Couplers

(James)

When it comes to model railroad couplers, there are lots of choices.  There are many manufacturers, and many types within a manufacturer.  This gives modelers thousands of possibilities.  Overall, couplers can be broken into three basic types, which are horn-hook couplers, knuckle couplers, and scale couplers.

Horn-Hook Couplers:

Photo from www.amazon.com

Horn-hook couplers were standard for decades on model railroad equipment.  They did not operate prototypically, nor did they look anything like what one might find on an actual freight car.  If you wanted more accurate, knuckle couplers, they were aftermarket parts.  They could be purchased separately and installed.

Horn-hook couplers were used for so long because of patent requirements.  Kadee has been making knuckle couplers for a long time, but also owned all the patents on them for a long time.  As those expired, the horn-hook couplers began to disappear and other manufacturers began making knuckle couplers standard on their products.

Horn-hook couplers, though they were not much to look at, did have one major advantage.  They were, and still are, quite cheap.  To convert an entire fleet would not cost very much at all, although today it is difficult to even find anyone who makes horn-hook couplers!  Their biggest drawback had to do with reverse operations.  By their nature, they tended to put force in a sideways direction on the ends of the coupled cars.  As a train would move in reverse, this often resulted in the cars derailing on curves, picking switches, and going places you did not want them to go!  This problem was magnified as the train got longer.

Knuckle Couplers:

Photo from www.kadee.com

Knuckle couplers are basically the industry standard at this point.  Most of them have magnetic trip pins and can be operated automatically with a magnet or electromagnet under the tracks.  For many years, Kadee was the only manufacturer of knuckle couplers.  Recently, more companies have began making them, and now they are widely available.  They come in a few basic varieties.  They can either be metal or plastic.  They can be spring operated, in which there is a very small metal spring in place to ensure that the knuckle moves into places and couplers properly.  Others have a plastic tab to put pressure on the knuckle and move it into place.

The most reliable knuckle couplers are metal, spring operated knuckle couplers.  All couplers from Kadee are metal, spring operated couplers.  Now, there are a variety of particular types available, designed to represent prototype couplers.  You can find couplers which have shelves, such as those found on tank cars.  A more recent development is the plug and socket arrangement found on passenger cars and some locomotive couplers.  Various manufacturers make couplers that represent these features.

My personal preference, when it comes to knuckle couplers, is basically anything that is manufactured by Kadee.  All their couplers are metal, and generally they fit into just about any coupler mounting system without any modification.  The operate reliably for years, as long as the operating spring is not lost somehow.  They have magnetic trip pins, and can be operated remotely by a magnetic device beneath the tracks.  Other manufacturers include McHenry, Proto, Atlas, Kato, and Athearn, to name a few.  They are all compatible with different brands, however, they are not compatible with any other type of couplers.

Knuckle couplers have several advantages.  They look considerably more realistic than horn-hook couplers.  They operate much better, and there are no problems when backing.  They do tend to be a bit more expensive than horn-hook couplers, depending on which brand you buy.  I think it is worth the extra cost for the added realism and better operation though.  I would much rather spend the extra money on knuckle couplers rather than horn-hook couplers!

Scale Couplers:

Photo from www.bronx-terminal.com

My favorite couplers are scale sized knuckle couplers.  These look the most realistic simply because they are exact models of the real thing, scaled down to 1/87 of the original size!  So far, I have only found one manufacturer, and that is Sergent Engineering.  There are several types available, and they are exact replicas of the various prototype coupler types.  These operate a bit differently than either the horn-hook or typical knuckle couplers talked about earlier.  They do not depend on spring pressure to keep them engaged.  These couplers are engaged when another coupler mates with them.  Inside, there is a ball bearing which acts as a locking mechanism.  When the coupler is closed, the ball bearing falls into place, much like a pin on the prototype, and locks the coupler closed.  The coupler is unlocked by lifting the ball bearing with a magnetic wand.  There is no spring or plastic tab to wear out, and therefore less chance that the coupler will stop engaging properly after time.

These couplers have never come standard on equipment.  They have only been manufactured in fairly small quantities, usually depending on the number of orders.  Typically, if you want these on your equipment, they will have to be installed as aftermarket parts.  This leads to one major drawback.  These couplers are expensive!  Depending on what type of couplers you are looking for, they can be as little as $1.72 for a coupler, or as high as $3.25 per coupler!  I have lately been using parts from two different coupler types to make passenger car couplers, and when you do it that way, the price goes up to at least $4.97 per coupler!  If you are thinking about converting an entire fleet, you may have to plan on doing it in phases.  This is also a bit of a problem though, because these couplers are not compatible with any others.  If you convert in phases, some of your equipment will not be able to be coupled to other equipment.

Operationally, these couplers are outstanding.  When new, they do need to be broken in.  This is a fairly simple process which involves applying a little graphite to the moving parts of the coupler, and then opening and closing it repeatedly until everything is pretty well coated in  the stuff.  If that is done properly, these couplers will operate without any problems for a long time.  They operate realistically, in that something needs to unlock them before they will open.  I have never had a problem with them uncoupling during operations.  These couplers are all metal, and are quite strong.  These couplers do not center themselves, the way most standard knuckle couplers do, which does make coupling on curves and switches easier.  It also means that the operator has to make sure couplers are aligned to receive when coupling.  Failure to do this means that a coupling will not likely be made.

At this time, remote uncoupling is not available from Sergent Engineering.  This means a model railroad would need to be designed with the tracks within reach to facilitate uncoupling.  I have read in a few places about people installing electromagnets under the tracks to enable remote uncoupling.  The idea is that the electromagnet, when activated, could repel the ball bearings inside the couplers, pushing them up, and allowing the coupler to open.  While I have not personally tried this, I have heard of it working for some people.

These couplers have some very good advantages.  They look great, and the operate flawlessly.  They do add a new level of realism to operations.  They are durable, and because of their size, there is extremely little slack action in a whole train.  Their biggest disadvantage is the price.  Since they are so expensive, it is unlikely that anyone would convert the entire fleet at one time, and then you run into the problem of them not being compatible with any other couplers.  I have chosen to use these on my model trains.  I started with about the half the fleet, and then converted the other half.  At this point, I try to keep a few on hand for whenever I acquire new equipment.  Before new equipment hits the rails, it gets a new set of couplers.

Couplers are one of the smallest, yet most important parts of operations.  Choosing the right couplers is very important.  The sooner a choice is made to standardize, the easier the conversion is.  This ought to give you an idea of what is out there, and what you may want to use.  As always, let us know if you have questions or if you would like more information.  We would love to help if we can!