Questions, Answers & Tips -
After gluing, I set the coupler aside for several hours to dry.
Usually I assemble 50 or so at a time, so I just line them up on a
desk to dry.
The next day, I either start using the couplers or put them away.
Before installation, I coat both sides of the knuckle with graph-
ite, as well as the pushing surface of the coupler. I do this for a
pair, usually to go on one car, and then I couple the couplers, and
slide them up and down while stretched and bunched, several
times in each state. Finally, with them bunched, I turn them over
and let the balls get out of the way. Then I pull them apart and
push them together in such a way that it forces both knuckles to
open fully and close fully. I do this several times, until I am satis-
fied that both couplers are opening and closing smoothly. If any
fail to open or fail to lock, they go in a separate pile for me to fix
or toss, depending on the cause.
2
2: This Union Pacific diesel unit, eastbound at Rowena,
OR, is a distributed power unit (DPU), not a helper.
DPUs on level track can be represented by careful
speed-matching with the head-end locomotives, or else
by adding a dummy engine.
MRH-Sep 2013
