Recieved the coupler adaptors today, already added, makes a huge difference in usability.

PS the Face-ectomy has begun, Cheif Surgeon-err Mechanic Jigsaw was disappointed how easy Percys Pilsburry Doughboy face came off, just press his face sides and it just pops right off, no need to "get medaevil" on him...

Thanks Cale but I've already been hooked up on MLS with spacers from another xmas tree set

...and I'll be dang sure to add the ruddy spacers onto Thomas before I chuck the box into the recyler next time! 

Yep, Thomas et all too, Annie and Clarabell will get face-offed too as well as adding more common double bogies instead of the single axles which were kind off rarer for that type of car

Well JD...

I have been in trains since childhood, involved with every major scale under the sun, and in large scale since 2000 and have bought literally hundreds of peices of off the shelf rolling stock, and in all those years and all those pieces, I have NEVER encountered such an intentional coupler height difference issue. You are conditioned since the 1970's to accept that you can open the box and the coupler styles aside, you can couple anything to everything else with the same coupler attached.

Its something even seasoned model railroader are NOT going to be thinking about when they buy off the shelf stock...

These items should have been shipped with the adaptors in place, so parents and kids can couple anything as soon as they open the box, then if some want the more "proto" Thomas look then they could have the option of removing the spacers and get that more "proto" coupler height. Not the other way around.

I just want to make others who are buying these items to be aware to look for the adaptors. I'm not the only person who wasnt aware we needed to modify our items just to make them work with everything else.



I'm sorry but is there even such a thing as "Proto" Thomas?   

thats actually a pretty good price 

COUPLER ALERT

As shipped Thomas items WILL NOT couple with LGB or other cars, the couplers are 1/2" too high, there are SPACERS shown in the video at 5:45 that must be attached to lower the coupler to LGB standard coupler height.

Aaargh! I already tossed the box. the adaptors likely went with it. I didnt see anything in the box, but like Brian, I could have missed them if I wasnt looking for them. The only thing I kept was the registration card (which I still need to mail)

Are these adaptors available thru the part dept? If not, I was already planning to add my own blocks when Percy gets his face-ectomy

Sorry but the last thing I was expecting was a non-standard coupler height being a issue. I will definetly keep an eye out for these on future Thomas purchases.

Houston we may have a Problem here:

Found a rather sizable glitch:



Thats a STANDARD unmodified LGB car next to Percy, there is about  a 1/2" hieght difference  between the couplers. The tongue of Percy will bend low enough to couple but not the other way around, no way.

This is a very nice model but as it is Percy is very limited to what it can be expected to couple to, Thomas, the coachs and the troublesome trucks I assume all have this non-standard height couplers, meaning every one of them will require some form of serious mods to put the couplers back down to standard height.

Why Why Why was the coupler placed at this non-standard hieght?

Is this sort of stuff done on purpose 

Mr Bach'man, any idea how hard it will be to pull that Pilsbury Doughboy faceplate off and replace it with a proper smokebox door?

No offense ment to the Thomas fans but I have been waiting for an affordable British profile engine for years now, and Tommy and Percy look like they will be the first to fit the bill, with certain modifications as mentioned

Something like one of these would be nice too

Thanks guys thats what I was hoping to hear, now I can keep planning 

So how do the 2-6-0s work on grades? 

Anyone anyone?

Bueller Bueller?

OK so I could only take the Mogul and the Porters on the upper 15"R loop, the rest would be OK on the lower 18"R loop but would choke on the upper.

I ask these Qs as I'm considering scrapping my current layout and switching to On30, but the caviet is that I have to keep my current benchwork base which is only 4'6" x 6'6". I have no other room to expand it.

I have what I consider a workable plan but I havent bought anything yet so hence my questions, I need to know with some certainty this will work. if I cannot make this idea work on this base, I wont do it.

So how do these work on grades?

Bachmann On30 minimum radius? Maximum grade capability?

Question re: Bachmann On30 lineup, what are the real world minimum turning radius of thier lineup particular

4-6-0 Ten Wheeler

2-8-0 Connie

2-4-4 Forney

I have a plan in mind but while most of it is 18" radius, in one section it calls for a minimum radius of 15"

I already found the posts here re the Porter, 2-6-0 and rolling stock items min radius, so I'm primariliy concerned about the newest offerings. So I need to find which will work, also I will have a working grade of 4% so I need to know also if they are capable of working the grade as well.

I'm particularly interested in the 2-6-0 on a 4% grade, 18" R, typical consist would be either engine, tender, and 2 0r 3 passenger cars, or engine, tender, 3-4 freight cars and caboose. not long trains but then my passing sidings arent long either. the whole layout will be pretty small but I plan to take it as vertical as I can.

Thanks

Keep in mind... Not all Forney's were two foot gauge and roamed the woods of Maine, those are just the most commonly known, many many were 3' gauge, some even standard guage and ranged from Louisiana plantaions to Cuban cane fields to Appalacian logging lines to Washington State saw mills to even the New York City's elevated railroad.

Disneyland has an operating 3' gauge Forney thats very similar to this model. I just wish this one was more affordable