How do you semi permanantly join kato locos

[Paradise275]

Hi I want to couple 3 or 4 Kato locos that will always run together. I was thinking as well to run decoder wire between then for better electrical pick up. What couplings are available that don't readily come apart but don't bind either?

Rick

[mu26aeh]

Would the ultimate knuckles work here ?  They are non operating knuckle couplers, can only come apart with large up down deviations in track.  What locos are you talking about ?

[victor miranda]

permanent wire and able to dis-connect?

if permanent screws into bars that replace the couplers
 two couplers becomes--> one bar with a hole at each end.

wires from chassis to chassis.

luck.

victor

[Paradise275]

Victor, I wasn't too concerned about being able to take them apart. The reason I want to wire them together is because of sound decoders. There is not enough room in a Kato E8 for a keep alive capacitor so linking them would be more positive. The locos would be Kato F-3's and E-8's.
Would Unimate coulpers work? How do you install them.

Rick

[victor miranda]

unimates are a coupler  they do not work like the MT couplers over a magnetic ramp.

having a coupler allows one to disconnect the engines.
steam engines rarely had a janney knuckle coupler to the tender.
they use a bar with pins or bolts to hold tender to engine... a drawbar.

If you plan to never take the units apart....
then you can use a drawbar and attach wires from one chassis to the other.

taking the units apart means you will want a way to disconnect wires.

that leads to all the things steam engines use to solve the problem.

victor

[mu26aeh]

Unimate couplers were introduced by Precision Masters, then to Red Caboose when they got the PM line.  They have a "T" shank and fit in like a rapido coupler in the coupler box. They also had a body mount version with a straight shank and hole at end to mount with a screw to the body.  Do an online search for n scale unimate coupler, it should come up with pictures and a few locations that have item in stock .  Red Caboose item numbers, 51000 (short), 51010 (medium), 51020 (long) and 51060 (body mount)

Like Victor mentioned, these are non-operating.  They just have the look of a knuckle coupler.

[gkoproske]

Your problem isn't the couplers, it's the wiring and their connections between locomotives.  And this wiring can get complicated too.  Especially if you want one decoder to power all the trailing locomotives, yet have track power feed back to the decoder in the lead locomotive.  That's 4 wires between each.  If you are going to use a MRC decoder in the E8 in the lead, I'd recommend a different product from someone else.

[Paradise275]

OK if the wiring is a problem, then is there a small keep alive capacitor that can be cut into the frame of the locomotive?
There is no room otherwise. Oh, perhaps in the B units. Can an A & B run off the same keep alive?
I thought you could just link the power pick ups for continuity.

Rick

[mu26aeh]

Maybe I read this wrong as I thought by couplings, I thought actual couplers. But now reading the other responses maybe you meant electrical coupling ?

[Paradise275]

No, I mean both. If I couple the locomotive electrically (on a permanent basis) then I want to couple the locos together either permanently or semi permanently.

Rick

[victor miranda]

well,
the more locos you have wired together the less you need the keep alive

wire the chassis to each other with two wires.
the keep alive cap is for the decoder and requires another pair of wires

if you lashed up 4 locos, the cap is in one and has 4 wires to the sounder
the other two locos have just two wires each.

dis-connects will be a struggle.

victor

[nkalanaga]

The Unimates work fine on any loco that came with a T-shank Rapido.  On those with some of the odder Rapdios, and those designed specifically for knuckle couplers, they would be a pain to install.

If you have one with "regular" MT or Accumate couplers, you could glue the shank pieces together.  It's real easy, as anyone who's ever tried to glue a coupler to a car will attest, and makes a dummy coupler that works as well as a Unimate.  Just cut the pin off, so you can couple and uncouple it easier.  With the wires as MU hoses things will look busy enough without it.

[rrjim1]

I have two sets of locos wired together, a two unit set and a three unit set. I just used MT couplers, works great for me.   

[Paradise275]

rrjim1
Did you just attach wires to the pick up strips? Or did you do something else. Are your decoders sound decoders?

Rick

[rrjim1]

The three unit set's middle unit was turned into a dummy, and has a Digitrax decoder with wires running to both power units. I ran wires to the motors and pickups. The two unit set's B unit was also turned into a dummy and a sound decoder was installed with wires running to the power unit's pickups and motor.