What’s the best Kadee coupler for my modern engines. I’ve been using #5 but some feel a little short. I have Athearn (BB, RTR, Genesis), P2K, Kato, Atlas, and Bachmann Spectrum.
Does everyone keep the medal stem(I’m not sure what you call it) on, or do you take if off to look more prototypical? If you do remove them, what is the best way? I tried cutting one off with a pair of bull nips but the pointy edge would just dig into the top of my snowplow.
Kadee makes a whole series of couplers with offset heads, long, medium and short shanks, in plastic (20 and 30 series) and metal (40 series). The long shank ones are 7/64 inch longer than the #5. The long centerset shank is a #46 in metal.
The number 5 is a medium length, centerset shank, if you need a point of reference. Or Kadee has reference drawings on their website.
Almost forgot your other two questions. I haven’t cut off any of the trip pins (what you’re calling the “stem”). At this point, I’m not sure if I’ll be using the magnetic uncoupling feature (we do at my club, though). Until you make this decision for yourself, I wouldn’t recommend cutting them off. Once done, you’ll have to buy all new couplers if you decide to use the magnetic uncoupling feature. Set the pin height per the Kadee gauge (get one of these and use it as your coupler and trip pin height reference, they’re only $4.00), this will save you LOTS of headaches in the future.
As far as the trip pin on the locomotive where it will interfere with the snow plw, your best bet would be to cut that one off, and file the nub flat. The uncoupling feature probably wouldn’t work there anyway.
I normally don’t weather these. Through normal use, the blackening wears off where it would wear off on the prototype, and getting paint in the wrong place can make them stick or bind.
I use the KADEE #26 for locomotive couplers…they are center shank but are very long …long enough to get past the snowplow and hoses and work exceptionally well with Athearn locomotives…Athearn locomotives are the worst for coupler clearance.they need a lot of metal hogged out and usually have to cut a lot of the front of the locomotive away for a #5 to fit…the #26 gets me around all that cutting and filing…chuck
I’ve cut the trip pins off of two of my Proto GP38-2’s only because they were binding on the snowplows when they were MUed together. I also had to cut off the pin on one box car because it to would bind up on the snowplow of the GP38-2’s. I only did one side on each because I like the looks of them.
The only time I’ve to cut a trip pin was when I a coupler on a locomotive that had a plow on it, maybe like yours. I used my Dremel tool with a cutting disk to cut it off flush with the coupler. Don’t put pressure on it. Just bring the disk in contact with the pin and it’ll be gone. Make sure to wear eye protection. It’ll throw bits all over.
There is a rather extensive list in the Walthers catalog from Kadee showing which couplers fit what locomotive. I follow that list and it is right about 99% of the time.
Trip pins are cute, unless they hang down and snag something like a switch . . .
if you use a longer coupler you won’t have to cut off the trip pin…and the pin sure is handy when switching in a yard using magnetic uncouplers…you may want to invest in a dremel tool …i use a dremel tool about as mush as i use a drill…it’s my best friend in the train room…especially when using a cut - off wheel attachment…chuck