I feel that some put off decoder installs since they have seen frames that were milled for clearance using ….. ….. a mill similar to the one above or a smaller one. It is nice if you have one but you don't need one. I have the one above and a smaller one but still don't use either the majority of the time when I'm installing decoders and need to mill the frame for clearance. I'll use a Dremel type tool with a flex shaft. I do have a normal Dremel tool but like the flex shaft better. You could use a non-flex shaft Dremel also. You can find small carbide bits like the one shown above on eBay and other internet sources. I picked up an assortment of types for not much but mainly use the one above. I have a video up using the rotary cutter ( HERE ). The photo above and the following are some examples of using the flex drive tool and carbide bit to clearance a frame. So don't put off doing decoder installs because you don't have a mill. A mill will do a prettier job but once the shell is on who is going to know. It might let you remove slightly less material but do you really need to pull one more car and in most cases you can add weight to the loco in other places if that is an issue. On the next page we will look at using a jewelers saw also for clearancing. You can save a link to this info on my site ( HERE ) Sumner
Decoder Install -- No Mill, No Problem Part 2.... I feel that some put off decoder installs since they have seen frames that were milled for clearance using a mill similar to the one above or a smaller one. It is nice if you have one but you don't need one. I have the one above and a smaller one but still don't use either the majority of the time when I'm installing decoders and need to mill the frame for clearance. On the preceding page we looked at using a Dremel-like flex tool with a carbide bit to clearance frames. Here we will look at also using a common jewelers saw in instances where we can. You can at times use it to remove frame areas quicker and cleaner than using a tool with a carbide bit. The pictures should do a fairly good job of showing when and how to use the saw. I first bought a jewelers saw when I started making hand-laid turnouts. This is the second saw I bought and about twice the price of the first one but much better as it is easier to get the blade tension right for easy cutting. Having a very taught blade is the secret to using one of these saws and not being frustrate trying to use one. This saw lets you tighten the blade on the top like most of these saws do, but they stop there and you will find it is better to have a tighter blade than you accomplish only using that step. This saw also has a thumb adjuster out in front of the blade and its holder at the front of the saw. The thumb adjuster lets you get the blade very tight and taught. Just what you need. It is a Megacast German style jewelers saw that I found on Amazon ( HERE ). I highly recommend spending the money on it. Get yourself a die grinder type tool and a 'good' jewelers saw and start installing decoders. Save a link to this info on my site ( HERE ). Sumner
