Puting together some old accurail coal hoppers. According to my coupler gauge, the couplers are a tad low. I figure I can fix that by adding a really thin washer between the trucks and the bolsters to raise the body up a tiny bit. Where do I get some super thin washers of an appropriae size to do this? I actually thought about making some out of cardstock but really don't want to invest the time and trouble to do that.
Thanks
wdcrvr
Check the Kadee web site, they have different thicknesses of fiber and plastic washers just for the purpose you need.
Mike.
My You Tube
Kadee actually makes fiber washers of different thicknesses just for this purpose.
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
Thanks for the quick responses. I must confess that I have immediately ordered some Kadee red and gray washers. Problem solved.
thanks
The Kadee red and gray fiber washers are one of those things it's good to have in hobby tool box for that purpose.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
wdcrvr Puting together some old accurail coal hoppers. According to my coupler gauge, the couplers are a tad low. I figure I can fix that by adding a really thin washer between the trucks and the bolsters to raise the body up a tiny bit. Where do I get some super thin washers of an appropriae size to do this? I actually thought about making some out of cardstock but really don't want to invest the time and trouble to do that. Thanks wdcrvr
I'm surprised they're off; the Accurail cars I have were correct out of the box. No matter--Kadee washers are good to have.
Gary
garya I'm surprised they're off; the Accurail cars I have were correct out of the box. No matter--Kadee washers are good to have.
I'm not surprised.
Have you watched Daniel Cortopassi's reviews of freight cars such as ScaleTrains, Tangent, Moloco ... you name it. I don't think there is one freight car he hasn't reviewed that didn't have one coupler that didn't match the Kadee heigh gauge. For some reason, it seems to be nearly impossible to get Kadee's always able to match, out of the box.
riogrande5761Daniel Cortopassi's reviews
I like Dan. The guy has copy paper boxes stuffed with trains and no layout, yet. James Wright finds the same thing on his reviews
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
BigDaddy riogrande5761 Daniel Cortopassi's reviews I like Dan. The guy has copy paper boxes stuffed with trains and no layout, yet.
riogrande5761 Daniel Cortopassi's reviews
I like Dan. The guy has copy paper boxes stuffed with trains and no layout, yet.
Hah hah! Reminds me of myself. I've used copy paper boxes to store my trains that I have collected over the years and moved a number of times. My favorites are the harder to find paper boxes sized to hold reams of legal sized paper because they are bigger and can fit more. I still have some from when I lived in Rottenchester NY and got boxes from a guy who worked at Xerox in Webster NY.
Likewise, looks like Dan has been stock piling trains for some time as well.
He has new video's with his new wife sitting on the sofa unboxing freight car after freight car. Heck, when I moved, I had lots of boxes like that - I could have done an unboxing series like that too! I imagine hundreds of guys could!
It would be interesting to see Dan show his layout plans and some construction progress video's.
Dan and James are great guys with unbiased reviews!
I keep a supply of Kadee overset/underset couplers handy for situations like this.
Dave
Just be glad you don't have to press "2" for English.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQ_ALEdDUB8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hqFS1GZL4s
http://s73.photobucket.com/user/steemtrayn/media/MovingcoalontheDCM.mp4.html?sort=3&o=27
Medina1128 Kadee actually makes fiber washers of different thicknesses just for this purpose.
I wonder if they have any 3-inchers?
PRR_1-28-12 by Edmund, on Flickr
Cheers, Ed
Woodcarver...
.
Send me a PM with your address and I will send you an assortment of what I use.
There are better options than the Kadee washers.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
gmpullmanI wonder if they have any 3-inchers?
Obviously a case of improper wheelset selection: either the car on the left needs 36" wheels or the car on the right should have 33"-ers.
Good luck spreading the sideframes to make the adjustment, though.
Wayne
riogrande5761I've used copy paper boxes to store my trains that I have collected over the years and moved a number of times. My favorites are the harder to find paper boxes sized to hold reams of legal sized paper because they are bigger and can fit more.
Heh - I do not miss much about work since retiring in 2013, but I do miss the access to copy paper boxes -- both regular and legal size paper. Our office staff knew I wanted them and would even drop them off in my office now and again. But if someone in the office was moving -- they had first dibs.
I suspect the local Kinkos has some in the back room for giving away.
By the way on the actual topic of the OP while I have a supply of the Kadee washers (and the thin shims for the entire draft gear box), I also keep a supply handy of the various offfset-head Kadees, both uppers and lowers.
And on this overall topic, I find it strange how often just ONE END of a car needs this help! What's up with that? Accurail is among the brands where that happens, either direction.
Having said that, sometimes the fault is not the car but an inadequate job by me of making the coupler draft gear box cover tight enough - the sag is my fault.
And I am not too proud to admit that at least one time (OK, OK, a couple of times) the fault was mine in that somehow some 33" wheels "contaminated" the container of 36" wheels.
Dave Nelson
dknelson I do miss the access to copy paper boxes
You guys must have a much better supplier than I do.
Our copy paper boxes fall apart before we even get all the reams removed from them.
Hello All,
wdcrvrI have immediately ordered some Kadee red and gray washers. Problem solved.
Well...not quite!
Depending on what the height discrepancy is, if you use too many washers the car body can be too elevated and get tippy leading to other problems.
I have and use #208, #209, and #210 washers.
For that rare occasion that the body mounted couplers are too high I also have #210; Draft Gearbox shims.
steemtraynI keep a supply of Kadee overset/underset couplers handy for situations like this.
I too have a small assortment of over and understet set -couplers with various shank lengths.
When I use a set of off-set couplers I reorder to keep them in stock.
Another good point made through humor...
gmpullman I wonder if they have any 3-inchers? PRR_1-28-12 by Edmund, on Flickr
As was noted...
doctorwayneObviously a case of improper wheelset selection: either the car on the left needs 36" wheels or the car on the right should have 33"-ers.
If the height discrepancy is only on one end of the rolling stock in question then yes, shimming might help.
If the entire car seems to be riding too low, or too high, wheel size might be the problem.
Years ago, when Kadee had a forum, I asked the question of what is the actual wheel size of scale 28-, 33- and 36-inch wheels sizes.
The response has been lost to time but I am sure that you can find out the difference in sizes. With a caliper you can then determine which wheels you actually have.
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
jjdamnit...The response has been lost to time but I am sure that you can find out the difference in sizes. With a caliper you can then determine which wheels you actually have....
I don't recall the actual measurements in thousandths, but it's easy enough to lock the setting of the caliper, then place the opening over your scale ruler, as it's marked-off in increments of 3".
doctorwayne...lock the setting of the caliper, then place the opening over your scale ruler, as it's marked-off in increments of 3".
Excellent suggestion!
I'm putting that one in the, "Oh why didn't I think of that, now I know" place!
dknelsonI find it strange how often just ONE END of a car needs this help! What's up with that?
Yes, and exactly why does this happen? One would think that there is some sort of difference in the overall height of the two trucks, but swapping them end for end makes no difference to the affected car end.
riogrande5761 The Kadee red and gray fiber washers are one of those things it's good to have in hobby tool box for that purpose.
Indeed. I have two large pill bottles full of #208 and #209 washers. I also have a #241 spring/uncoupling duel tool. Very nice to have repacing those knuckle springs that go missing or is missing from the coupler in the pack.
Oddly I never found the need to use over or under shank couplers while using those washers..
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
I've spent a lot of time fiddling with washers, and it can sometimes be difficult to get them to stay put. Our club requires couplers to be within 1/3 knuckle height (or so) of the gauge, and I find that an overset or underset coupler is often the best solution...only a few cents more per coupler (since I buy them in a 4x package rather than bulk) but they save SOOOO much time.
I recently did a bunch of body-mount conversions on some Walthers Mainline passenger cars, and sagging couplers led to sagging spirits. I came up with a brilliant shimming system, but at the end of the day I realized it was easier to fit undersets and trim a little of the carbody away.
BTW changing wheels is another option... I had a pair of Walthers 932-series cars with high couplers and had no oversets on hand, so I swapped the 36" wheels for 33s. Car ride height is better and no one will ever know except me. And now you. :)
I never liked the idea of raising the car body or using offset couplers to cure a low coupler. Instead, I place the shim under the shank of the coupler, at the mouth of the draft gear box which, raises the head of the coupler. For cars that are riding high, such as Atlas 4650 cu ft covered hoppers, I sand the bolsters down and completely replace the oversized draft gear boxes with Kadee or Accurail narrow boxes and #153 couplers.
NHTX I never liked the idea of raising the car body or using offset couplers to cure a low coupler.
I never liked the idea of raising the car body or using offset couplers to cure a low coupler.
Two things. 1) I never liked the idea of raising the carbody to adjust a coupler but I never raised it more than a single Kadee fiber washer and figure the amount raised will be difficult to see visually and that's probably true.
If a coupler needed more than a fiber washer to adjust, then the offset shank would be the next logical step.
Instead, I place the shim under the shank of the coupler, at the mouth of the draft gear box which, raises the head of the coupler.
That works for minor adjustments, especially coupler droop.
Kevin
Thanks for your offer to send me other options. That is not necessary, but if you would like to let me know what you use that would be good.
wdcrvrThanks for your offer to send me other options
I use an assortment of nylon and fiber miniature fender washers from 0.010" to 0.040" thick that I buy from Skycraft Parts & Surplus in Orlando, Florida.
I have no idea where you would source these elsewhere.
Thanks for the info. I will definitely check that out.
OK, good luck.
From Skycraft these things only cost 0.02 to 0.05 each, so the offer is certainly still open to send you some to experiment with.