Hello everyone! Thank you for the warm welcome, I just joined the community in 2022. Dad and I mainly build AMT & Revell 1:25 model kits. The majority of them have tires you glue together and inner wheels, with retainers, and hubcaps or wheels… all with notations not to use glue. I could really use an explanation of how I am supposed to put the wheels on so they move and don’t fall off the model constantly. I can’t seem to find a YouTube video that shows this process. Any chance there is already an article here? I tried searching the forums to no avail.
This is a tough question, if the axle does not have a mushroomed end that " snaps" and retains the wheel/ tire assembly then maybe there is a small cap that glues to the end of the axle. Done carefully the wheels continue to roll yet remain on when handling.
Armor kits and some planes with swing wings have “polly caps” , small rubber fillers that allow road wheels to rotate but require breaking friction to remove.
If the kit does not provide solid mounting and retention instructions perhaps glueing them permenatly may be your only option.
I sometimes can heat up a knife blade, and " heat swag" the end of the plastic pin /axle so that it forms a head ( like the head of a mushroom )
Kinda like a rivet.
But, it’s easy to over do it, so practice on something you DONT need first.
Sometimes you just have to not follow the instructions. I think the builders from 30-40 years ago might have wanted rolling wheels so they could “play” with the model when done. Today’s builders do not (with a few exceptions I am sure) play with the models when we are done.
I usually glue my wheels on so my models do not roll off the table, shelf or other surface. This helps prevent the dreaded dropping of the model on the floor. Usually with the roof hitting first! Everything else would pop out or break. Just ask me, I know!
[dto:]
Perhaps more important is to get all four to touch the ground. Surprising how often that doesn’t happen, even in otherwise pro looking builds.
Bill