Everything on model trains, model railroads, model railways, locomotives, model train layouts, scenery, wiring, DCC and more. Enjoy the world's best hobby... model railroading!
Confused With Couplers?
Gavin asks readers:
“I bought a mix of rolling stock on eBay including some Tyco, Athearn, Proto 2000, Bachmann, and Mantua . I would have preferred to stick with just one brand but I couldn’t resist the low price. Is there any problem with mixing brands? I am thinking of replacing the old horn-hook couplers with some knuckle couplers but I am confused with all the different types, lengths and offsets. What type should I use?”
9 Responses to Confused With Couplers?
Leave a Reply
Reader Poll
Loading ...SUBMIT YOUR QUESTION
Download Your Free Catalog
Use Tiny Railroad Micro Controllers
N Scale Track Plans
Watch Video
Model Train DCC HELP
Model Train Help Ebook
NEW TO MODEL TRAINS?
FREE Tour Inside Club
Take a FREE tour inside the club.Scenery Techniques Explained
Scenery & Layout Ideas
Hi Gavin
There is no issue in running different brands of rolling stock together. They may not look like they will work together but after replacing all the couplers to the same type and maybe a truck replacement they will all be compatible with each other. I highly recommend using Kadee no. 5 couplers. They are the most popular HO couplers and are very reliable. Kadee’s come in a few different offsets upper, lowered, ,and centered. Use the centered ones unless your cars height is too low or too high. I’d also suggest buying a Kadee coupler height gauge. Hope this helped!
Evan
Kadee do a test kit with an assortment of the various off sets and lengths so you can test fit your couplers and ensure you install the correct ones.
There are also spacers that you insert between the bogies and body if the couplers are too low.
+1 for the kadee coupler gauge.
Gavin, Yes easy to change them over. If you want get a No. 28 coupler from Kadee and convert one end of one of your tyco or Bachmann cars to temporarily make yourself a conversion car. That way you can pull some of your unconverted cars around on the end of your converted cars. That will keep you going as your upgrade your cars. I would start with your better cars such as Athearn and such. Those have body mounted couplers. I use Kadee number 5’s and you can get them in bulk of 25 pair. They will come with a spring and the coupler. Remove the wheel sets to make it easier. Replace the existing coupler with the kadee no 5. you will need a coupler height adjustment gauge and a pair of coupler adjusting pliers. Temporally install the wheel sets and chech the height of the coupler. install a number 208 or No 209 felt kadee washer or a combination of them and adjust the height of the coupler. then adjust the trip pin to clear the tracks per the gauge. Not hard Later it is always nice to change the wheel sets out with metal wheels for better performance. I will follow up with what you need to do for Bachmann or tyco cars as they need a few other things for good performance. I will add to this a little later tonight on that subject. Newman Atkinson
Gavin, Sorry I am just now getting back with you on this.
When converting a Bachmann or tyco car to the full extent, You will want to start by removing the wheel sets. Body mounted couplers improve the push and pull with big success. The existing wheel sets will have the couplers mounted to the wheel trucks. So take some styrene spreu left over from train car kits and you will want to fill the truck mounting hole with that and use some plastic glue. after it is dry cut the spreu close to the mount hole and file down to flush with the mount hole. The couplers you will need to mount a coupler box to the underframe. You can estimate the height below the frame by compairing the coupler height of a stock body mounted mounted coupler box to the one you are mounting to. If you need a shim I take another coupler box and trim the sides off and glue that between the frame and the coupler box. Since you filled the wheel truck mounting hole you should get a set of wheel trucks that don’t have the coupler mounted on the truck. Drill a small hole in the spreu you filled with and install the wheel set with a screw that fits the mount hole in the wheel set. Once you have these mounted check the height of the coupler while on the track and adjust the height with the 208 or 209 shims to raise the car above the wheels for the correct height, Adjust the trip pin as needed to clear the adjustment gauge. If you choose not to change out the wheel sets do not fill the holes with the spreu and reinstall the wheels sets as before but with the truck mounted couplers cut off. Note: that by not changing the wheel sets the clip pins that hold the wheel trucks do not have much adjustment so you may have to adjust the coupler box up or down by not installing that shim piece made from another coupler box. This does work good if there is little height adjustment needed. It may sound expensive to convert the couplers and the wheel sets but look at the costs of ready to go new cars and you still will have to at some point change out the couplers because they are usually cheap plastic couplers that will give out sooner and later. ( and you got to enjoy a new ready to run car at a big price that still needs work. from Newman Atkinson
Gavin,
In my early days I created strings of “like couplered” wagons and rolling stock, and I think I ended up with about 30 in 5 sets. I installed Kadee No 5 couples to each end of each string so I could then run to lot as one train (Kadees on the locos). As I became more affluent I broke these string into shorter ones, and eventually ended up with each car having Kadees at each end. The other thing I did was to mount the couplers on the bodies of the cars rather than on the bogies. If you do the then each car should be weighted (check the NMRA recommendations for this)
Have a great time playing trains – it keeps me sane!
If you are modelling in N scale then try the Microtrains range of trucks & couplers.
This is a good question. I’m running “N” scale and wondering if Kadee makes a kit for that scale too? Does anyone know? I have replaced the coupler on one of my passenger cars so I could hook them to an engine with a different coupler. I took apart another car to do it though.
Thanks
Monty, Yes they do. Although I have not done any The clubs around here do. The cars travel well and back up well and body mounting makes them all the better. Check KADEE.com on their charts and see what you need.
Thanks for your advice Newman!