Choosing couplers

[thomasjmdavis]

they sometimes get intertwined, and you can usually separate them by gently rolling them on the plate.

I don't mean to quibble, but in my experience, the probability that they are intertwined approaches 99.5%, but maybe that has something to do with shipping or temperature or electromagnetic fields in my house.  On rolling them to separate, and while I cannot explain this, I find that the first ones I do come apart easily, but the more I do, the harder it gets.  The last pair in the little tube are almost impossible.

You will get a lot of extra springs in your bubble pack..

In actual fact, the number of extra springs is always at least 2 less than the number that you lose.  I have no idea how they know in advance how many extra to put in so you will still run short, without even knowing for certain who will buy which pack of couplers, but I think it has been established as a mathematical law at this point.

You now have one assembled coupler.  Reward yourself with another sip of beer, bourbon, coffee, a glimpse of Halle Berry on your phone, whatever it takes.

I recommend using a beverage container with a lid, lest you find the missing springs in your dental work later.  On Halle Berry, well, make sure you know where your spouse is at all times.  Also your children, as otherwise they will learn some new words, especially in that part of the operation that requires 3 hands and a microscope.

I know I am bitter, you will have to forgive me, I spent the last weekend installing diesel conversion kits and 1128s.

[jdcolombo]

I don't mean to quibble, but in my experience, the probability that they are intertwined approaches 99.5%, but maybe that has something to do with shipping or temperature or electromagnetic fields in my house.  On rolling them to separate, and while I cannot explain this, I find that the first ones I do come apart easily, but the more I do, the harder it gets.  The last pair in the little tube are almost impossible.In actual fact, the number of extra springs is always at least 2 less than the number that you lose.  I have no idea how they know in advance how many extra to put in so you will still run short, without even knowing for certain who will buy which pack of couplers, but I think it has been established as a mathematical law at this point.
I recommend using a beverage container with a lid, lest you find the missing springs in your dental work later.  On Halle Berry, well, make sure you know where your spouse is at all times.  Also your children, as otherwise they will learn some new words, especially in that part of the operation that requires 3 hands and a microscope.

I know I am bitter, you will have to forgive me, I spent the last weekend installing diesel conversion kits and 1128s.

OK.  Well, maybe it WOULD be a good idea to buy an extra package of springs.  $2 for a pack of 12 . . . Think of it as an insurance policy . . .

John C.

[Kisatchie]

"The best coupling system in the world just got better" strongly implies to me that ALL Micro-Trains couplers are now RDA.

I'm out of town today, Friday and Saturday, but come Monday, I'll call Micro-Trains and ask them.


Hmm... ask 'em if they'll
be making any more
banana cars...

[chicken45]

I have a bubble pack of 1016s and took a loop to them. They look like RDA. Hmm...

[Angus Shops]

Alcohol, unassembled MT couplers, and sharp knives are a dangerous combination. Firearms should definitely be locked up.

Geoff

[brill27mcb]

I am in the midst of upgrading my PRR Bowser hopper, cabin cars and Red Caboose X29 boxcars. I have gone with body mounted Z-scale 903/905 couplers for accurate intercar spacing, also FVM wheels and Hay Brothers coal loads. Unfortunately the 903/905 design does not have the RDA knuckle design improvement, and the springs are behind instead of ahead of the mounting/pivot post, but for me better intercar spacing and coupler appearance outweighed these factors. The short GLa hoppers in particular do not look good as a train with long coupler spacing gaps.

Good news is the very latest Bowser hoppers have coal loads that look much improved and do not need replacing or beautifying, and also come with metal wheels.

I give Bowser a lot of credit for bringing these cars out in the first place, for re-issuing the hoppers this year in some new road numbers, and for making upgrades over the course of production. I'm hopeful they will re-issue the basic "Pennsylvania"/no herald N5 cabin car too.

Rich K.

[mark.hinds]

"The best coupling system in the world just got better" strongly implies to me that ALL Micro-Trains couplers are now RDA.
<snip>

I think you are mistaken.  When I took the photo I posted above (a couple of years ago), they certainly weren't all RDA; in particular the 1021 wasn't.  Further, when you look at their web page, note that although many couplers are listed as RDA, some such as the 1021/1022 are not so listed.  http://www.micro-trains.com/pl-NCouplers.php.  This is actually a good thing for those who use magnetic uncoupling, as it is easier to simulate RDA by notching the tip of a 1021 than it is to thin the tip of a 1015/1016.  BTW, it is easy to ID an RDA coupler by visual inspection of the tip, which will be notched.  I don't think that MT has fixed the issue with the thicker tip yet, though I haven't bought any RDA couplers since the photo, having a large stock of all varieties in hand already. 

I have a bubble pack of 1016s and took a loop to them. They look like RDA. Hmm...

You are correct; 1015/1016 couplers are RDA.  So long as you don't plan to use magnetic uncoupling, you are good to go with them.  Otherwise, assuming MT hasn't yet fixed the issue with the tips, you need to do something to reshape them, like my mod illustrated above.  What happens is that the wider tips sometimes catch on each other, when you try to move the cars apart over the magnet; see image below.  This is particularly irritating if you are trying to unobtrusively put the cars into "delayed uncoupling" mode with a short back-and-forth movement.  (Since it is unprototypical, you want it to be unobtrusive).  For what it's worth, the issues I have IDed with RDA occur using the standard #308 MT under-track magnets placed directly under the plastic ties.  Perhaps if you use stronger magnets, the issue may go away (or perhaps not ...). 



MH

[reinhardtjh]

Why did this lose the "-1?" Does it mean anything?

It's a minor point, but handy and nobody addressed it. but the "-1" means it's assembled.  Applies to the 1015, 1016, 2001, 2004, etc.  If it has a "-1" then it's assembled.  Unfortunately, the converse is not always true. The 1023 and 1025, for instance, come in assembled packs but the stock # has no "-1"    And the newish passenger trucks 1017 are all assembled despite having  various "-2", "-2S", "-10"  and "-10S" suffixes. 

As you may have guessed, black is the default color, a "B" suffix means brown and in the case of the passenger trucks "S" means silver.  The "-10" means a 10-pair package.  Others may be 1, 2 or 3 pair packages.  Read the descriptions.

[peteski]

It's a minor point, but handy and nobody addressed it. but the "-1" means it's assembled.  Applies to the 1015, 1016, 2001, 2004, etc.  If it has a "-1" then it's assembled.  Unfortunately, the converse is not always true. The 1023 and 1025, for instance, come in assembled packs but the stock # has no "-1" 

I thought that 1023 and 1025 were the same coupler except one number was for assembled and the other for unassembled version.  If not, what is the difference between 1023 and 1025?

[nkalanaga]

1023 is the assembled coupler, 1025 is the kit.  I've been using the 1025's for over 40 years.

Oddly, the Z/Nn3 body mount couplers are numbered the opposite:  903 is the kit, 905 the assembled coupler.  I tried assembling them, when they first came out, back in the 80s.  They didn't work for me, so I always buy the assembled ones.  They're identical to the 1023/1025 in design, only smaller, so I don't know why I had so much trouble.

I use 1015s only when necessary, but they're no harder to assemble than the 1025s, just "backwards".  The jig might make it easier, but for me it isn't needed.  The bulk packs are also cheaper than the 1025s, so if I ever run out of 1025s, that's probably what I'll use.  Most models with body mounted couplers today are designed for 1015s, or can easily be converted to them.

[chicken45]

Thanks, everybody!

[strummer]

I find the assembly jig to be very helpful, particularly when installing the spring and lid. The tweeters are a must!

I agree.

Mark in Oregon

[SP-Wolf]

This is a great thread-- and - a real eye opener. I have been using both the 1025's and 1015's for years-- and -- never picked up on these things. This explains a lot. I have to relook at my freight car fleet -- and make some adjustments. I just body mounted about 100 cars. Using a combination of 1025's, 1015's and cutting off the coupler box from MT trucks (And mounting them directly to the car body).

Thanks- ya'll!!
Wolf

[CNscale]

One more tip regarding the assembly of 1015 couplers -- included with each coupler is an optional shim. Do not confuse the shim with the coupler box cover, or you will press that little box until your fingers go numb and never experience the sublime "click" that indicates your coupler is complete. If your fingers don't go numb it's probably because they slipped, and spewed several tiny bits of plastic and a spring out into the ether.

[reinhardtjh]

I thought that 1023 and 1025 were the same coupler except one number was for assembled and the other for unassembled version.  If not, what is the difference between 1023 and 1025?

Yeah, you're right.  Another inconsistency...