Morning (EST),
A while back, in this forum, I was given some advice on couplers. Since then I have been tinkering with my couplers and reading up on rolling stock maintenance.
I have decided to begin converting my couplers, mainly because the ones I am using now are very problematic to the kind my newest locos have. So the following is what I would like to do.
I ask this because I recently bought some Athearn couplers and some Kadee 2-56x1/4 screws. What a difference in the sizes.
I need advice on everything obout this conversion.
Coupler type, gearboxes, how to attach them to my current cars.
I don't know how well you can see the small pin - Horn hook plastic coupler, but I want to move from these
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad200/gmckenzie444cplmckenzie/2015-12-08%2007.25.03_zpsmkmdadsl.jpg
To a coupler setup like this
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad200/gmckenzie444cplmckenzie/2015-12-08%2007.12.32_zpsaxhcfagd.jpg
Using these kind of couplers
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad200/gmckenzie444cplmckenzie/2015-12-08%2007.12.53_zpsqk1wuzkc.jpg
http://i935.photobucket.com/albums/ad200/gmckenzie444cplmckenzie/2015-12-08%2007.13.10_zpssspk3nqv.jpg
Thanks for your help.
cplmckenzie
I checked your photo's. Firstly it looks like some of your cars have truck mount hornhook couplers. The couplers you showed you wanted to convert too looked like the plastic McHenry couplers, which I do NOT recommend.
Kadee metal #5 or the whisker equivelent is THE standard and definitely the way to go; plastic Kadee clones can be unreliable - just ask and over time you will hear many stories of false uncouplings etc. For the truck mount couplers, yes, it's better to body mount which you can do if you buy the Kadee #5 which includes a draft gear box which you can screw to the frame where it should go.
Also, get a Kadee coupler height gauge and check every coupler against it to make sure they match well. If they do not, you may need to shim the draft gear box (for example to get it lower) or if the couplers are too low, you may need to raise them up a bit.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
It's all doable - and worth the effort.
For equipment that has truck mounted couplers, it's a bit more work. You'll need to add a coupler box to the carbody. Kadee sells just the boxes. The 232s should work okay with the couplers you want to use. http://www.kadee.com/htmbord/HO-Scale_Gear_Box.htm (of course you'll have to whack the old coupler off the truck with and Exacto knife)
You will likely have to shim the box to get the couplers to come out at the right height. I typically use styrene so I can glue it on. You can check the height using an NMRA gauge or a Kadee gauge. The Kadee one is simpler to use. http://www.kadee.com/htmbord/page205.htm
You can glue the box and styrene shims to the carbody, then drill and tap a 2-56 hole in the center and screw the box lid and coupler in place.
If you have cars that have body mounted coulpers, you should just be able to plop a new coupler in place and secure the cover plate.
-Don (Random stuff, mostly about trains - what else? http://blerfblog.blogspot.com/)
Coupler conversion is taking place for all my rolling stock and locomotives as well at this time. Standardization will render better operations. Kadee is the standard I turn to due to the quality selection; try #148.
All the best.
Reinhard
Joe F
I hope I am not repeating myself from the other coupler thread you mentioned; these are a couple of how-tos I made some time ago about coupler and truck conversions for Tyco and similar rolling stock. I give info on the tools needed
First, replace the trucks with better oneshttp://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/194011.aspx#2118137
and replace the couplers with Kadee 5s; the whisker coupler would install in a similar mannerhttp://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/194274.aspx
Due to some quirk in the forum software, you will have to copy and paste the links in your web browser
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
Okay,
My Kadee #5 just came in the mail, my 232 gearboxes are due anyday now.
I have some styrene plastic (7.6x11x.040) on my wishlist.
Someone suggested another thickness of plastic, I think .010, for coupler converting.
Did I get that right?
The .010 styrene should be a good place to start. If you need more than that, you can double up the shims. You can also be resourceful on the plastic, such as the heavy clear bubble material found on packages (also works for modeling glass), the plastic signs you buy at the hardware store, such as "For Rent" and "For Sale", the lids from plastic food containers, etc., etc.
I see by your pictures you have picked up an Athearn (Conrail) ! Great! A much better choice than the locos that have the one piece "pancake" motor/truck assembly. That Athearn will pull real good. And, if you don't have a coupler height gauge, shim your coupler boxes so they match up with the Athearn, you should be good to go.
Happy new year!
Mike.
My You Tube
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
I personally like the smaller head size of the Kadee #58 couplers. The #58 came out as I was converting a lot of cars myself, so I tried them and liked them. I still have a lot of #5 couplers in my fleet, too, and I have no problems with them working together.
If you get new rolling stock and engines, they usually come with plastic knuckle couplers. They will fail if you don't replace them with Kadees. It's not worth the bother of returning them. Just understand that upgrading is the way to go.
And speaking of upgrades, take a look at the trucks and wheels. This can be a longer-term project, but I've replaced all of my old plastic wheelsets with metal ones. Metal wheels roll better, so you can run longer trains, and your track will stay cleaner. In some cases, you can just pop out the old wheels and replace them, but sometimes you will need new truck frames, too. Another tool that you'll want is the Micro-Mark truck tuner.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Everyone has some good points for sure. I would look at the Kadee Whisker couplers though. When I was out at Kadee last week they asked if I had seen or tried them and gave me the full run down.
They are basically like the #5 couples only you don't have to use the little brass spring plate anymore......the couplers have whiskers built into them so the spring is the same each direction and is 50 times easier to install with one less little part to try to fit in.
They make them in all lengths for whatever you need. I'm working on getting rid of any #5's that are jammed up with the new whisker versions. They are pretty dang sweet!
Mike
I have a regimen that I use with every new piece of rolling stock before they hit the layout.
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
Converting couplrs is a must-do for smooth running operations. I converted the few hork-hook couplers to Kadee #5. There was a learning curve but youtube and this forum helped. The lesson learned is to just avoid buying horn hook cars b/c the time and cost of converting them is prob more than getting a newer car with an equivelant coupler.
I've tried just about every KD clone that has come on the market and not one of them holds a candle to the genuine KD. I tried KDs smaller couplers and while they work well, my track is less than perfect and the smaller couplers were less forgiving than the standard sized KD. Nothing goes on the layout now until it has been equipped with a standard sized KD whisker coupler. A lot of the older equipment still has the old #5s which still work as reliably as the whisker couplers. Some of the existing equipment still has the Brand X couplers but I have adopted a zero tolerance policy with them. One failure and they get replaced with a KD whisker coupler.
kasskaboose Converting couplrs is a must-do for smooth running operations. I converted the few hork-hook couplers to Kadee #5. There was a learning curve but youtube and this forum helped. The lesson learned is to just avoid buying horn hook cars b/c the time and cost of converting them is prob more than getting a newer car with an equivelant coupler.
While new equipment now comes standard with some sort of knuckle coupler as opposed to horn hooks, I have yet to see one, other than KD's own brand, that come with a genuine KD coupler. They all use knockoffs, none of which perform nearly as well as the original. Whenever I buy a new piece of equipment, I figure in the cost of replacing the couplers with KDs no matter what type of coupler they come with.
jecorbett While new equipment now comes standard with some sort of knuckle coupler as opposed to horn hooks, I have yet to see one, other than KD's own brand, that come with a genuine KD coupler. They all use knockoffs, none of which perform nearly as well as the original. Whenever I buy a new piece of equipment, I figure in the cost of replacing the couplers with KDs no matter what type of coupler they come with.
TheWizard jecorbett While new equipment now comes standard with some sort of knuckle coupler as opposed to horn hooks, I have yet to see one, other than KD's own brand, that come with a genuine KD coupler. They all use knockoffs, none of which perform nearly as well as the original. Whenever I buy a new piece of equipment, I figure in the cost of replacing the couplers with KDs no matter what type of coupler they come with. MTH engines come with #158 Scale Kadee Whisker Couplers.
MTH engines come with #158 Scale Kadee Whisker Couplers.
You're right. I had overlooked that. I have a set of their Empire State Express passenger cars which also come with the 158s. Since the larger coupler is my standard, I swap those as well. I found I got unwanted uncoupling with the smaller couplers due to my less than perfect trackwork.
Got to agree with this one The New SIW recently adorned a pile of train set junk from a defunct RR which included two Tropicana juice box cars of interior design. I decided that I like the idea of replicating a part of the juice train but rather than try to convert these cars I bought 4 Bachmann refeers with the Tropic-Anna logo on them. ( I prefer this to the modern straw theme) I think the junkers are going to end up in a static display with the rest of the trainset stuff. For static display I just remove the horn hooks and glue in the left over ez mate.
The operating cars will all get Kadee 148 as does all my rolling stock unless a different Kadee is called for.
Joe Staten Island West
You can even use cardboard or card stock for shims to lower the draft gear boxes just a fraction, which is usually all they need.
Kadee also makes 2 or 3 different thicknesses of washers. These go on the truck bolsters where the trucks screw in, and they will raise the whole car up a bit to fix the problem of couplers that are too low. Shimming the draft gear boxes will only fix the too-high problem. I've found that older Athearn rolling stock is pretty consistent in needing one or two of these washers when converting to Kadees.
Also, you may find that if you replace trucks or wheels you'll have to adjust for coupler height again. That's a good reason to do both jobs at once.
I'll just add this. Since you're starting off new, Use the "whisker" Kadees exclusively if you can. Especially on locomotives. They're better than # 5s, which are hard to beat. Especially if you intend to use "Delayed Uncoupling".
Cut the coupler mount off of the trucks. Go find an old VHS video tape and remove the record prevention tab. Use it as a shim to mount a coupler box. Or stop wishing and go buy the variety pack of Evergreen Sheet Styrene. Always use the height guage to measure the height. Done, until you want to upgrade trucks and wheels.
Perhaps I forgot to mention, or maybe you overlooked, that I got my Kadee #5 magnetic couplers the other day, I saw the gear boxes were not included, Ordered the 232's, should be here in a few day. Also ordered variety pack of styrene plastic, .010, .020, .040. Amazon says it will arrive on Sunday.
Can you think of anything else I will need to begin converting from horn hooks?
MisterBeasley I personally like the smaller head size of the Kadee #58 couplers. The #58 came out as I was converting a lot of cars myself, so I tried them and liked them. I still have a lot of #5 couplers in my fleet, too, and I have no problems with them working together. If you get new rolling stock and engines, they usually come with plastic knuckle couplers. They will fail if you don't replace them with Kadees. It's not worth the bother of returning them. Just understand that upgrading is the way to go. And speaking of upgrades, take a look at the trucks and wheels. This can be a longer-term project, but I've replaced all of my old plastic wheelsets with metal ones. Metal wheels roll better, so you can run longer trains, and your track will stay cleaner. In some cases, you can just pop out the old wheels and replace them, but sometimes you will need new truck frames, too. Another tool that you'll want is the Micro-Mark truck tuner.
What he said! For me, my conversion is to change all Kadee #5's to the smaller and much better looking Kadee #58.