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couplers

Started by zachs trains, September 02, 2012, 08:51:01 AM

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zachs trains

just received my order of 3 bachmann 85' budd amtrak fleet coach lighted came with old hook horns which size couplers do i need to replace them?

MilwaukeeRoadfan261

There are a couple options you could go with. You could go with some Bachmann EZ-mates or you could go with Kadee couplers. Kadee couplers can either be the size of a Bachmann EZ mate or they could be scale size. If you decide on Kadee recommends either the 38 TM (truck mounted) or 454 couplers. If you choose to go with Bachmann couplers, go with some nice medium center set shank couplers.

Doneldon

zach-

Here's a near reprint of a response I left about couplers for someone else:

Most coupler brands work with others fairly well but Model Railroader found that there are some compatibility issues, most notably when attempting to couple cars on curves. There are near-universal problems with couplers being overly large; to my knowledge, only the so-called "scale" Kadee couplers do much to remedy this.

You will have the best experience if your couplers are all from the same manufacturer. Go with the best: Kadee. (You'll find lots of misspellings and attempted abbreviations of the name, some almost indecipherable, but the correct name is "Kadee.") Kadee held the patents on operating knuckle couplers for decades and others on the market are basically imitations now that those patents have expired. With their years of experience and an enormous number of specific sizes and styles which permit mounting their couplers on just about anything, Kadee couplers are the choice of a large majority of serious model railroaders who demand reliable coupling.

Kadee's scale couplers go a long way towards providing prototypical appearance but there aren't as many custom shapes and sizes as with the regular Kadee offerings. If scale appearance is critical for you, and especially if you plan to run trains rather than operate them with lots of coupling and uncoupling, consider "dummy" couplers. These have a genuinely prototypical appearance and size; the down side is that you must physically handle your rolling stock to do coupling chores. This isn't an issue for hobbyists who leave trains assembled but it is for those who plan to couple and uncouple.

                                                                                                                                                                     -- D