Best Of Notes on body-mount couplers (work-in-progress)

[reinhardtjh]

Thanks Gary!

[Wolf N Works]

Thank you very much Gary

[John]

The ability to easily customize a box to a particular application like this has me 110% convinced that this is the way to go with future body mounts.   The turnaround time from concept to reality is hours, the cost per item is pennies, the quality is near to injection molding, and the customization means that the installation time is short, so converting a fleet is feasible.  These printers are nothing short of revolutionary in my book.

This is high praise from the guy that mapped the big bang      I agree 100%

[Mark5]

The ability to easily customize a box to a particular application like this has me 110% convinced that this is the way to go with future body mounts.   The turnaround time from concept to reality is hours, the cost per item is pennies, the quality is near to injection molding, and the customization means that the installation time is short, so converting a fleet is feasible.  These printers are nothing short of revolutionary in my book.

Agreed, although unfortunately this is out of reach for many modelers.

Hopefully, someone will start making at least some of the more common coupler pockets available for N scalers.

Mark

[ednadolski]

This is high praise from the guy that mapped the big bang      I agree 100%

Arguably the ultimate backdrop... 

Ed

[GaryHinshaw]

Agreed, although unfortunately this is out of reach for many modelers.

FWIW, the Photon Mono I am using cost $229 USD, so about the price of a sound loco.  Not cheap, indeed, but they open up a world of possibilities, beyond coupler pockets.

Arguably the ultimate backdrop... 

That is literally true.   

[Mark5]

FWIW, the Photon Mono I am using cost $229 USD, so about the price of a sound loco.  Not cheap, indeed, but they open up a world of possibilities, beyond coupler pockets.

Not too outrageous, will have to look into the cost of the resin as well. I could probably rationalize it if I can get a certain friend to do the cad work for a certain common N&W hopper. 

For the time being I will probably stick with some of the ideas posted in this thread (3/32 x 3/16 brass tubing, etc).

Mark

[ednadolski]

By offline request, here are links to the basic coupler box and basic slide-on lid, as illustrated below:



Box:  https://www.tinkercad.com/things/7Mj9rn1m28z-lez-pocket-basic/edit?sharecode=Macx_o6AhlVkpormuryPHANCkv9LwPXn_4Pc7838kV4

Lid:  https://www.tinkercad.com/things/dmz9d4NSIED-lez-pocket-lid-basic/edit?sharecode=ZJBtbmocDFekQ_BZ1BmjOR32veAjo_acNjIUEyDKx1g

Looks like the link has expired, @GaryHinshaw do you mind re-posting?

Thanks,
Ed

[GaryHinshaw]

Sure, here you go:

Basic pocket:
https://www.tinkercad.com/things/7Mj9rn1m28z-lez-pocket-basic/edit?sharecode=MREVlnf0RKuE9d3-dLzSlnm0QEO-Qdn7gLYQZCr4yFA

Lid (now with a tapered plug):
https://www.tinkercad.com/things/faJ3HDMpqyP-lez-pocket-lid-taper/edit?sharecode=Tivw3mQg7Y1HPhfOxAjzgdASXpbKmsrvV3WULX6fAsU

And here is a pair of links to the pocket I'm using for the spine cars.  This has holes in the top & bottom for a 00-90 screw that doubles as a coupler pivot post and a box mounting screw.  It also has some additional details on the side that are still kind of in development.  The flanges on the top corners of the box are sized to mate to the spine car and should probably be removed or modified for other screw mount application.

Pocket:
https://www.tinkercad.com/things/0pgJ1HxNq48-lez-pocket-blma-spine/edit?sharecode=87mHc8kgl01SsTP5dxWcFYtkHMmLd7EQ9cZepfJ5ifg

Lid:
https://www.tinkercad.com/things/kgY4kqZ4w0x-lez-pocket-lid-spine-taper/edit?sharecode=pbc-YsU-omjrQIP9SmPrtyE1wtG2CPvBDCs3uQm1UyI



P.S. I have no idea how one is supposed to manage files in Tinkercad.  I guess mature designs should be hosted somewhere else like Thingiverse for people to use...  I'm open to suggestions.

[ednadolski]

Good news from Lee: he now has a working assembly fixture again and is back in the coupler business.  There are some changes to the ordering process and the price has gone up, but they are still quite affordable.  He is now asking $1.60 per pair with a minimum order of 50 pair.  Shipping is free within the USA and should be less than $15 for international shipping. 

This is a personal project, not a Bowser project, so he is only accepting payment via check or money order (US funds), sent to his personal address.  Rather than posting that address here, I would advise you to send him an email to confirm the terms, then he can send you the address.  He can be reached at:

Lee English <bowser at bowser-trains.com>

Replace the ' at ' with '@'.  I think Ed will be contacting those who have placed pocket orders to confirm quantities.  Contact him by PM if you would still like to order some and haven't already.

-Gary

Bump, due to some recent asks on this wrt obtaining couplers.

Ed

[GaryHinshaw]

My last contact with Lee was in Feb'22.  The only change from the above info is that the price is now $2.00 a pair.  Here is a response from Lee with the latest info:

On Feb 7, 2022, at 4:49 AM, Bowser Manufacturing <bowser@bowser-trains.com> wrote:

Yes the couplers are still available

$2.00 per pair plus $15.00 for shipping to Canada.  Check or money order only.   US funds please

Thank you
Lee English
Bowser Mfg,  1302 Jordan Ave
Montoursville  PA  17754
www.bowser-trains.com
570-368-2379

s&h in USA $8.95 per order