It’s been 40 years since I seriously considered building a model railroad. There’s a beautiful switchback plan I have thought about all these years, but with so many sidings and yards I wonder:
Are there economical ways to uncouple cars on any particular spur without investing in dozens of expensive uncouplers? I really don’t want “the Hand of God” to have to descend into the layout and would prefer coupling and decoupling to be remote.
What are the latest alternatives?
Most people still use the Kadee couplers with the delayed feature. Permanent Magnet uncouplers are cheap and electro magnet uncouplers can be placed in a position where you don’t want accidental uncoupling. Plus, one can be the uncoupler for several close spurs or sidings. Kadee’s website explains it better than I can:
http://www.kadee.com/animation/c1.htm
There’s a lot of clones out there, but I’ve never found one that is a rugged and works a reliable as the Kadee brand.
I used these Radio Shack rectangular #: 64-1879 magnets under the rails. They work great and cost only $3 for a pack of 5. They work the best with Kadee couplers. Mchenry and others seem to have too stiff a knuckle spring for these.
Pete
RMcJ:
You can also drill holes and insert small 1/8" x 1/2" long cylindrical NdFeB magnets between two ties, with opposite-pole magnets near each rail. I’ve tried this, and also tried gluing thinner bar NdFeB magnets to the tie tops. They work pretty well, and are cheap. A recent RMC had an article on these magnets, covering this and other uses.
One thing I have noticed is that magnetic uncoupling, especially delayed, is the trickiest part of the Kadee coupler system. They work well, but they have to move freely, and the air hoses have to be adjusted right…too low and they snag, too high and they don’t move into delay position.
Welcome to the forums.
Have you concidered putting a wooden skewer in the “Hand of God?” I ahve visited one local layout where this is the preferred method of uncoupling. Most of the folks seem quite proficient at uncoupling the cars with little fuss. (I haven’t tried it enough yet myself to become good at it.) Yes, it isn’t romote, but you don’t get OOps uncoupling over a magnet and you can uncouple anywhere. If you follow your train as it goes around the layout, appears to be a good and inexpensive method, yet you don’t have to handle the cars to uncouple them.
I’m also looking into the little round ones, but haven’t found a scource yet. Sound interesting.
Good luck,
Our club also uses this method. Magnets are a pain in the butt. Everyone hates them so we don’t install them anymore.
take a look at the K & J Magentics web site. they have all kinds of magnets.
grizlump
Magnetic uncoupling is a matter of personal choice. Some like it, some don’t.
I’m one who does like it. Of course, my layout is 5 feet wide, so the center, where the yard leads happen to be, is 2 1/2 feet from either side. That’s an awkward reach at best, so I’m happy to use magnets and keep my elbows from having those awkward Godzilla moments with my downtown buildings.
I use Kadee couplers and Kadee magnets. Yeah, magnets are magnets, and the couplers don’t know if the magnets were made by Kadee or not, but I only have a half-dozen or so, and the Kadee ones aren’t going to break the bank at that rate. On the other hand, all couplers are not the same. If you’re going to do this, insist on Kadee.
You need to install the magnets on a straight section of track, and it should be straight for a full car length on either side of the magnet. A “car length” is the longest car or engine you plan to uncouple there, although you can get away with less if you have long cars with truck-mounted couplers.
I use the between-the-rails model of magnet. It needs to be mounted even with the top of the rails. That’s a bit lower than the Kadee recommendation, but I’ve got some engines that will run aground at the recommended height, and the magnets are strong enough to work if they’re just a bit lower. You may need to grind down the ties a bit to position these magnets correctly. On the other hand, if you’re just planning your layout, you can use the under-the-ties magnets and avoid this problem.
Get the Kadee coupler gauge. Set all your couplers at the correct height, and bend the trip pins as the guage suggests as well. Make sure all your couplers swing freely in their housings, and you’ll find that magnetic uncoupling works quite well.
Glad to hear some are all for magnets, takes some work but well worth the effort, if I want to poke around with a bamboo chopstick it better be in a Chinese restaurant.