On the other hand, one company in our hobby specializes in couplers. Its products have emerged as most modelers' "standard by choice". Railroaders in every scale from 1:220 through 1:20 use Kadee® couplers. Kadees meet most modelers' criteria for design, appearance, quality, reliability, and performance and even allow automatic uncoupling. So an ever growing number of modelers in the large scales is converting to Kadees.

THE CHOICES

If the minimum radius curves on your layout are 4 feet (LGB 1600) or larger, you may use Kadee's 830 ("G" scale) or 820 (Number One scale) body mount couplers. If you prefer a Talgo (truck mounted) style, you may replace the original loop type coupler on your cars' trucks with the Kadee 831 coupler. As I write this, I am aware of no Number One gauge Talgo coupler by Kadee. Talgo couplers are unnecessary on layouts using LGB 1600 radius curves but are preferable for sharper curves.

If you are a collector and want to avoid altering a car you may later want to sell, Talgo trucks are the way to go because, in order to mount Kadee 820 or 830 body mount couplers, you must cut the "tang" from the truck bolster.

To determine what size coupler to use, you must know some history.

Just after the turn of the century, the federal government passed a regulation requiring the use of automatic couplers on all rolling stock in interchange service. That meant railroads had to replace link-and-pin couplers with knuckle couplers. The very first automatic knuckle couplers were crude but, by the turn of the century, a rough standard had emerged. Several manufacturers made couplers; all were interchangeable.

Some narrow gauge roads, such as the Denver & Rio Grande, used full size couplers because they also had standard gauge operations. The larger coupler made it possible to forward a standard gauge car over the narrow gauge line simply by swapping trucks.

Many railroads popular with today's modelers, such as the D&RGW, Colorado & Southern, Rio Grande Southern, and East Tennessee & Western North Carolina, used full size couplers. Hobbyists modeling those railroads in 1:22.5 or 1:20.3 scales should use the larger Kadee 830 coupler.

Most other narrow gauge roads, including the East Broad Top and the Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge, used a three-quarter size coupler. The size most appropriate for representing that coupler in virtually all the large scales would be Kadee's 820. Many LGB modelers, regardless of the prototype they model, prefer the appearance of the smaller 820 and have adopted it as their standard. What is more, its draft gear box is only 3/4-inch wide as compared to the one inch the 830 requires. That allows more wheel clearance.

Whatever size you prefer, either coupler will mate with the other.

MOUNTING KADEE COUPLERS

Kadee specifies the centerline of the 830 coupler should be 1 1/8 inches above the railhead. The 820 should be 1 1/6 inches above the rail top. In most instances, real narrow gauge railroads mounted their couplers so the centerline was 26 inches above the rails. For modeling purposes, a tolerance anywhere in between should be acceptable.

Mounting Kadee couplers to most LGB American prototype rolling stock is simple. On passenger cars, first eliminate the coupler loop under the end sill. Do that by removing the two screws securing the end sill, removing the end sill itself, cutting off the loop, smoothing the area with a file, and reattaching it to the car body.

On most freight cars and tenders, cut a 1/4-inch thick block of wood (avoid balsa), plastic, or phenolic slightly larger than the coupler box. I prefer scrap Plexiglas. Cement it to the existing underframe. When the cement dries hard, notch out the end sill to permit the coupler box to seat on the block. Make the notch a tight fit, and be sure the box sits on the centerline of the car. On passenger cars, notch the end of the block to fit snugly against the end sill. Then, in both cases, hold the assembled coupler box in position, with the the box cover lip tight against the end sill. Mark the two points on the underframe where you must drill holes for the mounting screws. Then drill the holes and screw on the draft gear box.

If you want to close-couple passenger cars and your layout has wide radius curves, you may remove the lip on the coupler box. That way you may mount the box flush with, or slightly behind, the end sill. Be certain the car roofs clear each other.

You may want to make a drill jig. It will help save time when you install couplers.

Use a number 50 bit to drill the hole through the block and the car floor, then tap it 2-56. You may use a number 40 bit to counterbore the block 1/8-inch deep to aid in tapping.

I use the two longitudinal holes for mounting draft gear boxes on passenger cars. I use the two transverse holes for mounting them to freight cars because the two 2-56 screws Kadee supplies with the couplers will go through the floor beams and provide extra strength. It may be necessary to modify the mounting method for special situations. LGB hoppers cars, for instance, require a completely different approach to mounting couplers.

FINAL ADJUSTMENTS

After you have mounted the couplers and replaced the trucks, sit the car on the tracks and be sure the centerline of the coupler is between 1 1/6 and 1 1/8 inches above the rails. If the coupler is too high, compensate by placing a shim of sheet styrene under the draft gear box. If the entire car sits too high, the easiest way to lower it is to replace the wheels with metal wheels of a more appropriate diameter. Gary Raymond and Dean Lowe make such wheels.

You may want to keep one or two cars with a different kind of coupler, such as a hook and loop, at one end to accommodate visiting equipment. After all, some people still don't use Kadee couplers.