Couplers -which to get?

[russell]

Intro: I’m new, but not really, to the hobby. About 25 years ago I had a simple layout for my teenage boys and a bit later for my daughter. When they moved on to other things, I packed it all up and put it away in boxes. Now I’m a grandfather and retired and so I’ve taken it all out again for myself as much as for my grandchildren. I will be posting a series of questions over the next few weeks. I hope they’re not too troublesome.

The first has to do with couplers. The locomotives back then were both Athearn and the couplers are what was standard (I guess) back then. I don’t know the name. My recent locomotives are from Atlas and have what Atlas calls AccuMate couplers. I want my old boxcars and such to be usable with the new locomotives. Should I switch the old couplers to AccuMates, should I switch the AccuMates to the older ones, or should I get something else entirely? Which couplers are best and why? Which are the worst and why?
I will not be running very long trains, maybe 10 cars at the most.

 

[Rico]

Most modellers go with Kadee metal couplers, usually #5's which are cheaper to buy in bulk packs.
They'll hold up to a lot of punishment and are available in a variety of configurations to convert different rolling stock.
If you search the forum you'll find much info.
Here's the website, it has a chart showing the applications:
http://www.kadee.com/index.shtml

 

[Dougget]

You need a transition car. Pick any one of your rolling stock and put an older style "horn" coupler at one end and a accumate or kadee at the other (whatever modern coupler you decide to go with).

That way you won't need to replace all of your old couplers or downgrade your new equipment. You just need to string like couplers together and use the transition car if you need to connect new cars to an old loco, or the other way around.

Doug

 

[funnelfan]

I prefer the new Kadee Whisker couplers over the old #5's with their separate centering spring. The centering action is far more reliable and they are easier to install. The new couplers also come with a new style coupler box that has a snap on lid, a huge improvement over the #5 box.

 

[Rico]

Ah, the transition car, good one!
Forgot about that.

 

[hamltnblue]

The Kadee 148 whisker is my favorite, followed by the good ole number 5

 

[diburning]

I use Walthers ProtoMAX and Kadee #5s. The Walthers ProtoMAX are near-identical clones of kadee #5s and work the same way, but cost a few bucks less for the bulk pack.

Some cars either have a large bolster that won't take the #5's centering spring, have a narrow coupler pocket that won't accept the centering spring, or have a shallow pocket that won't let the coupler swing with the added thickness of the centering spring, or won't clear the "ears" of the centering spring. I always keep a pair or two of #148s (whisker spring couplers) in the parts box for those applications.

For tank cars, I use #119s, scale head double shelf whisker spring couplers. They look great.

For some locomotive pilots, I use #146s (long shank whisker coupler) because the snowplow may get in the way of the trip pin if you are coupling a car/train/another locomotive to the front of the locomotive.

All of the numbers I've mentioned above are metal couplers. Kadee makes plastic ones too, for engines that do not have an insulated coupler pocket. However, I find that buying plastic kadees is pointless as they don't work any better than the stock plastic couplers that come with the engines/cars

All HO scale Kadee couplers are compatible with each other.

 

[russell]

Thank you all. Diburning wrote,

All HO scale Kadee couplers are compatible with each other.

Thanks for that. It was going to be my next question.

Dougget suggested a transition car and that's what I did. I removed my Accumate on the locomotive and I removed an old coupler from one of my boxcars, installed a Kadee #5 and it worked.

A happy camper .