I picked up a Bachmann crane and flat car cheap at the train show. Any one convert them to Mirco Train trucks and couplers? Thanks Don
Current photos show the crane with body mount couplers and the boom car with truck mount couplers, so yes it can be done. A long while back, many years, I used MT 1015s on my crane and and I believe Bettendorf trucks with couplers on the boom car.
Two options here. You can cut off the truck couplers on the crane and install MT 1015s. Or get a set of at least 100 ton trucks with couplers for the crane. Also go to the Micro Trains web site and check by manufacture for the conversion. https://www.micro-trains.com/publicfiles/conversions/sheet003.pdf
My crane runs in my wreck train, so it stays with the same cars all the time.......I simply put Unimates in the Rapido pockets and called it good. But there IS room to cut the couplers off the ctane and install body mounts. The only 6 wheel trucks I found were passenger trucks or buckeye trucks, which would work, but they are just trucks (no coupler) which takes you right back to cutting the couplers off the original trucks. The tender car is a simple MT swap.
M/T used the B-mann crane in one of their MOW sets. I'll see if I can tell which couplers they used before work.
If this is the crane that I think it is I believe it has been manufactured by different manufacturers. I'm thinking AHM, Model Power, Lima, Roco, Concor and possibly others. Roco (Austria) 160-Ton Crane Car (spookshow.net)
My wreck train is usually 6 cars..........a coal/water tender (in my world the crane is still steam powered) ,the crane and the boom tender car,,a tool car (boxcar) , a second flatcar (carrying truck assemblies) and a crew car. I'm working on a combine, which will be the tool AND crew car. The crew car also serves as the caboose). All the cars have MTs except the crane. So I don't normally leave a loco attached, and I don't break the train up, although I DO deploy the train when I have a derailment. I run the train out to the wreck, and it sits and blocks the track for a certain time.....I like 10 minutes per car in the wreck. It adds a little variety to my opps.
Surprisingly, I think Bachmann is the only one who never sold that crane Inkaneer......... that one is a newer model of a European diesel crane. You are correct that that model has been around for quite a while and sold by anyone and everyone. I've been assuming this N Scale - Bachmann - Union Pacific - Operating Accessories Crane & Boom - M of W | eBay is the crane he has.
Any one know how to get the coupler box off? I looked at body mounting but does not look like their is room. I got one box off, and got a old Red Caboose coupler put in. I'll work on the other later. I"m getting to old for this!!
You are correct. The Rocco one is listed as a 160 ton crane whereas the Bachmann crane is a 250 ton. The Bachmann is also steam powered whereas the Rocco is diesel or diesel electric powered. Oddly, I think I have both of these models somewhere in my stash of model trains so I should have known better. These things haven't seen the light of day on any layout because of the funky rigging of the smaller hook block. I tried to fashion a better one with a functioning pulley but with five thumbs on each hand that didn't go well. Might be something that someone can 3-D print.
Now to complete the crane you need an old steam tender since the crane is steam powered. I have used in the past an old slope back tender body mounted on a flatcar. I took the coal bunk and converted it to a fuel oil bunk. The rest of the flatcar can be used to hold timber cribbing for the crane support jacks. Or you can cut the tender body and end up with something like this. Rail and watercar again by John Moore posted May 31, 2006 at 5:55 PM
FINALLY became "un-lazy" for a few mins. My crane is B-mann in M/T Wreck Recovery Set. It has truck mounted M/Ts on Buckeye trucks. Wish I could have been more help.
