I have a set of Bachmann Amtrack cars and a Bachmann DDC Amtrack engine. The couplers do not line up properly so that I can run it on Bachman E-Z Track around a Christmas tree. I have worked to get the track as flat as possible, yet I always have problems. Why can't the couplers match up on equipment that is made by the same manufacturer? It is really frustrating.
Have you used the 'Search' feature here to see if there are any threads regarding coupler height, to see if you can find information that will help you to easily correct your issue?
I have read your responses elsewhere, and I am sorry, but I have found them incomprehensible. I don't what you are talking about. The only thing I could do is print out your response and go to the train store in Clearwater, FL, 60 miles away, and ask him to translate it for me. And yes, maybe pay him $60 an hour to fix and repair the stuff as I have done in the past.
Why is that one can buy three Am Track passenger cars all made by Bachmann, all of the same series differing only in the labels and windows, all of the same vintage, and they don't line up so that you can link them together?
I don't find working on stuff like this fun. I have spent many hours with building and painting models, streets, mountains and laying track. I have a fair sized layout that took weeks to do. And yet I have some cars that are useless because I can't link them together to run around the track. The cars should line up. What is so hard about that? Is realism that important that you can't make cars that are compatible with one another even when they are same brand? Why is that you can line up two couplers and yet every time you start them one lifts and pulls out of connection? :-[
Here are a couple of photos to who you that I am not lying to you.
(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q320/BillJones_album/EastEnd.jpg)
(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q320/BillJones_album/PennTrain_zps2c48a492.jpg)
Under the tree ...
(http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q320/BillJones_album/Christmas20141_zps2a2ae0de.jpg)
Pictures of the cars that "don't line up" would have been more helpful.
I'll see what I can do with the micro lens to show a before and after. I don't have a movie camera.
Best course of action is to call the Bachmann service department
http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/service.php
Wow Bill, incomprehensible ??? While I have no idea why you would find what I have written (and let's be clear, I am not sure exactly what or which passages you are referring to) to be so hard to follow, I would point out, I am not the only person on this board, or the whole internet for that matter, who has written about the subject. So may I suggest you see if you have better luck seeing if you can comprehend what someone else has written about it. Also, if you are a pictures kind of dude, I suggest YouTube. It is not that hard a thing to do or figure out, w/o having to drive 60 miles (and for the record, I never told you to go drive 60 miles to figure this out or pay someone $60 to-if you want, PM me and for $60 I'll walk you thru it ;)) or for that matter, do a little research to find out where to go to learn how.
But let me understand this bc I am also at a loss. You have the obvious skill and patience to put together these 2 beautiful layouts, but can't comprehend ways to adjust the coupler height on your cars or locos? That is something I have trouble comprehending. I guess it is easier to complain and gripe about something than it is to go about "adjusting". Do you own a Kadee Coupler Height Gauge? And frankly Bill, you're sounding like a bit of a crank and am not sure why you seem to be taking out this trouble on me.
Contact Bachmann Customer Service if you like but, I don't know where that is going to get you for something like this.
Quote from: jbrock27 on November 29, 2014, 06:36:05 PM
And frankly Bill, you're sounding like a bit of a crank and am not sure why you seem to be taking out this trouble on me.
Contact Bachmann Customer Service if you like but, I don't know where that is going to get you for something like this.
I'm enjoying the irony that he's ranting about quality control while spelling "Amtrak" every possible way except the correct one. ::)
FOFL! :D
couplers come in different lengths even if they are the same type of couplers, it's been my experience before that for example, connecting medium length couplers to long length couplers may not line up properly resulting in the couplers not connecting at all do to one being to high or to low. sometimes they may connect only to uncouple down the rail because the couplers are of different lengths.
look to see if the couplers are of the same type and length if they are not you can change one from the other, for example, if you have a car that has long couplers on each side try to find a different car that you wont use and put one of the long couplers on the respective car you want to connect, vise versa for one with medium or short couples.
If I read you right S1, you are getting some sag from the longer shanked coupler. You may want to try putting a Kadee fiber washer (there are 2 thicknesses) or a washer or shim made from styrene, underneath the shank (where the round hole is) inside the coupler box to raise the coupler a little and keep it from sagging.
Quote from: jbrock27 on November 29, 2014, 07:24:53 PM
If I read you right S1, you are getting some sag from the longer shanked coupler. You may want to try putting a Kadee fiber washer (there are 2 thicknesses) or a washer or shim made from styrene, underneath the shank (where the round hole is) inside the coupler box to raise the coupler a little and keep it from sagging.
in some cases that is something that does need to be done, thanks for pointing that out Jbrock
edited
Ahhhh, Talgos and horn hooks, ugh!
Sorry on more than 1 level S1. I am sorry, my advice was given under the assumption you were using knuckle couplers, given the great work your layout shows. I assumed incorrectly, that you would not be using rolling stock of that quality.
I do not know what to suggest for the horn hook couplers. I never adjusted them, have just gotten rid of them. Perhaps the same thing would work??? But the washers are a bit harder to get in the place needed. My best suggestion would be to get some coupler boxes, 1/4 small course threaded screws and knuckle couplers. Would you be up for that?
Good thing you showed pictures.
Maybe JBsmith could help you.
Quote from: jbrock27 on November 29, 2014, 07:49:36 PM
Ahhhh, Talgos and horn hooks, ugh!
Sorry on more than 1 level S1. I am sorry, my advice was given under the assumption you were using knuckle couplers, given the great work your layout shows. I assumed incorrectly, that you would not be using rolling stock of that quality.
I do not know what to suggest for the horn hook couplers. I never adjusted them, have just gotten rid of them. Perhaps the same thing would work??? But the washers are a bit harder to get in the place needed. My best suggestion would be to get some coupler boxes, 1/4 small course threaded screws and knuckle couplers. Would you be up for that?
Good thing you showed pictures.
Maybe JBsmith could help you.
lol i use all different types of couplers, i mix match them together haha mostly though i use knuckle couplers, i even have some that have the knuckle in front and the horn in the back for my older cars ;D
there are a couple of things possibly going on here. first is a coupler height mismatch. couplers should be at the same height as you have surmised. it is possible, that one of the couplers was damaged. with the plastic shank couplers like the ez mate it is easy to bend the coupler shank. once this happens it is almost impossible to get the coupler back the way it was. possibly, the trip pin was low and snagged on something and bent the shank? another possibility is that one of the couplers is loose in its mounting box. a loose screw could be the cause. your claim that one coupler is riding up over the other one when you start to pull leads me to believe this is your problem. I would tighten the screws on the coupler boxes.
Bill, I'd say figure out which couplers are the consistent trouble makers. It won't be all of them, just two or three I bet. I was going to suggest a coupler height gauge until I realized you have the horn hooks still. Horn hooks arent that great as you can tell by consensus but I used them a long time and once you get them lined up, for Christmas type layouts they are fine.
Trial and error will tell you which ones are funky. If they are lining up a little low or high you might be able to very gently (very) bend it in line. A little heat on the coupler may help it along.
If you are of the mind to convert to knuckle couplers you'd get better performance. It may be beyond your desire to do so. I know, I hate car maintenance too. I converted to knuckle couplers a few cars at a time over lunch hours when I basically had 45 minutes every day with nothing to do. Built some structures then too. left more time in the evening to operate and do fun stuff.
As far as quality control goes, model railroad manufacturing is no different than any other, there will be good and bad days and you might have ended up with a couple of slugs. I've had them and fixed them. Maintenance , although not a lot of fun, appears to be a requisite component of model railroading. I've spent entire evenings soldering jumper wires around dead spots instead of operating like I'd much rather do. It's just something we live with.
Those are nice layouts Bill.
Don't forget the immortal words of Linn Westcott, "model railroading is fun!"
Saved1 you have inadvertently caused confusion by posting your photos in this thread. Bill has yet to post any photos thus far and the type of coupler remains to be seen.
Bill i thought of something else. The problem couplers may be loose in their mountings and wobbling vertically. Something may need tightening up. Or, some very thin plastic shims inside the coupler boxes may get the alignment better.
You can fix this, I assure you. And get back to operating where the fun is.
ACY, S1 did not create any confusion and did nothing wrong in posting his photos. A lack of paying attention has. I don't believe Jeff looked at S1's photos before he started his reply, but I don't know for sure bc he, as usual for him, is not identifying whom he is talking to. I don't know about TM, but sometimes he gets confused. Would not be the first time in the last few days. This is one reason why I address people by name when I respond to them. Helps avoid "confusion".
Except for concentrating on complaining, ole Bill has not gone into or given much detail.
Cmon Brock give us a break ;D and let's help this guy solve his problem instead of pickin at everyone.
He's got couplers that don't line up and maybe shift around. If they are train set type couplers they are probably some sort of Delrin plastic, whether horn hook or knuckle. They can probably be slightly bent in line, tightened up, or shimmed to where his train doesn't aggravatingly part. I've successfully done that kind of low end fix-it on my train set type stuff before I passed it on.
jb
I read the entire post before replying to the original poster, who is dealing with new Amtrak equipment that almost certainly has knuckle couplers. it has been my experience that of the many flaws of the horn hook couplers, mismatched coupler height is almost never a problem.
Ok boyz, take it easy.
...let's help this guy solve his problem instead of pickin at everyone.-TM, please see that I was the first one to try to do just that. Please see the response I got for my effort. And I am not "picking" on anyone, just tried to give an explanation for what ACY perceived as "confusion".
Ok Jeff. I see you have covered bases for both Wild Bill and Saving Private Ryan.
Agree with TM, once a knuckle coupler is bent, very hard to make it usable. If I am not mistaken, Jeff, I believe you have said that at least one time yourself. Better off chucking it and replacing it. Concerning HH couplers, I am all in favor of chucking them period, bent or not.
As a show of ignorance, I have to pose the question: what is a horn hook coupler and what is a knuckle coupler and what's the difference? Is the horn couple the fixed hook that is harder to connect?
At the train shows I've noticed a dizzying array of couplers, and frankly it is a turn-off. Why are all of those difference couplers necessary? I think that Bachmann's concept of one standard coupler is a grand idea.
Another thing that drives me nuts are those little wires they put under the couplers that simulate the lines that connect cars. Some of them are so long that they catch in the rails. I gladly snip them off to a reasonable length. And yes I know that sometimes they sag because they are lose and I tighten them. Still, some couplers just will not match up no matter what I do.
When it comes to realism, couplers are the last thing on my mind. I'd much rather spend time weathering buildings, building scenery and even building cars from kits than messing with 100 different types of couplers. When people see your layout, they are more impressed the scenery and the trains. Couplers should be like a umpire at baseball game. You only seen him when he's NOT doing his job well. The same thing applies to couplers so far as I'm concerned.
horn hook couplers were standard equipment on ho trains until about 15 years ago. somebody earlier in this thread posted a photo of them. horn hooks were notoriously unreliable, and would often derail your train when you tried to back up. they were, however, in the public domain and so most manufacturers included them on their rolling stock. in the meantime, kadee had a metal knuckle type coupler, which looked and operated like the real ones. it was also a durable, reliable performer, and most serious model railroaders switched, at considerable expense to kadee couplers. kadees were originally patented, and once the patents expired others started to make similar couplers, usually plastic but all compatible with kadees. soon, the manufacturers phased out the horn hooks as standard equipment in favour of the knuckle type. your Amtrak cars have knuckle type couplers.
the metal piece you trim off is the trip pin. it allows the couplers to uncouple automatically through the use of an uncoupling magnet. out of the box, these trip pins are sometimes too low, as you have found. when they are too low, they snap on thing like rerailers, switches and even track nails. with a metal coupler like the kadees this doesn't usually cause damage, but plastic couplers will bend down, and once the coupler is bent it is very hard to straighten it out to what it was originally. when this happens, I usually just replace the coupler with a metal (kadee) one.
the wide variety of couplers on the market are due to the wide variety of rolling stock available. especially on older equipment, there is no default standard to which everybody conforms. if you are not worried about uncoupling your trains, you could replace the couplers with a homemade metal drawbar between cars. a long this piece of brass with a hole in each end, that can be screwed into your coupler pockets in place of the couplers.
I would rather be watching the NY GIANTS game but against my better judgement, will take the time to post again here.
Wild Bill, no reason to feel ignorance, but I would have thought what Horn Hook couplers are, would have been as crystal clear as the pics posted by S1 and the subsequent postings about them.
If the the trips pins bother you so much on knuckle couplers , keep snipping them, many do, but I suggest you do so before putting the coupler on the car. If you are snipping them when they are on the car, what may be happening is you may be twisting and deforming other things, causing the looseness you are complaining of. Except for a screw that holds a coupler box in place, there really is nothing to loosen or tighten. If the screw is too tight, it keeps the coupler from moving side to side. Adjustments have to come from other things,which is where we started this in the first place. There are several ways to accomplish this.
Just as you prefer realism for cars, buildings etc, many prefer realism in the size of the knuckle couplers. I am not one of them, #5 and #148 size Kadees and EZ Mate Mark IIs work for me and my son. But, this is why there are many to choose from, in addition to having differing designs to accomplish the correct height. I would not term the choices as "dizzying", it is not like they are unlimited choices. This is not rocket science we are talking about here. Frankly, I am surprised after seeing you list the number of items you wish to focus on for realism and that couplers are not among them.
If you do not have a Kadee coupler gauge, I would suggest getting one, as was mentioned previously. I always recommend the plastic version.
Bill I am watching the Saints game AND running my layout AND posting, a miracle of multi tasking at my advanced age.
Go back and read some of the stuff I said earlier. I dont think it matters what kind of couplers you have, I bet they are plastic and a little bending will fix them. If not a little shimming or tightening oughta do it. All of this is part of model railroading, always had been.
I've got a great idea. Figure out by trial and error which the bad cars are. Take the bad cars off the layout for now and run the good ones. One by one, figure out what each car needs by the low end techniques we talked about earlier. I, like you, highly dislike fooling with maintenance when operation could be going on.
Don't fool with those cars now, go back and have some fun with those great layouts you had pictures of put up.
Your friend, the trainman
I, like you, highly dislike fooling with maintenance...
Don't know anyone who would admit to loving it. A chore, but time taken to do it properly, just like time taken for proper track work, pays the dividend in the end. Once done, it is more than likely, done.
Good luck to the AINTS ! I bet if they played the GIANTS tomorrow, they would kick the snot out of the GINTS :D
As might be expected the couplers on the "carpet track" pose more problems than they do on my main layout. The reasons are that "carpet track" requires a run out period to get rid of all the bugs between the track sections, and even after that is done it still moves slightly when the equipment rolls over it. That will result in uncoupling.
My main layout is Atlas track tacked to Woodland Scenics track bed with ballast glued around the edges. That is very solid, but there are still cars that won't stay coupled on it. Most of the time car in back of the first one has coupler lift when it is pulled. I have tightened the screws as tight as they can go. The only solution would be something in the coupler casing to make it stay straight, but good luck on finding something that works for that at the local hobby store.
The worst "carpet track" problem I have left is the connection between the GG-1 engine and the first passenger car. Though trial and error I have able to line up the passenger cars in a certain sequence, with numbers on them to keep them in order, so that they stay together. The problem between the GG-1 and the first passenger car makes that combination a non starter so the passenger train is pulled by the "A and B" freight units. So much for realism.
You guys talk about gaskets and height gages, but the people at the average hobby store don't carry that stuff, and most of them have no idea what it is. When your bread and butter is motorized cars and airplanes and model trains are only a sideline that's the way it is. Like I said the only store in the area is 60 miles away. It's run by some fine people, but getting there is a half day's project given the traffic, which has been getting worse and worse in the Tampa area.
Wild Bill, I don't disagree with what you say about the hobby shop, as I have experienced the same thing with my locol one. So why then, restrict yourself by relying on getting your items and info from there?
What screws are you referring to tightening as much as possible?
And not gaskets, but washers and shims.
"So why then, restrict yourself by relying on getting your items and info from there?"
As I said before getting to the train store from where I live is close to all day project. The main contacts I have had with them was to work on a group of vintage Bachmann Pennsylvania Railroad passenger cars that I bought off of eBay. I'd been looking for these cars for years, and finally found them there. They needed work in the interior lighting and other stuff, which I can't do. I have no mechanical ability what so ever. I can write articles for (other) hobby magazines that get published, and I can build kits. But it when it comes to taking something apart, like those cars to work on them, all I'd just tear them up.
I know Bachmann issued some new Pennsylvania cars this years, but this group included stuff like the observation and baggage combine cars, which not in the new Bachmann line-up.
I might add that this hobby seems to be in trouble. The people who run the train store are older and past the usual retirement age. Recently my brother-in-law sold a very large number of O gage engines and other equipment from the estate of a recently deceased uncle by marriage. The deceased train collector thought that he had $100,000 collection, which he had at one time considered leaving to a major operation like the Baltimore Railroad Museum. The collection filled a POD. My bother-in-law got $15,000 for it, and the company that bought it said that they doubted they would be in business five years from now because market is so weak. I have noticed this in other hobbies as well. The young people just don't seem to collect things any more.
To Bill1462 : All discretionary spending or hobbies are in serious decline due to the abysmal state of the economy in this country . Without a vital middle class to fund the industries in this country economic growth is stagnant . Rich people don't support their own economies , they are usually out of touch with the way the real world operates. Young people don't have the money or the discretion to buy the really necessary goods & services they will need . John2.
Bill you usually have to make your own shims for things like couplers with vertical play, it's not something the hobby shop sells. I know you hate doing that kind of work, so do I, but sometimes it must be done. The clear hard slick plastic that seals tools to cardboard backing in hardware stores is good stock for something like that. You cut a little tiny piece the right size and slip it into the coupler pocket below the coupler shank to raise it if it drops down too much. You may have to experiment with thickness some to get it right.
If you aren't up to any of this, as I suspect you may be, the yard master said a while back to call Bachmann's service department. I've had nothing but good luck with those guys.
Msybe there's another modeler around your area too. The hobby shop probably sells them stuff and knows where they are.
Happy railroading, this will all work out. I'm about played out, don't know what else to suggest.
Hi Bill1462,
Shim making is rather simple, after you know what size (thickness) you need other than trial and error.
I've always considered it part of the hobby.
Save sections of blister packing and thin card stock or, it can be purchased from your favorite etailer.
I live in the "Bay area" about 4 - 5? miles from my LHS, which is H&R Trains in Pinellas Park.
I don't know how far exactly, but a nice bike ride.
They have a full time technician and plenty of stock.
They want to sell and retire.
Alice and Don have been here forever and both are approaching their 80's.
They are old school.
Inventory is great, better than most. In all scales.
Internet presence is next to nothing, again old school, do not compete with best prices on the web.
IMO you have to do this to be competitive and survive.
A great business opportunity to the right person.
All of this can be fixed with a young entrepreneur with desire and resources.
Yeah, five years may be generous.
Bill, again, I am not pointing you in the direction of driving anywhere. You are thinking 1 dimensionally. The INTERNET Bill, the INTERNET! I am sure you have heard of it ::) There is whole big shopping experience waiting to be had out there.
Thank you for your frankness about your abilities, it helps me understand where you are coming from a little better. I have to ask you though, how did you put those 2 layouts together??
I agree with your comments and JH2's comments about the state of affairs in the hobby, the economy, young(er) people and rich people . It is funny how I have read recently the economy is picking up ???
I don't agree with TM that is it necessary to have to MAKE shims (what are really washers) to fix vertical play, although you can make them using Jim Banner's method of using 2 blocks of wood, a drill, some Evergreen styrenne sheet and a whole punch (a search here will show this up). But the reason it is not necessary to make them, is that Kadee makes them (hello, I posted this a few pages ago ::))
Bill, still waiting for an answer from you to my question to you about the screws. BTW, all of this is academic if you don't have, or are willing to invest the few bucks for a Kadee coupler height gauge. But hey, if you want to give the money to the USPS instead on the way to shipping your items off, that is entirely up to you.
A great business opportunity to the right person.
All of this can be fixed with a young entrepreneur with desire and resources.
Honestly, I think this is a little pie in the sky, unless you are talking about a complete transition to RC stuff.
And for what it is worth with regard to trying to fix and or work on things, painting, weathering, detailing etc, I have a good friend in the hobby who is always saying "you gotta try things"; and he is absolutely right. As is said, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Kadee makes shims? News to me. Brock I dont read every letter of every post,. Even at my age I still have a job and a family, and a layout, to keep me busy. But thanks for telling me and Bill. I need to read their web page more closely. I've read between the lines enough to see that vertical coupler play is the problem, tightening things doesn't work, so shims are certainly a solution. And you don't even have to make them! Glory hallelujah!
Brock I do have to agree that if Bill built those pretty nice layouts , which took a fair amount of ability to do, it is kind of odd that a minor coupler problem would create such a (I've been waiting a long time to use this big and perfect word) "kerfuffle."
Shims? In/on Kadee couplers????? Never!
I've been a model railroader for some 55 years and I've never, ever had to use shims on properly installed Kadee couplers. Either mounted in the Kadee coupler box or in the coupler box provided on the car. Or have I misunderstood your post?
I've used Kadee washers between the truck and car body to raise body mounted couplers (The only way to install them) that are too low.
Very occasionally I've used thin Plastruct spacers to lower a body mounted Kadee coupler box that's riding too high.
But shims inside a properly installed Kadee coupler box? Never! Or, as I wrote above, have I misunderstood the problem?
If you are having to use shims inside a coupler box, I'd respectfully suggest you recheck how you installed the coupler(s).
Cheers
Roger T.
Oh goodness, this just keeps getting better an better (heavy RichG like sigh)...
For TM: yes Kadee makes coupler box "shims" that come in 2 thicknesses: http://www.toysperiod.com/kadee-211-draft-gear-shims-20pk-for-ho-couplers-49-p-240.html. This are to be used to lower the coupler box by putting them between the car and coupler box (I have also seen the thicker ones used in a pinch as a coupler box cover) used on the outside of the coupler box of course, Roger. And yes I do think ole boy, that you have misunderstood me. I don't see anywhere where I said to put shims inside a coupler box. See that I put shims in quotes above in tying to use lingo TM was. Please see I also used the phrase what are really washers.
For everyone: yes, Kadee makes those (washers) as well, again, in 2 thicknesses: http://www.powerhobby.com/model-trains-13/n-scale/kadee-208-fiber-washers-015-red-48.html. These have several uses, from being mounted on a bolster between a truck and car body to raise the height of the car (as Roger astutely noted) to, get ready for it, inside the coupler box, to either straighten out by putting it under a coupler or lowering it's height a little by putting it on top of the coupler, all the time inside the coupler box.
If you are having to use shims inside a coupler box, I'd respectfully suggest you recheck how you installed the coupler(s). Was this really necessary? >:( I decline your suggestion; I have a height gauge and have all the above mentioned parts and I know how to use and install them thanks. I am not the one having the problem here remember?? If I did not know better, I would think you were just trying to stir it up Roger as I don't see you making any suggestions for Wild Bill ::).
TM, I appreciate your seeing my point regarding the skill needed to build those 2 nice layouts and my question about the ability for Bill to solve his problems.
"I appreciate your seeing my point regarding the skill needed to build those 2 nice layouts and my question about the ability for Bill to solve his problems."
The answer is quite simple. I bought a book about setting up scenery at the hobby store. Woodland Scenics also markets starter kits that provide instructions and opportunities to experiment to see what looks good or authentic.
And let's face it. It's a lot easier to spread or spray glue and cover it with the grass and soil stuff, or build a tunnel with newspapers, Styrofoam, plaster cloth, paint, and grass and soil stuff than it is take an engine apart or even put together a coupler assembly. When I get to the point of working with small parts, it's like my fingers seem to grow ten times in size. And when disassembling something is not intuitive to me, I get gun shy because I know the chances are good that I will not be able to reassemble it the way it was.
You guys who have mechanical find it so easy. My talents lie in the ability to grade antiques, spot counterfeits and deduce if something has been altered from its original state. People ask, "How can you do that?" My answer is 55 years of experience plus some innate ability that through the years I've learned that other people don't have. I received that gift or talent, but mechanical stuff is beyond me.
I have infinite respect for the guy who can fix my car, the plumbing in my house or build a great kitchen cabinet. I know how a car engine works and what the parts do so that I can usually tell the mechanic what's wrong, but I could no more fix it than fly to the moon without rocket. I don't why some college educated people look down on those who are in the trades. They have my respect. Sure I graduated from college with a couple of degrees, but I can't do what they do very well.
My parents pushed the concept that you were supposed to be good at everything. I found that that template was a recipe that could lead to ulcers and psychotherapy. From my studies of economics I've learned specialization and taking advantage of the freedom to find your own path led to success.
And by the way, thanks for your posts, guys. I've learned a lot about DCC. As for couplers, that's another story.
What some find easy to do, others may not. That is the point you are making Wild Bill, right? I understand and appreciate what you are saying. Many of the things you can do, I have not. Not yet anyway, but plan to.
But as you have shown and attest to your ability to learn by researching and trying something, the same can be done here. Have some confidence, some patience and give it a try and see what happens. With the right tools, it is easy. What is the worst that happens? What is the best thing that can happen?
Your're more than welcome for the posts. I hope you get to working it out.
nothing ventured nothing gained.
for what it's worth, i can build track including switches but am hopeless on scenery. oh i can get the plaster up, but when it comes to rock outcros and trees, nothing i do looks real to me.
that's the nice thing about this hobby. you don't have to master it all. concentrate on the things you enjoy.
nothing ventured nothing gained.
Great minds think alike...
Bill-
Ninety-five percent of the battle in working on model trains is intimidation. We fear breaking something valuable or making a mess for ourselves. The only way around that is to jump in and open something up. I'm an old hand (with the emphasis on old) in model railroading so I don't confront the intimidation demon often, at least when it comes to trains, but I have certainly noticed that parts seem to be trending smaller while my fingers get a little larger each time I use them. And I do face that novelty anxiety when I attempt something new, whether on the train board or around the house. But, again, the only way around that is to start a new project.
Helpful tip for new efforts: Use the camera on your cell phone to take pictures as you go. This will allow you to get things back in order and help with that reluctance to try something new. When you're done, you can delete the pictures and never waste any money developing or printing film.
-- D
Hi Doneldon;
Boy, I bet you wouldn't be so lively and ready to roll with a brass locomotive in the four-figure range, huh? I know I sure as hell would think twice.
Quote from: electrical whiz kid on December 02, 2014, 07:38:28 PM
Hi Doneldon;
Boy, I bet you wouldn't be so lively and ready to roll with a brass locomotive in the four-figure range, huh? I know I sure as hell would think twice.
Wiz-
Well, I haven't had the need to dig into one of the pricey brassies yet but I've sure gotten into others. See, the thing is, the mechanics and electronics are pretty much the same across the board. Once I gave up on insulating open-frame motors and just remotored locos with cans I've found most challenges to be surmountable. The only place I draw the line is with other people's models; I don't want to take the chance of damaging somebody else's model.
-- D
Doneldon;
Yeah, I can understand that. As a rule, I don't get too involved with other peoples' models, but will obviously do my own. As you might remember him, the late Bill Schopp would dive headlong into some brass beauty, and I would cringe at the thought of my doing so.
Open frame motors are subject to a lot of evil happenings that usually happen in a long tunnel, etc. I like the newer motors for a lot of reasons. being an electrician and have gotten involved largely with motor controls has helped me a lot with this hobby. Still, I kind of shy away from motor replacement; but that is just me.
RIch C.
Rich-
Remotoring is like just about anything else you can think of: the first one is filled with reservations and an excessive need to double- and
triple-check everything but by the time you're finished you're already planning the next swap out.
-- D
I too have a coupler problem.. I have a Bachmann train and engine set ..'The Liberty Bell' and I have the Bachmann Spectrum New York Central. I wanted to connect my passenger cars from the 'Liberty Bell' to the Spectrum. I think I understand what you are saying. Are you saying that for me to get the passenger cars to run with the Spectrum I must check the space and or length between the two type of sets and see if they match? Then are you saying that if there is no match do I just unscrew the couplers from the higher cars and replace them with lower couplers from the others? This won't for me because the Spectrum couplers or wheels are taller I think. Do you suppose I could find some couplers for DCC trains that would fit my passenger cars?
all couplers should match the nmra standards for height. the easiest way to measure this is with a kadee coupler height guage. if your cars coupelrs are too low, first make sure they don't have a bent shank. if so, you need to replace them. if they are not bent. you can try raising the low ones by adding thin washers between the car floor and the truck bolster. kadee makes washers for this purpose,