western Parts List to learn more.

New Pages Added to: Getting it Right - The Bachmann On30 Climax

We’ve added three more pages to our comprehensive, illustrated guide to rebuild a Bachmann On30 Climax into a true, On3 Oil Burner!

Page 3: Re-building the Water Bunker & Oil Tank. (rev. 8/16/2011)
Page 4: Adding a Rear Ladder & Water Tank Filling Hatch. (rev. 8/17/2011)
Page 5: Oil Tank Details 101 & Oil Filling Hatch Body. (rev. 8/21/2011)

Featured Product of the “Week” (more or less)

American Car & Foundry, 24″ “Washburn” Pattern, Chilled Iron (in Celcon®) Scenery Wheels

New for O Scale West 2012! Does your junk or clutter pile need detailed, scale wheels? Does your wheel or car shop need a supply of new or used wheels? Does your snow plow or boom car need counter weights? Well, look no further! As we switch from styrene to Celcon® in our plastic press, the first few castings will get the occasional streak of styrene. And while these wheels can’t be used in our wheel sets (the styrene will separate as the wheels rub against the rails), these beautiful, highly detailed castings can still be used as detail parts! These wheels have gone through our normal clean-up process and then we’ve bored out the wheel centers to the correct, 5″ diameter hole; eliminating the “faux” axle protruding from the wheel front; and leaving the full, correct wheel casting. Ready for your favorite color of rust!

24″ AC&F Scenery Wheels:

Includes 8, Celcon®, 24″ AC&F wheel castings, suitable for scenery or detailing use only.

Stock No.	Description	Price
FMW-4006-Scene	Set of 8, Celcon®, 24″ AC&F wheel castings.	$3.00

General Information About Our Company:

Contacting Foothill Model Works
Our phone and FAX numbers, mailing and street addresses, and our e-mail address.

Ordering from Foothill Model Works
Everything you need to know about placing an order with us.
We accept:

Online Product Listings:

FMW’s Detail Parts Catalog
Our illustrated detail parts catalog.

FMW’s Rolling Stock Catalog
Our illustrated rolling stock kit catalog.

FMW’s Structure Catalog
Our illustrated structure kit catalog.

FMW’s Catalog Reprints
New series of period, prototype, catalog reprints.

The Industrial Series in Classic Brass
Industrial locomotives and rolling stock, custom built in brass by FMW.

MacLeod Western Detail Parts
Our current listing of prices and availability of these legendary detail parts.

Lenz DCC Product Price List
FMW’s going DCC! Our online listing of this superb line of DCC products.

Zimo DCC Product Price List
FMW’s went DCC! Our online listing of this superb line of DCC motor and motor/sound decoders.

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Rev. 3/05/2013.