And your point is?
Seriously, being able to uncouple without tweezers is a concession I am willing to make. I’d rather do ops.
I’ll let Harold scratch build link and pin couplers.
Thanks for the tips.
CHIP:
You have created your own problem. Pick your choice:
- KD permanent magnets were orig. designed for code 100 Atlas flextrack rail.
- and you are using ??
- KD permanent magnet’s were not designed to operate on curves.
- Delayed uncoupling - going past the magnet to drop - won’t work uphill.
- You are ‘enjoying’ the limits of a 4X8 walkaround…
(quote)"The control panel is in the front and that is where I have to throw turnouts. It is very tiring throwing a turnout. Running to the back to skewer, then running back to throw the next turnout
Relocate switch controls to where you need to work - mini panels - or how 'bout ground throws and a DCC plug-in socket? You’ve designed for a two-man crew.
The club I was in had a hands off policy. If the cars/trains didnt pass standards, IT DONT RUN ON THE LAYOUT.
We had an inspection track with height gauge and an uncoupler in the middle.
if the coupler pulled over correctly it passed. We even checked it against a good running car that worked.
Believe me we had excellent run sessions.
We did have some hand uncouplers but were rarely used, and even the ole 5 fingered hook could do the uncoupling if really we had to.
The layout was designed correctly and uncouplers placed correctly.
All rail frogs too on home made turnouts. We knew the commercial problems and was cheaper to build our own turnouts.
If you have trouble getting kadees to work, theres another problem elsewhere, and IT AINT THE COUPLER.
sorry if I rant.
But we would have large yards thick with cars, reaching over and possibly
popping some cars off the track is something I dont want to be doing.
KADEES WORK!!! dang it.
red dots where uncouplers are, green dot is optional.
remeber kadees have a lip if the car is taut which wont uncouple while pulling. There are electromagnetic uncouplers.
You wont need uncouplers on every side track because you can pu***he car to its position using delayed.
But its your option to have that just for operational clarity 8-D
Our club used code 83, we had to slice down or cut a hole for the uncoupler, so what, we did it.
The dots say it so much better than words…[:)]
Don,
If I could get the ramps to work, that would be the coolest solution. However, I have to pull the control panel anyway when I retro-fit a a tressel bridge to replace the pilons. I may give up the ideas of lights to indicate switch directions at that point and install a sub panel in the back Although there is not really a good location for it back there now that I have staging back there.
The track is code 100 EZ crap.
That is pretty much where I figured placements except that I had one uncoupler in the upper track instead of 2. And I had an additional coupler in the upper level loop next to the siding. And or course, I didn’t dream you could push cars around corners and turnouts with a delayed uncoupler so I had an uncoupler in each of the industrial sidings.
My point is why worry about uncoupling ramps appearance when the use of Kadee knuckle couplers is not correct for the era you are trying to represent. There are link and pin couplers out there. I should have posted this in your other thread though. Put the magnets where you need them and don’t worry about a minor cosmetic appearance problem.
Thanks for that. I guess I’m guilty of wanting it to be as perfect as I can make it. Sometimes it is easy to loose track of the obvious.
Chip
Kadee’s work very well at both automatic coupling and uncoupling over a ramp when everything is adjusted properly.
But delayed uncoupling is another story. Especially when we have small steam locos that tend to have stalling problems anyway. Basically for delayed uncoupling to work, the couplers in delayed position cannot come apart during the push operation for any reason. If the cars surge through a turnout or the loco stalls or slows momentarily - the delayed couplers separate and resume normal position, and recouple when they next touch.
For delayed uncoupling to work, everything has to be spot on - trackwork, no electrical dead spots, consistent and just the right amount of rolling resistance on the rolling stock, and excellent slow speed performance and electrical pickup on the locos. Since I’m not always that good, I end up - much to my disgust - keeping a skewer handy. I also try to put more ramps in than delayed uncoupling ordinarily requires.
yours in uncoupling
Fred W