Replacement trucks/wheels for Roundhouse/MDC FMC boxcars

[Ian MacMillan]

I have almost a bazillion of the Roundhouse/MDC boxcars in Berlin Mills Railways that I want to replace the trucks on.  I believe they are FMC boxcars, even though the prototype is an PC&F boxcar.   I think these will need 70ton trucks with 33" wheels...right?   I'm looking to replace the stocks with BLMA trucks and FVM or BLMA wheels.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Yep 70 ton. You may need a few washers for the BLMA trucks.

[bbussey]

Since the cars sit at the correct height over the rail, it might be easier to remove the coupler pocket from the existing trucks and replace the wheelsets with the metal wheels of choice.

[Philip H]

Since the cars sit at the correct height over the rail, it might be easier to remove the coupler pocket from the existing trucks and replace the wheelsets with the metal wheels of choice.

this is what I've done with the few remaining in my collection.

[lock4244]

I'm looking to replace the stocks with BLMA trucks and FVM or BLMA wheels.

Curious... why would you choose to replace the BLMA wheels with FVM ones? Is there an issue with the BLMA wheels? I've put the BLMA trucks on a number of models, but being layout less, not any test time other than the Unitrack roundy-round.

[Sokramiketes]

I can't believe google can't find me a photo of the "stupid rookie" coffee cup from Super Troopers right now...

 

[Ian MacMillan]

Since the cars sit at the correct height over the rail, it might be easier to remove the coupler pocket from the existing trucks and replace the wheelsets with the metal wheels of choice.

Yeah I had thought about that, I just was unaware if there was a better looking truck out there.

Curious... why would you choose to replace the BLMA wheels with FVM ones? Is there an issue with the BLMA wheels? I've put the BLMA trucks on a number of models, but being layout less, not any test time other than the Unitrack roundy-round.

Nothing specific, I just prefer the FVM wheel sets. In my own experience they have been tracking better than my BLMA wheelsets.

I can't believe google can't find me a photo of the "stupid rookie" coffee cup from Super Troopers right now...

 

Truck, wheelset and coupler conversions are foreign to me. All I really have done is wheelset change outs over the years, and even those I had at first a hard time figuring out which size I needed. I just spend more time on other things. 

[Sokramiketes]

Say car RamRod!

[nkalanaga]

Body mounting the couplers is easy on these, although one will probably need a shim.  The floor sits too high for 1025 couplers, and probably for 1015.  I used Evergreen styrene strip on mine, and once you find the right thickness, they're all the same.  I'd cut a bunch ahead of time rather than doing one car at a time.

As Bryan says, the car itself is at the right height, so changing the trucks to a "lower riding" truck will require washers.  Other than some flash on later castings, the sideframes don't look that bad to me. 

The Precision Masters wheels for Roundhouse cars have 0.543 inch axles, so any 33 inch metal wheels with similar axles should work.