Large Scale Central

Prototype coupler spacing

Prototypes
#1

I never know which forum category to place questions like this, but I hope this will work.

I took some pictures on a local siding near Santa Fe Drive of steel-sided boxcar couplings and some tanker couplings.

It looks to me as if the boxcar couplers are in draft boxes which stick out a lot farther from the body of the car itself than I imagined they should. When I’m installing body-mounted kadee couplers, I was about to install them with the lip of the draft box right against the wall of the body…but here in this picture you can see that the draft box is way out from there. That would be good in a model in one sense because it gives you an ability to run a tighter curve and also reduces the chance of the wheels hitting the inside corners of the draft box on turns.

My question is this: is this picture a normal situation? Do I need to go out and make more observations of this?

I also include the tanker-coupling picture for comparison because the tanker couplers seem to be much closer to the frame of the body of the tanker.

Thanks.

p.s. I’m not what they call a rivet counter, but I like to be reasonably accurate where I can, and this seems to me to be worth nailing down since I have a lot of rolling stock I want to look right.

#2

Hi John,

What you are looking at in the boxcar photos are cushioned under frame allowing the contents to go on undamaged. They allow the body of the car to slide a little on the frame which are controled by heavy springs. Not all boxcars have these type frames. Here is were you would mount the coupler as you discribed.

Hope this is some help to you

Chester Louis SA #64 Hampshire County Narrow Gauge

#3

Wouldn’t mounting the draft gear further away from the car end effectively lengthen the car (and the pivot distance from the truck) making it less tolerable of small radius? Unless you mount the draft gear on a single screw and allow it to pivot I don’t see it helping in curves.

#4

Jon Radder said:

Wouldn’t mounting the draft gear further away from the car end effectively lengthen the car (and the pivot distance from the truck) making it less tolerable of small radius? Unless you mount the draft gear on a single screw and allow it to pivot I don’t see it helping in curves.

#5

I thought of that after I wrote my question but didn’t get time to edit…I think you’re right. I don’t know if it would make the car less tolerant of curves but it may not help either. I’m tempted to try one and see what happens.

#6

Chester Louis said:

Hi John,

What you are looking at in the boxcar photos are cushioned under frame allowing the contents to go on undamaged. They allow the body of the car to slide a little on the frame which are controled by heavy springs. Not all boxcars have these type frames. Here is were you would mount the coupler as you discribed.

Hope this is some help to you

Chester Louis SA #64 Hampshire County Narrow Gauge

Thanks Chester, that explains a lot…did you intend to post a picture?

#7

The longer distance from the truck bolster to the coupler wouldn’t necessarily affect the radius around which the car can travel, but it might impact how the coupler behaves when coupled to cars that may not have quite so much overhang. You’d need to make sure you’ve got adequate side-to-side play on the couplers. Practically speaking, you’re looking at maybe an extra 1/2" - 3/4" total length, which isn’t going to make all that big of a deal. Long distances between coupler face and bolster–particularly on long cars–has a greater impact on “S” curves, such as going into and out of passing sidings. For instance, I can run my long 1:20 passenger cars all day long around my 5’ radius curves and not have any problem. They won’t go through back-to-back 5’ radius switches, though, because the couplers don’t have enough side-to-side play. Fortunately, the switches on my outdoor line are #6, so that’s not an issue, and I don’t run my passenger cars on my indoor shelf layout.

Later,

K

#8

On the UP when we make up a train, there are actually rules about long cars being coupled to short cars. Even the software we use will recognize this problem and alert the crew to do some switching to correct the placement errors. I have actually seen long cars going around sharp curves without any problem. The curve on an industrial track was actually so sharp that you could see the outer rail of the curve under the edge of the car!

#9

John Passaro said:

Chester Louis said:

Hi John,

What you are looking at in the boxcar photos are cushioned under frame allowing the contents to go on undamaged. They allow the body of the car to slide a little on the frame which are controled by heavy springs. Not all boxcars have these type frames. Here is were you would mount the coupler as you discribed.

Hope this is some help to you

Chester Louis SA #64 Hampshire County Narrow Gauge

Thanks Chester, that explains a lot…did you intend to post a picture?

No Picture to show. Figured you knew how to mount the couplers directly.

Chester Louis SA #64 Hampshire County Narrow Gauge

#10

No Picture to show. Figured you knew how to mount the couplers directly.

Chester Louis SA #64 Hampshire County Narrow Gauge

I do indeed…thanks again.

#11

William. Out here on NS, we have a place called Benny Curve, site of the Wreck of the Red Arrow in 1947 (http://www.billspennsyphotos.com/apps/photos/photo?photoid=98401892 ). This is our mainline from North Jersey west to Chicago. The curve here, (Track #4, today #3 is the outside track of the curve in the picture) is so tight that when autoracks go around it that the outside sill frame clears the rail!

#12

Jon Radder said:

Wouldn’t mounting the draft gear further away from the car end effectively lengthen the car (and the pivot distance from the truck) making it less tolerable of small radius? Unless you mount the draft gear on a single screw and allow it to pivot I don’t see it helping in curves.

The shortest curve that I have on my RR is 10 ft diameter (5 ft radius), that is led into by a 20 ft curve as sort of a spiral ( one 20 ft curve, then two 10 ft curves then another 20ft making up a 90 degree turn).

I have done my Aristo Evans boxcars with the “cushion couplers” using the 820 Kadee. I used two screws to secure the coupler. So far, I haven’t had any trouble with derailing or “clothes lining” (is that the word?) where the cars are pulled to the inside of the curve.

I imagine that if someone was to use a curve smaller than… say 6 feet… there might be some problems.

#13

**Steve Featherkile said:**So far, I haven’t had any trouble with derailing or “clothes lining” (is that the word?) where the cars are pulled to the inside of the curve.

String-lining is the term :slight_smile: The result is normally because of improper blocking… Lots of rules on what cars can go where in the train.

#14

Craig Townsend said:

**Steve Featherkile said:**So far, I haven’t had any trouble with derailing or “clothes lining” (is that the word?) where the cars are pulled to the inside of the curve.

String-lining is the term :slight_smile: The result is normally because of improper blocking… Lots of rules on what cars can go where in the train.

I was flipping a coin between the two phrases, and clothes lining won out. Thanks, Craig. :stuck_out_tongue: