It was mentioned on the forum about the cost of Precision Scale Diaphragms, which I use extensively on my passenger rolling stock. The package does look like what appears to be just two diaphragms for around $11.00.
But when you open the package and examine the products, it is a little different.
What you actually recieve are two extra length diaphragms and four stricker plates, it is actually enough for two passenger coaches instead of just one like you get with the Walthers fabric diaphragm. This makes the cost about $2.50 or so per diaphragm. It is suggested that you cut the diaphragm in the middle bellows and divide it into two parts.
As you see here, thus doubling what you have. If you don't cut the diaphragm in half it may be too long for the space inbetween the coaches and create binding and derail the car.
You now have two halves of the diaphragm, but you have four stricker plates as seen above.
After you remove any flash you can now attach the stricker plate to the diaphragm. Make sure you look closely at the stricker plate, there are two sides, one is smooth that faces away from the coach, the other side has a lip that slips inside the rubber diaphragm.
You can see some flash that needs to be removed before attaching the stricker plate. I use contact cement for the job of contacting the stricker plate and adhering the diaphragm to the coach.
Here is a coach with the end plate and no diaphragm.
And here's a coach with the diaphragm attached.
When the coaches are coupled you have good contact and spacing.
The rubber of the diaphragm is so thin and soft it gives well on my 28" curves. My next layout will have broader curves, 34" and 36", and the spacing should look really good.
The Walthers diaphragms are really nice two. They are made of fabric not soft rubber. They do give pretty well and round my curves fairly nicely.
The package only contains enough diaphragm material for one car, two fabric diaphragms and two stricker plates, not four like with Precision Scale. One note that is also important about the Walthers Diaphgrams, and MMR Chuck Hitchcock says the same thing. You do need to remove one section of the belows diaphragm to obtain a better fit for contact or you may see derailments due to the pressure exerted on the diaphragms in a curve. Unless you just want extra long diaphragms and you have the broad curves to support them, as suggested cutting off one section of the bollows at either end does improve performance.
These are fairly close but there is some separation, these are closer.
Both are great diaphragms, and the actual cost is about the same when you see what you have to do. They really fill in the space and in my opinion look very realistic and are a lot easier to attach than the other diaphragms you have to build with all of the plastic parts, which with my eyes they sometimes get stuck togther while gluing the parts, then the diaphragm becomes useless.
Hope this helps.
Robert Sylvester
Newberry-Columbia, SC.
Thanks Robert, good information. When I get closer to needing diaphrams, I'm checking these out!
Now if I could only find a 72' sleeper to go with my Athearn streamliners.
Mike.
My You Tube