BLMA #60 – 18″ Drop Grab Irons (20) – N Scale

18″ Drop Grab Irons (20) BLMA Prototype History:All railroad rolling stock features ubiquitous grab irons.  Generally made from roughly one inch diameter metal rod, they provide support and safety for railroad crew members. Model Description:These highly accurate grab irons are bent into shape by machine to ensure accuracy and sharp bends. The wire is stainless steel with a diameter of roughly .007″ which makes them very close to scale. Model Features: •  Made from .007″ Wire •  Accurate Dimensions •  Razor Sharp Radius’ •  Common Grab Iron Size Installation Instructions 1. Remove molded – on grab irons with a sharp hobby knife blade (#11) or the broader chisel blade. 2. Before sanding the shell surface smooth (if it already isn’t), use the molded on grab iron markings as the template to drill your new holes or use our etched-metal drill template (BLMA #57).  Drill the holes for the grab irons using a #80 or smaller drill bit. 3. Once your holes are drilled, you can sand down the surface of the shell to totally remove the old molded on grab irons (though sometimes you can get things flush with just your blade). 4. We suggest using toothless pliers to grasp the grab iron while installing. 5. By this point, all of your holes should be drilled.  Without using glue, insert grab irons into the holes.  This step will give you a good indication of how things are lining up before they are glued in place. 6. After the grab irons are installed without glue and look straight and uniform, remove the grab irons one by one with toothless pliers, dab the ends in super glue, then reinsert them leaving the grab iron away (not flush) with the shell. Once you have one grab iron glued in place, use it as a guide to how far out you will place the rest of the grab irons – .023″ is perfect. 7. Once all of the grab irons are in place you might notice that a few are not exactly parallel. This can be fixed with a gentle hand and toothless pliers. Without grasping the wire to hard, gently bend the iron into the correct position 8. If you would like to paint the grab irons be sure you to use thin paint. See pictures for details.