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Can a Santa Fe HO Diesel connect to a Thomas & Friends rollingstock piece?
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Without modifying one or the other, the short answer is no. The couplers used on T&F locos and rolling stock are not compatible with the couplers used on regular HO equipment. Whether is modern knuckle couplers, or the older 'horn-hook' style.
You would either have to modify the diesel to mount one of these T&F type couplers:
http://estore.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=advanced_search_result&search_in_description=1&keyword=Thomas+coupler
Or make a "transition car" by mounting a kuckle coupler to one end of a T&F car. And that's not as simple as it sounds.
Len
Actually, if you're careful, there is a way to connect the different couplers. If you slip the hook of the Thomas and Friends couplers into the sockets of either a knuckle coupler or horn-hook coupler, then it would work (I'd show pictures for demonstration, but I don't have access to my layout at this moment).