I remember 15-20 years ago it was easy to walk into my local train store and buy N Scale accessories that were nice little details especially for locomotives, that I don't see anymore. I know there are still detail parts out there but even some that I could find easily a few years ago are now getting hard to find, but then maybe I'm not looking in the right places too. Here's an example, this bell attachment for a SD9 I just purchased. I had bought two of them about 20years ago and had them on two C&NW SD9s that I hardly ever use so I took one off and used it for this SD9 which will get more use. It really makes a difference between having one applied and not. Wish I could find more because I have more SD9s that sure could em.
Shapeways, Miniatures by Eric, and Atlas have all had bells like that. If you can’t find one, contact Wutter Vehicles on Shapeways and he can probably design one for you.
Very nice! Generally, when a product becomes unavailable, it is because either the market has dried up or the producer has gone out of business (often two very interrelated factors). While I've never been very interested in super detailing N scale equipment, I've admired the work that many others have done. Unfortunately, I think super detailing is a young man's game (think eyesight, dexterity, patience) and we are members of an aging demographic. Others may disagree, but that's one man's opinion. Another factor is that as N scale consumers have demanded more detail and accuracy, the manufacturers have responded to some degree; also contributing perhaps to the demise of the "detail parts" market.
I purchased the same bells from MbE about 5 yrs ago. Mine are for N&W SD45s, EJ&E SD9s, PC GP7s, and EJ&E SD38-2 #660. Hope you can find 'em, they REALLY make a difference !!! Norseman, you may be right, but I hope your not TOO right !!! I've never detailed any locomotives, but there are several I'm gonna' try. I'll be honest, I got a bit scared when I saw the actual size of the #80 drill bits I'll be using !!!
I've ordered a couple of times direct from Miniatures by Eric. The last time being a couple of months ago. I'm not sure that he has the exact same bell. But he does have a couple versions of HH bells. https://www.miniaturesbyeric.com/
Well said in every detail (pardon the pun) Norseman. Even when I was younger and my eyes were better, I also worried about detail parts breakage when handling or storing the models.
They key is to let the drill bit do the work and do not apply any extra pressure. These bits snap easily!
