Coupler Height


Brakeman Hal

Well-Known Member
The NMRA has its standards for coupler height, but I observe the "real world" alignment I see on prototype trains, which rarely observe evenly-mated coupler height.

Here's my coupler connection...its not NMRA, but it pulls the train just fine!

Brakeman Hal
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YEAH -- And I like the simpleness of your layout for my favorite pastime of just watching a train going around in a circle, or in your case a folded dogbone.
 
YEAH -- And I like the simpleness of your layout for my favorite pastime of just watching a train going around in a circle, or in your case a folded dogbone.
It is not a folded dog bone..It's pinched circle...Nothing is folded as he'd like to believe....And he's dead wrong about the 1:1 scale..You'd be hard pressed to find misaligned coupler mating (- an inch or so tolerance)..RRs have strict nationwide transportation and maintenance laws about this.. Misaligned knuckles is the exception not the rule..It ain't the Toonerville Trolley.
 
Gents, how is it folded ? Folded means 2 parallel tracks (of one continuous loop), one going up a grade or down in an underpass crossing over and under one another, (not touching of course) ..A mobius strip is folded..A figure 8 made with an unbroken single piece of string is folded, A stretched rubberband then twisted...
This individual has a simple circle pinched in the middle
 
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Sherrel D, Rico, others.. I'm sensing sarcasm from you toward me simply because I clarified what's what. Folded is folded. Pinched is pinched (or bent in). If the 2 parallel tracks crossed with a crossing (or diamond) it'd be a figure 8.
 
Um, actually no I’m asking Hal if he’s going with nmra standard coupler heights on his rolling stock.
Sorry if you took it that way.
(I’m in Canada, it’s in our DNA to apologize for everything. Sorry)
 
It is not a folded dog bone..It's pinched circle...Nothing is folded as he'd like to believe....And he's dead wrong about the 1:1 scale..You'd be hard pressed to find misaligned coupler mating (- an inch or so tolerance)..RRs have strict nationwide transportation and maintenance laws about this.. Misaligned knuckles is the exception not the rule..It ain't the Toonerville Trolley.
Really, explain this then. See it all the time.
IMG_3333.jpg
 
Really, explain this then. See it all the time.View attachment 114282
This is very common. The difference between loads and empties is not much less than seen here.

What's worse is when the bearing plate underneath a long drawbar is extremely worn or missing completely. Cars with these couplers would be modern reefers, centerbeams, 60' double plug door boxcars (such as TBOX) and most bulkhead flatcars. In that case the coupler droops down quite a bit and can be difficult to couple to.

A few months ago our switch power included an ex-Frisco GP38-2 with Type F couplers. The switchmen weren't able to couple up to a 60' boxcar with a drooping coupler because the lower shelf of the F coupler was preventing the SBE coupler of the boxcar from closing. We had to get another car with E couplers to couple to the locomotive before we could successfully couple to the boxcar.
 
This is very common. The difference between loads and empties is not much less than seen here.

What's worse is when the bearing plate underneath a long drawbar is extremely worn or missing completely. Cars with these couplers would be modern reefers, centerbeams, 60' double plug door boxcars (such as TBOX) and most bulkhead flatcars. In that case the coupler droops down quite a bit and can be difficult to couple to.

A few months ago our switch power included an ex-Frisco GP38-2 with Type F couplers. The switchmen weren't able to couple up to a 60' boxcar with a drooping coupler because the lower shelf of the F coupler was preventing the SBE coupler of the boxcar from closing. We had to get another car with E couplers to couple to the locomotive before we could successfully couple to the boxcar.
Sounds like they need an NPRA (National Prototype Railroad Association) coupler height gage! :rolleyes:
 



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