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Hollywood Foundry is the Australian manufacturer of the BullAnt motor bogie. They can be ordered in various gauges (16.5mm, 14.2mm, 12mm, 10.5mm, 9mm) and with wheelbases as small as 14mm. (Example shown is 9mm Gauge, with 8mm disc wheels and a 14mm wheelbase). They can also be supplied with 3 or 4 axles. ORDERING YOU VERY OWN BULLANT To order a BullAnt, you must provide the following information:
(See the choices farther down the page.)
Motorized or Dummy type- Number of axles wanted- Spacing of each axle from the previous one- Type of wheels (size & style)- Type of motor- Compare prices and order from the Manufacturer or Possum Valley Models.
To order from Possum Valley models, send an email to < emckay70@member.afa.org > and include the specifications for your BullAnt. You will receive an email in reply with pricing information for the style and options that you want. (We may even include a trick question to see if you really know what you want.) Because this is a special order item, once you have accepted this price, you will be required to send a non-refundable deposit of 50% of the price quoted, so please double and triple check your figures and options for your motor bogie. When this is received, your BullAnt motor bogie will be ordered from Hollywood Foundry. Once we receive it, we will notify you, and you will then be required to send the balance of the price.
A brass spine section carries all of the components in a strong, rigid structure. A nickel-silver gearbox frame mounts the Mashima MHK-1015 motor and flywheel, along with 2 brass and one Delrin helical cut spur gears, to transmit power down to just above axle level. Then a silver-steel horizontal lay-shaft runs underneath the brass spine, carrying the steel worms that provide power to the wheels. The gear ratio of 15:1 provides a good balance of power and speed range.
Molded Delrin gearbox enclosures place the axles in correct mesh with the worms and align the axles across the assembly. Although Delrin is an excellent bearing material in itself, each axle has two brass bearings, one either side of the brass worm gear, to provide excellent wheel alignment and smooth running. Two phosphor bronze thrust washers inside the gearbox enclosures take care of thrust loads along the layshaft.
A Polystyrene plastic sideframe mount has three fingers on each side that can be trimmed off to provide mounting for bogie sideframes at 13.3, 16.5 and 21mm inside spacing. The sideframe mount also carries two phosphor-bronze pickups, making contact with the inside flanges of all wheels. The wheels are solid nickel-silver, to RP25 standard, code 88.
A nickel-silver bolster, attached above the sideframe mount, runs in a Delrin turntable to provide a swivel mounting for the BullAnt to the model. A printed circuit board attached to the rear of the motor features an interference suppression network to make the BullAnt CE compliant.Performance?
A great deal of care has been taken with the design of the BullAnt to guarantee quiet, reliable running combined with low maintenance. The prototype BullAnt was run for 650 hours, 24 hours a day to identify wear points. During that time, it traveled over 370 actual miles, or 590 kilometers.
Shortly after we started production, the molded Delrin spur gears were found to be unsatisfactory, so we had specially cut gears made in a mixture of brass and Delrin with a helical tooth form to improve smoothness and further reduce gear noise. At the same time, we took the opportunity to add two bearings to the idler gear as we had noticed wear in this area with the test unit.
If the Mashima 1015 motor is a tad small for your application, and you need a little more power, the larger 1020 and 1024 variants can be supplied to order. The 1020, while providing more power, also runs slightly slower than the standard 1015 motor, while the 1024 runs faster.More Ratios?
Shortly after introduction, the BullAnt will be available with a choice of 3 gear reduction ratios. The standard ratio of 15:1 is best suited to larger scale narrow gauge EMU/DMU applications, while optional ratios of 31:1 and 60:1 will be offered to provide better slow speed performance.More Axles?
An exclusive feature of the BullAnt design is that it provides for 3 or even 4 axles. And the axle spacing does not have to be equal either, you will be able to individually specify the spacing for each axle in the assembly. Even with 4 axles, you can still have power pickup from all wheels too.Really Short & Extra Long Wheelbases?
With a minimum wheelbase of 15.5mm and a maximum in excess of 60mm, the BullAnt will provide a much needed power source for trams, multiple unit railcars, small industrial tractors and the like. If you are prepared to delete the pickups, sideframe mount and bolster, the BullAnt can be supplied with a tiny 11.5mm wheelbase!How big is the BullAnt? Will it fit my model?
A Spec sheet is available in pdf format by clicking on the link below. Please pay attention to the measurements given. Once you order a BullAnt, it can not be returned unless it requires repair. (A modest fee for returning the unit to the manufacturer may be required.)
Spec. sheetOrdering Options
- Wheelbase: From 11.5mm (.452") upwards in increments of 0.25mm (.1"). 15.5mm (.610") and upwards can be fitted with pickups and bolster.
- Gauges: 16.5mm (HO); 14.2mm (British 3mm Fine scale); 12mm (HOm or HOn3.5 or US TT scale); 10.5mm (HOn3); 9mm (HOe or HOn30" or N scale)
- Wheels: (See the "Wheel sizes Available" chart at the bottom.)
- Motors: Standard is MHK 1015. Optional motors: MHK 1020 or MHK 1024
- Matching dummy BullAnt (non powered).Price?
A two axle BullAnt will retail at $85.00, and a dummy at $25.00 in Australian Dollars. There will be small extra charges for additional axles or other motor combinations.
Standard 2 Axle BullAnt (AUD) $85.00 US Dollars $65.45 PVM Price $60.98 Dummy 2 Axle BullAnt (AUD) $25.00 US Dollars $19.25 PVM Price $17.79 Additional axle, add (AUD) $16.00 US Dollars $12.32 PVM Price $11.43 MHK 1020 motor, add (AUD) $4.00 US Dollars $3.08 PVM Price $2.80 MHK 1024 motor, add (AUD) $4.00 US Dollars $3.08 PVM Price $2.80
How Quickly Can I Get a BullAnt?
We have invested in specialized CNC machinery to make the assembly of the BullAnt as quick as possible. All orders go into a queue and are processed in sequence. We aim to have a maximum of 7 working days from receipt of order to dispatch of that order. In any event, provided we can contact you, we will advise you when your order is to be shipped.Note about Dummy BullAnt
Please note that the dummy BullAnt has exactly the same construction as the powered BullAnt, including brass wheel bearings and these, along with the power pickups that are fitted, mean that the dummy is not particularly free-rolling. These features add a certain amount of friction to the axle, and this is un-avoidable.About Running In
A number of customers have noticed that their BullAnt is a bit jerky in its movement when they receive it. The motor can also run a bit warm as well. This is an indication that the BullAnt needs to be run in.
Although every BullAnt is tested and run before shipping, we strongly recommend that you run it in when you receive it. Some manufactures build their mechanisms with loose tolerances in the bearings, usually referred to as 'slop'. We do not do this, all our bearings are made to close tolerances and need to bed themselves in to provide optimum performance. Unfortunately we cannot afford the time to do this with each BullAnt at the factory, or it would increase the cost, so we ask you to do this yourselves.Mounting Bracket Choices (No extra charge)
Original cross member / bolster type: 20mm, 26mm, or 32mm long. (Specify Ridged or Pivoting style) -or- End Mount type: 26mm, 32mm, and 38mm in length.Wheel sizes Available
* 6mm (.236") 28" TT (Unknown profile) nickel silver disc (6mm wheels now on order)
8mm (.315") 38" TT RP25 Code 88 nickel silver disc
9.6mm (.378") 45" TT RP25 Code 88 nickel silver disc
9.6mm (.378") 45" TT RP25 Code 110 nickel silver disc
9.6mm (.378") 45" TT RP25 Code 88 8 spoke acetal center, nickel silver tire
9.6mm (.378") 45" TT RP25 Code 110 8 spoke acetal center, nickel silver tire
10.5mm (.413") 49" TT RP25 Code 88 nickel silver disc
10.5mm (.413") 49" TT RP25 Code 110 nickel silver disc
10.5mm (.413") 49" TT RP25 Code 88 10 spoke acetal center, nickel silver tire
11.6mm (.457") 55" TT RP25 Code 88 nickel silver disc
11.6mm (.457") 55" TT RP25 Code 110 nickel silver disc
12mm (.472") 57" TT RP25 Code 88 nickel silver disc
12mm (.472") 57" TT RP25 Code 110 nickel silver disc
14mm (.551") 66" TT RP25 Code 88 nickel silver disc
14mm (.551") 66" TT RP25 Code 110 nickel silver disc