Forgive me if this question has been posted prior, but I am just starting in the hobby and have zero rolling stock or motive power. Which types of couplers work together, if any? I plan to buy an Atlas loco this week and they have accumate couplers installed already. Will I be able to couple to Athearns mag couplers and Kato rolling stock? Should I plan to use all the same type or can I mix and match. Thanks for the help.
They should all work but if you want smooth coupling and uncoupling then most people use the same couplers, usually kadees.
Hope this helps,
dekruif
The de-facto standard coupler by choice is the KD coupler.
I’ve used practically every coupler there is and KADEE is the best, hands down!..I use #26 for long rolling stock (long rolling stock swings out wider) and the #5 for everything else…since you are new a few other tips if i may … use a KADEE height gauge to “true” your coupler height…all couplers have to be dead on accurate when aligned with couplers from other rolling stock…a misaligned coupler is the best way to have lots of problems with your trains separating …if a coupler hangs too low than you can shim them between the wheels and the car body with thin sheet styrene plastic…if the coupler is too high then shim the coupler between the car body and the draft gear box with sheet styrene plastic…it’s best to body mount the couplers…another good practice is to take a drill bit and burnish the coupler before installing it to remove any metal snags that can make the coupler hang up in the draft gear box …use some dry graphite for lubricant…another handy tool is the kadee coupler pliers…sometimes the coupler hose hangs too low and can get caught on turnout frogs and derail the train…the pliers are specially build to bend the hose so they won’t hang too low…one other thing…there are two ways to mount kadee couplers…two small screws that fit on the outside of the gear box or a small screw thru the center of the gear box…I’ve found that the center (2-56) screw thru the middle works best…if you mount them on the outsides of the gearbox, you run the risk of the wheels hitting the screws in a curve and derailing the train not to mention it’s a lot easier to mount one screw than two… chuck
Should I change all the couplers or just the ones I plan to use. What I mean is I plan to model coal operations and will use long series of hoppers. If I have KD couplers on my motive power and the lead hopper and all the rest were accumate or another type. I cannot think of why I would have to break apart unit trains. Am I on the right track here. Also, is it easy to install KDs on motive power? I am modeling N scale and have big hands.
What you propose will work. In fact it’s how most people convert gradually. While I have only used KD’s, a number of people have had problems with other knuckle couplers breaking. If you have a breakage problem, you can replace them with KD’s as needed. I have never done N scale so I don’t know about N scale locomotives. In HO and S I have found it to not be a problem to replace a working coupler. Dummy couplers vary.
Enjoy
Paul
sorry about that…I really don’t know what the best coupler is for N scale…I do HO scale …in my experience though with HO couplers, i’ve found it best to stick with one brand only…i’ve had too many problems mixing and matching couplers from different manufacturers…and with KADEE couplers…it’s under $2.00 per car to make the switch…it’s not like it’s gonna break my bank account by switching to only one brand of coupler… I have 29 locomotives and 219 pieces of rolling stock…so it cost me in the neighborhood of $495.00 dollars to switch out couplers and that’s over a 30 year time period…what i do is when i purchase rolling stock i’ll get the couplers also so i can make the switch before it even goes on the layout…chuck
If you only replace couplers as they break, it still won’t take very long to replace your whole fleet with Kadees. I’ve been actively running trains for only a year. Most of my rolling stock is 40 years old, so I replace the horn-hooks with Kadees before the cars go on the tracks. Most of my engines are new, but I’ve had so many coupler failures from the “original equipment” couplers that I now replace the couplers right away, while I’m installing decoders and lights.
I use the Kadee magnetic uncouplers, and I’ve found that I can’t get anything to work well on these but genuine Kadees.
If your in N scale use Micro trains couplers. They are the equivalent of kadee couplers, on in N scale.
I’m pretty sure Micro Trains couplers are the Kadees of N, considering they used to be part of Kadee.[:D] I have some engines and cars in HO that came with Accumates, and the Accumates are pretty low in quality. I sometimes have to help them couple to engines or cars with Kadees.
They used to be part of kadee. Us N scalers can now get couplers that operate like the kadees, with a magnet. Yeehaw
That’s not so new…Been like that for at last 25 years or more…
Theoretically, any of the knuckle couplers corrently available should couple with any other, regardles of brand. Practically, on my pike, any non-Kadee coupler that hiccups is immediately replaced by the equivalent Kadee.
For the couplers between cars in blocks that will never be switched (unit coal trains and the “center core” of through freights) the requirement is different. Theoretically, such cars could be coupled with drawbars (and some prototypes are - ore jimmies on the DM&IR, in 4-car cuts.) Practically, it’s nice to be able to handle individual cars for maintenance, so dummies or “de-magnetized” knuckle couplers are options.
What do I use? Forty years ago, the late Malcolm Vordenbaum had just converted his entire, rather extensive, roster to Kadee MK couplers. He gave me all of the Kadee K couplers he had just pulled out of service. Using them allows “push together” coupling, and they don’t look too different at normal viewing distance.
Chuck
I don’t model N and know very little about the scale. How are the Microtrains couplers attached? Are they body mounted or talgo? To change couplers do you need to switch out the trucks as well? Would just like to know.
The modeler has a choice…He can use the truck mounter coupler on his freight cars or he/she can take the next step and body mount the coupler by using the MT-1015-10 coupler…Quaility locomotives comes with body mounted couplers.
Kadee’s are the best. My neighbor swears by them