First painted coupler, ever

[Erik W]

I use a thinned acrylic wash on my couplers.  You can apply it more than once to make the color heavier.  Also, applying the paint as a wash prevents the coupler parts from "gluing" together.  In the few minutes the wash takes to dry, I work the couplers to keep the movement free.  FYI - all my rolling stock have Z scale couplers.





Erik

[Frisco Larry]

I have been painting my couplers for at least 20 years.  I use old Floquil rust. The crazing effect on the plastic makes them less slick and more reliable.  I usually buy unassembled couplers and paint them before assembly.  Otherwise I disassemble the coupler to paint it, thus they are not "glued" together by the paint.

[peteski]

I have been painting my couplers for at least 20 years.  I use old Floquil rust. The crazing effect on the plastic makes them less slick and more reliable.  I usually buy unassembled couplers and paint them before assembly.  Otherwise I disassemble the coupler to paint it, thus they are not "glued" together by the paint.

Larry, there is no way that the solvent in Floquil (or for that matter, in any hobby paint) will even slightly attack the plastic used in MT (or other) knuckle coupler. Delrin is highly resistant to all those solvents. But those paints do dry flat. Maybe that is what you consider as crazing.