HO - a little engine help please


BigE

BigE

Active Member
My buddy Carey put a decoder in this engine for me some time ago. I finally got around to fixing a loose connection today. No problem with that. Too me longer to get the dam shell off than to fix it.
Since I was at it I figured I'd put on Kaydee couplers to I can pull cars with it.

I have some longer shank couplers (Kaydee #146) that are still way too short.
They work great for my passenger and intermodal cars.
Any idea what I need to get for it? The couplers on it don't appear to the usual hook-horns I'm used to seeing.
I'm on 18" radii everywhere by the way.

I have no idea who the maker is.
The bottom of the gas tank says "made in Austria". It's only front wheel drive and no drive shafts.

Also what model is it? Seems I think we identified it once but now I forget. Maybe one of the U-boats?
Regardless, I got it running again.
Thanks for the help.
E.

(That's an engineering/architect scale so it's in tenths.)

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BigE

Some thoughts:

Neat looking engine you got.

I'll admit that a single axle drive sounds kind of crazy, but hey, if you like it, "no problemo.".

Regarding the coupler (from your pics) I would scrap the current coupler and probably its box too, and jury-rig a KaDee coupler box in there with a long-shanked KaDee coupler in it. Might have to use a lot of glue judiciously applied, but I bet it would work fine.

DougC
 
DougC said:
BigE

Some thoughts:

Neat looking engine you got.

I'll admit that a single axle drive sounds kind of crazy, but hey, if you like it, "no problemo.".

Regarding the coupler (from your pics) I would scrap the current coupler and probably its box too, and jury-rig a KaDee coupler box in there with a long-shanked KaDee coupler in it. Might have to use a lot of glue judiciously applied, but I bet it would work fine.

DougC
Click to expand...

It's a hand-me-up like most of my stuff from my little brother that I left behind decades ago.
The couplers are hooked directly into the truck assemblies. There is no box. The pic shows just the way it is. I have done nothing.
I wouldn't have a clue about retro-fitting that kind of thing.
This one is probably out of my league.

But do you know what it is?
I have a B23-7 that is close but I think this one would be an older model.
But if it doesn't work out, I can take the decoder out of the one in the pic and put in my 23-7 and run it. Those couplers I can replace with what I have on hand. But it's an old Tyco engine. They ain't fun to take apart. (not in my experience).
E.
 
The correct spelling is "Kaydee". Not sure if they would have a conversion kit for that or not. If I am correct, the current hook-horn coupler boxes are part of the truck frame, which projects past the ends of the truck sideframes. There are a couple of possibilties: One might be to remove the couplers and trim/file down the coupler draft gear box flat, and install a Kaydeee #505 or 508 draft gear set. You would prbably have to buy both and see what works...if either. The only problem might be that the height of the conversion set might not be right. The other alternative would be to cut the existing draft gear off the truck sideframe, leaving the sideframes intact, and then making some sort of plastic bridge between the stairs on the body, which would serve as a support for regular Kaydee draft gear boxes.
 
The correct spelling is NOT "Kaydee". There's no "Y" in Kadee!
 
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trailrider said:
The correct spelling is "Kaydee". Not sure if they would have a conversion kit for that or not. If I am correct, the current hook-horn coupler boxes are part of the truck frame, which projects past the ends of the truck sideframes. There are a couple of possibilties: One might be to remove the couplers and trim/file down the coupler draft gear box flat, and install a Kaydeee #505 or 508 draft gear set. You would prbably have to buy both and see what works...if either. The only problem might be that the height of the conversion set might not be right. The other alternative would be to cut the existing draft gear off the truck sideframe, leaving the sideframes intact, and then making some sort of plastic bridge between the stairs on the body, which would serve as a support for regular Kaydee draft gear boxes.
Click to expand...
http://www.kadee.com

It is spelled KADEE.
As in Keith And DalE Edwards.
 
Too bad these kinds of websites don't have a "spell checker". But then people will just find a way to over ride it just because.... LOL
 
trailrider said:
The correct spelling is "Kaydee".
Click to expand...
?? The correct spelling is simply Kadee.

Back to the conversion at hand. That looks like a really tough conversion. I would probably cut the coupler off the truck and body mount one, but that would ruin your 18" tracking. So perhaps you could jury rig something with either the Extra Long Shank NEM 362 Coupler, or the 451 extended swing gear boxes. I have never used any of the NEM 362s myself, but they have a longer shank than the normal long shanked couplers.
 
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Regardless of the spelling police writing us all tickets, I might just not mess with it.
However, today, I did manage to take care of an RS-3 dummy I had laying around.
I don't know what sort of track this could ever had ran on. The couplers didn't even come up to the bottom of my height gauge.
So, I hot glued the new ones to top of the boxes the old ones were inside. Amazingly, the height came out almost perfect.
I put it all back together and stuck it behind the engine I got from Terry to pull some cars. It derailed all over the place - even with no cars behind it.
I did recently ballasted all my track and found a couple places where the track got sucked down causing a big dip. I fixed all and tried again. I little better but it still wanted to come off pulling cars.
Then it occurred to me the thing is un-Godly light as a feather. So I packed in some air-rifle pellets with hot glue and now it hasn't come once pulling a half-dozen cars.
yay!!!
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I would shave off the current mechanism that holds the coupler and use some JB weld kwick epoxy and stick a new gear box and coupler in its place. That is what I do when stuff doesn't line up.

Here is the gear box page, I would go for the standard 242 if it fits.

http://www.kadee.com/htmbord/HO-Scale_Gear_Box.htm


Then, add a whisker coupler using whatever shank makes the knuckles line up.
 
Wow, yet another thread that is focusing on minor and insignificant irrelevancies completely removed from the original question. Hope I didn't misspell anything :(

Eric, glad someone was able to stay focused and help you with your question though.
 
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