by Doug
Here are a few photos of wheel profiles
From left to right:
LGB GRS Tenmille Slaters
Click on image to get huge sized version!
LGB - LGB standard plastic wheelset
GRS - Garden Railway Specialists LGB solid steel replacement wheelset. Available in 45mm and 32mm gauge. The flange is slightly shallower than the standard LGB ones. Flange is quite thick. Back to back measurement is 40mm.
Tenmille - Avalable in 45mm and 32mm gauge. Back to back of 45mm gauage wheelset is 41mm.
Slaters - GVT 16mm wheels (Ref 1622 GVT), available in 32mm gauge. Very fine flange. This is their standard 16mm profile wheel. Their Gauge 1 wheelsets are available in fine and standard profile.
I have removed the Slater's wheels from the supplied axle and fitted them on the steel axle that the plastic LGB wheels come on. Fortunately they are meant to fit on a 3mm diam shoulder on the standard Slater's Axle, which just happens to be the diameter of the LGB axle. The LGB axle has some splines on it at just the right point too! I have set the back to back to 41mm as the flange is very narrow. This results in the outer face of the flanges being the same distance apart, as the outer face of the flanges on the standard LGB wheels and the Tenmille wheels.
Slaters will supply these 16mm wheels on a 45mm axles that gives a back to back measurement of 40mm, or on an axle suitable for LGB axleboxes (3mm journal) which will give a back to back of 42mm. Cost is an extra 25p per packet of two wheelsets.
Slaters also supply, as a special to GRS, a replacement wheel set (Ref SLG 630) with a wheel profile similar to LGB - ie deeper and thicker flange, using the axles with the 3mm journal. These wheelsets have a back to back of 40mm (use a different shaped wheel insert).
Some more pics of Slater's wheels:
1' 0" 4 hole disc 1' 0" Dinorwic 1' 3" War Dept. 1' 6" Festiniog 1' 10" GVT
Hudson Skip Curly spoked Curley spoked Web spoked Curly spoked
Slaters 1' 10" GVT GRS Tenmille LGB
Size comparison (CLick image for huge version):
If Doug doesn't mind me adding a bit more - a good source of wheels for larger prototypes is the Slaters range for Gauge One modellers. As Doug says, these are available in standard and finescale profiles - I only use standard profile - as in the pictures.
These wheels seem to perform well on all track, and have a finer and more realistic appearance than the Tenmille ones.
Slaters supply a variety of types (disc, 3 hole and spoked) and diameters. I work in 15mm scale, so use 31mm diameter to represent 2ft wheels, and 37mm for 2ft 6inch. Obviously they are only available in 45mm gauge, but it is a simple job to fit new axles using 3.2mm steel rod. I use a length of brass tube to fix the gauge - as you can see in the broad gauge (79mm) bogie - which has only 2ft diameter wheels.
Apologies for the much used examples!
NeilR
37 and 31mm spoked Gauge One (10mm) wheels from Slaters
79mm gauge bogie with 31mm diameter Slaters G1 wheels fitted with new axles
