I'm sure this has been asked a million times. But I couldn't find anything in search history.
Why doesn't Lionel offer operating front couplers on it steam engines? Is it strictly to save money / too difficult to manufacture?
I think at least part of it is that Lionel couplers are much larger than scale and would probably be thought to detract from the locomotive's looks.
Bob Nelson
I wouldn't care. It would make operating much more fun and realistic.
As far as I know Lionel steam switchers had operating couplers, but that's as far as they went. I have to second lionelsoni's comment as to why the average Lionel steamer didn't have an operating coupler.
And remember, after all these WERE toys, not scale models.
Honestly, I can't think of anyones steam engines (aside from switchers) that have operating front couplers, not MTH, Williams, or others.
Dave Smith put an operating coupler on the front of a steamer by adding a strip of metal that went under the cow catcher.
It might be possible to use a Kadee coupler which is considerably smaller than a Lionel coupler. However, there will be a problem going around curves. On O-31 track, the coupler on the loco and car will probably become misaligned enough so that they will uncouple or the car will be pushed off the track. I think Dave Smith's approach worked well.
I might try to retrofit one in the future.
It would let me switch cars from either end, and run tender first sometimes. I love steamers running tender first...
In the December 2010 issue of OGR Magazine, I wrote an construction article on how I added a coupler to the front of a Lionel 2018 steam engine. Here is a video of the coupler being used to couple two engines. You can see the coupler close up at 3:50.
Nice! That's another cool thing. Lashing up multiple steamers!
The talk about front couplers got me thinking about saw-bys. A quick check of the Internet uncovered instructions for getting two trains, each twice as long as the passing siding, past each other, but no longer. It may already be known, but I have a way for two trains of unlimited length to pass. And this is probably as good a place and time for describing it as any:
Westbound train A gets as much of itself as will fit between the switches, leaving the rest of its cars east of the east switch. Eastbound train B goes around that front chunk of train A, which then leaves to the west and waits west of the west switch. Train B then picks up another chunk of train A's cars, short enough to fit between the switches, and pulls it between the switches, using train B's locomotive's front coupler, then drops it there and runs around it on the other track. Train A then backs into and couples onto the chunk and pulls it clear of the west switch. Then train B grabs another chunk, and so on.
One of our club members made a detacthable front coupler for his steamers, it works well but doesn't look good when not coupled to another engine.
"IT's GOOD TO BE THE KING",by Mel Brooks
Charter Member- Tardis Train Crew (TTC) - Detroit3railers- Detroit Historical society Glancy Modular trains- Charter member BTTS
sir james I One of our club members made a detacthable front coupler for his steamers, it works well but doesn't look good when not coupled to another engine.
Pics! Pics!!!
I added a non-working coupler i took from a K-line truck to the front of Lionel's Thomas and Percy. it fit neatly between the buffers; I used CG (super-glue) and reinforced it with a small screw it into each plastic frame. Thomas' sticks out about 2 unprototypical inches and Percy's is sticks out only about an inch, but both engines are so short, it doesn't look bad. By non-working, I mean it can clip to a wagon but I have to use the 5-Fingered Switcher to do so after bringing them together. The front coupler's length allows me to push a wagon around 027 curves...
Doug Murphy 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...' Henry V.
Here's the only photo I could quickly find of Percy (I mean Ivor).
Here is the front coupler I made for Lionel engines that have a 2 wheel front truck. A full contruction article on how I made this appears in the December 2010 issue of OGR magazine.
In the Lionel postwar era they did produce an 0-4-0 steam switcher engine that has an operating coupler on the front. Look for Lionel steamers No. 1615, 1656 and 1665.
Here is a photo of my 1615.
What's weird is even on their 0-8-0 switchers offered in their starter sets, they put a pivoting dummy coupler on the front. Why not just make it operating..
Im going to do this finally. Can't find a link to the article/steps to do it. I know i saw the article somewhere, maybe the ogr forum a while ago, but can't find it now. Anyone have a link?
Michael6268 Im going to do this finally. Can't find a link to the article/steps to do it. I know i saw the article somewhere, maybe the ogr forum a while ago, but can't find it now. Anyone have a link?
Im not a digital subscriber so i have no access. I'll tinker around and let you know how it comes out...
Dave
It's a TOY, A child's PLAYTHING!!! (Woody from Toy Story)
Mainly because the hugely over sized couplers on under sized engines would look very silly.
Jon
dsmithDecember 2010 issue of OGR Magazine
Geez, was it really that long ago?
Trains, trains, wonderful trains. The more you get, the more you toot!
Hey, it'll be three years in December since the Classic Toy Trains big "Penny Trains" Christmas issue! That's the one that never made it to the "Fortress Firelock" recycle bin! Still got it, it was that good.
Lionel couplers are truck-mounted to maintain alignment on relatively sharp curves. This is not easy to achieve on the front of a steam locomotive, and as already mentioned the bulky old lobster-claw couplers are unsightly on the front of a steamer.
The old postwar 0-4-0 switchers had the front couplers body-mounted on a long arm with centering springs. They cannot couple automatically on curves.
I made a front coupler for a postwar 1120 Scout loco using sheet metal to form a compact knuckle. The connecting arm dips under the pilot and pivots from the front of the motor chassis. It works well for manual coupling but has no automatic centering. It is relatively unobtrusive visually.
My first post here; haven't figured out how to post photos.
Sorry, Off Topic,
Wecome to the forum Oregon Ace
What part of Oregon are you in? I am up near Brightwood, on Mt. Hood about 12 miles East of Sandy.
Doug
May your flanges always stay BETWEEN the rails
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