Cracked It

I’ve been making swift progress on the ambulance bogie design for Livingston Thompson with a prototype rolling chassis completed.

I’ve also worked up a master for the axle box and suspension casting which will slip onto the side of the bogie frame.

There has been a slight setback - I suspect the frame is a tiny bit too narrow.

The wheel sets are a very snug fit inside the bearings cups.

While this is fine with the frame alone - which is able to flex enough to insert them - when the extra castings are fixed on the outside it becomes too rigid and I ended up cracking the frame trying to get the wheels in and out.

There are a couple of options to explore including a mark 2 casting, countersinking the frame where the bearings go on, or accepting that the bogies will have to be made up with the wheels inserted at an early stage.