Progression (couplings)

[96RAF]

Many folk do not like magnetic couplings as seen on Brico, Lego, etc as they are not compatible with trackside uncoupling devices, although I have experimented with neo magnet couplings.

[96RAF]

Isn`t it about time instead of Hornby focussing on cheapness instead of it`s usual couplings it concentrated on quality and used magnetic couplings..or has Lego got the market?

[2e0dtoeric]

Magnetic couplings only work one way around - try turning a truck round the other way, and the magnets repel instead of attracting!

[JJ73]

Not if the magnets have been put in the right place :-

Loco (Magnet +)  (Magnet -) Wagon (Magnet -) (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) (Magnet -) Wagon (Magnet -) (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) etc etc etc

But now your going to say - what if you had 2 (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) (Magnet+) Wagon (Magnet +)

well you will be a bit stuck or should that be 'repel'!!!???!!! 

[ellocoloco]

@CitizenOllie

 

'instead of Hornby focussing on cheapness' - who said Hornby was focusing on cheapness? OO models are supplied with a coupling that the market has traditionally used. Is there really anything much cheaper about the tension lock coupling that Hornby supply with their OO models than those supplied by other OO scale producers?

 

'concentrated on quality and used magnetic couplings.' - A Kadee style operating knuckle, a Hunt style Neo magnet bar, a Brio style buffer beam? What kind of magnetic coupling do you have in mind and by what standard do you gauge quality of magnetic couplings?

 

Surely by trying to offer a NEM 362 adaptor on as many items of rolling stock as possible, Hornby are allowing the customer/modeller to choose what best suits them if they are not happy with a traditional UK OO scale tension lock coupler? There are plenty of couplers out there including Hornby's close couplers  (Roco style) that I much prefer.

[96RAF]

JJ I think you might have got your +s and -s a bit muddled In that rake.

Like poles repel and unlike poles attract.

https://images.app.goo.gl/WU15js5r2H4Anj5w7

[LCDR]

Couplings on most model railway trains tend to be cumbersome and unrealistic. This is necessary because the conditions in which they are used need to be able to cope with rough handling. Scale modellers frequently use representations of the hook and link couplings as found on the real thing but these will not couple automatically although there are a few semi automatic coupling types on the market which are less obtrusive (Alex Jackson for example). As ones eyesight deteriorates as one gets older even in 7mm scale the three link coupling is notoriously difficult to manage!

 

If you model United States practice the Kaydee knuckle coupler is about as good as it gets. In the UK environment it can be used for passenger stock with Pullman gangways, and for recent EWS type goods wagons. I use it for multiple unit stock.

 

Magnets as couplings are inflexible and tend to be horribly over scale, even worse than some of the things currently in use. OK for Brio type wooden toy trains but not really suitable for serious model railways.

 

No magnetic couplings DO NOT get my vote!

[JJ73]

@ Raf : - I don't think so - I think that you may have miss understood me!!!

 

Loco (Magnet +)  (Magnet -) Wagon (Magnet -) (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) (Magnet -) Wagon (Magnet -) (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) etc etc etc

 

then I said...

 

But now your going to say - what if you had 2 (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) (Magnet+) Wagon (Magnet +)

well you will be a bit stuck or should that be 'repel'!!!???!!! 

[RB51]

Easy to misunderstand JJ given the way you have chosen to place your magnets and then the method you have chosen to describe their arrangement. Simpler, I would have thought, would be to always have one + and one - per vehicle. Like this perhaps?

 

Loco + - Wagon+ -Wagon+ -Wagon+

 

However, I'm with LC. The use of magnets in any coupling arrangement will create more negative issues than positive 😎 R-

[LCDR]

The other issue raised in the OP is that magnetic couplings are use in Lego, In my experience Lego trains are closer to Gauge 1 than OO scale so the magnetic coupling is not quite so intrusive, One cannot really call Lego trains "Model Railways" but is part of the second best constructional toy ever.

 

The first? Meccano of course (ducks for cover)!

[96RAF]

@ Raf : - I don't think so - I think that you may have miss understood me!!!

Loco (Magnet +)  (Magnet -) Wagon (Magnet -) (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) (Magnet -) Wagon (Magnet -) (Magnet +) Wagon (Magnet +) etc etc etc

 

Still confused JJ. If I read it right each wagon has a same pole magnet at each end. E.g bold wagons are negative ( S) pole and non bold wagons are positive (N) pole. 

[RB51]

That is the problem with that arrangement. With different polarity at each end of a wagon, any wagon can be placed in any position in the train. The way JJ has it you are limited with a wagon's position "in train" however the polarity he is showing is correct. R-

[JJ73]

@ Raf & Rog :- Yes that is right 1 wagon has '-' poles then the next has '+' poles then '-' then '+' etc etc etc!!!

Thank you Roger!!!  😀

 

@ L. C. :- 

 

The first? Meccano of course (ducks for cover)!

You don't need to 'Duck for Cover' as you put it - b/c I remember as a child - I used to have Metal Meccino which was exciting but I did find it a bit differcult to understand how to use or to put to together - perhaps I didn't understand the instructions - but then a few yrs later - I had 'plastic' Meccano which I found much easier to use & understand & I can remember building a few things from the instructions!!!  😎 😀

[Howbi]

Would help if you used the correct nomenclature..........magnets do not have "+" & "-". .......that's for electrickary.........Magnets have North poles and South poles.........so a train's magnetic couplings could be denoted as ---NS---NS---NS---NS......etc........ 😮..........HB

[JeremiahBunyan]

@CitizenOllie

 

There's absolutely nothing cheap about Hornby's couplings or indeed the type of couplings used in OO scale. All modern day models and many older ones come with an NEM coupling pocket for those who wish to upgrade their couplings to something like a Kadee, Hunt's etc. It'll be absolutely pointless and expensive to upgrade every single OO scale model ever produced to a different coupling.

 

Regarding magnetic couplings, I did find JJ's explanation rather confusing. However I thought I'll add my own views on magnetic couplings, recently the Hunt's magnetic coupling system was released. And obsiously like any other magnetic coupling system one needs to ensure that the polarity is correct. When running trains, it does indeed help if you had a fixed rake, it just makes things easier. Each coach or wagon can have a N pole and a S pole at each end, to make coupling wagons/coaches to locos easier, you can always put N magnets on locos and swap the corresponding magnet on the train with a S magnet. So you will have something like this...

 

(N)LOCO(N) (S)COACH(N) (S)COACH(N) (S)COACH(N) (S)COACH(N) (S)COACH(S) (N)LOCO(N) 

 

This way, no matter where and when you couple a locomotive to a train, the outer ends of the train always have a S pole and the locos always have a N pole. However it does become problematic when double heading.

[Tony57]

Hi

Intreasting artical in new Hornby Magazine page 88 on magnetic couplers by west hill wagon works which can be fitted using nem pockets worth looking at.

[The son of Triangman]

 

I have looked at electro-magnetic couplings, but is problematical and requires rakes of stock to be permanently wired or each piece of rolling stock to have it's own power supply.

 

I have tried Kaydee's, which are good but don't always uncouple when you need them to, Magni-simplex (H/D/Peco type) and many others.  The old Tri-ang tension lock takes some beating.  Sadly today is more about looks than function so the old Tri-ang tension lock isn't liked nowadays.