Kaydee couplers not coupling with other ho cars

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

So I got the rivarossi nee york central tender( thanks ed) but the tender won’t couple with any of my mantua rolling stock. Is there a workaroun?

2

A bit more information is needed to properly answer your question. First I presume everything have knuckle couplers. Second, if the couplers are not on the same level they won’t couple. (I had that problem with my U25Cs and my coal cars. I ended up putting different height couplers on the engines.) Other than that without more information, there are a lot of possibilities.

3

Some more information would be helpful, but what I suspect is that your Mantua rolling stock are still equipped with the original horn hook couplers which will not couple with Kadee couplers.

Now conventional wisdom would tell you to swap out all your horn hooks with Kadees, but if you do not want to switch out trains and only run them as a “unit train” then I’d suggest that you fit the first car in the consist with a Kadee, set at the correct height, so it can connect to your locomotive which I presume is Kadee equipped, and leave the rest as is.

Some information on couplers…
https://www.trains.com/mrr/beginners/guide-to-ho-scale-couplers/

[2c] Cheers, the Bear. [:)]

4

Just based on the pictures of the tendor, it appears the tender has horn hook couplers. Not sure how they mix with the kadee. Regardless, I’d replace the horn hook.

5

I agree, a 1980s-90s Rivarossi NYC Hudson would come from the factory with horn-hook couplers. Unless a later owner didn’t changed it, the only other thing it might have would be an NEM European-style coupler.