"Loco carriers"

No, I’m not talking about a crazy mail carrier… a guy asked about transporting model engines. Here are some photos of a couple of carriers I built that allow me to do just that. This is one I made for my lighter B'mann plastic locos.




The base is built up with two aluminum contractor's rules (big 2"-wide yardsticks) from Home Depot. With my router, I made a shallow rabbet cut along the bottom edges, about as wide as the top of a rail, so I can set it down on a straight section and drive the loco on and off under its own power. The inside dimension between the two base plates is exactly 45mm.
I also filed the tops down on each end to create little ramps. (More detail on how I did that later.)
The loco gets is power through the aluminum base plates that are in direct contact and aligned with the track on the layout.








Pieces of foam rubber keep the locos snug and in place when the sides are raised and secured with barrel bolts.




Here are some close-ups of the edge of the base plates. You can also see how I put the wood and metal parts together. The carrier is aligned with the track by the rabbeted notches on the underside of the plates. I used a router table with a fence to make the rabbets. By the way, the aluminum cuts easily and does not dull or harm the router bits.
I cut another rabbet in the long wooden rail to which the metal base plate is attached. It’s about a half-inch wide and exactly as deep as the thickness of the metal stock. The plates are glued ‘n’ screwed into the rabbet from the underside. I countersunk the holes – set about an inch and a half apart along the rail – and used short flathead woodscrews so that the bottom of the carrier is completely flat. I had to bevel the inside top edges of the wood in order to clear the cylinders, valve gear and other overhanging parts of the loco as it runs on and off the carrier.
If you can find aluminum bar stock wider than two inches to use, then that last step probably won’t be necessary. BTW, I wouldn’t try using anything less than two inches wide, either – at least not for 1:20.3 scale steam locos.


After I cut the rabbet on the underside of the plate, I filed a ramp on the top side about a half-inch long to smooth the transition between track and carrier. As you can see, it’s about the same width as the rabbet notch underneath. (When I painted it with a rattle-can, I masked off the top, side and bottom of the plate to assure good electrical contact.)


Here’s how the whole thing sits on the track.






These three shots show the same thing from another angle.


Since brass and steel Accucraft models are much heavier, I built this heavy-duty version to carry my C-21. I used the same techniques, just adding a center support and two sets of side panels instead of one.


Again, you can see here how I put all the parts together.


I haven’t drawn up any plans for this – I tend to do things “by guess and by golly” – so don’t ask me to send you any, but don’t hesitate to ask me any questions you may have.
I do hope this inspires you to try to build carriers of your own. If you do, I’d love to see photos of the results of your efforts. Good luck.
the wire cables on the Accucraft carrier insurance against the carrier buckling due to the added weight. I can't tighten them fully without bowing the whole thing up at the ends (making it impossible for the loco to drive onto the carrier from the tracks) so I've got them set just this side of "taut" in order to pick up any unexpected strain. I suppose I could have gotten away without them, but they seemed like good insurance at the time.