Hi Folks I became very disillusioned with my first attempts to use S & W couplings ( in 4mm scale but the same applies to any scale) I
thought them unnecessarily large, even using the TT version for 4mm or the 4 mm version for 7mm . In particular, although the remote
shunt facility was what drew my attention to them and the fact that they prevented buffer locking, the distance between buffers was so
excessively large it destroyed the other advantages. In the end I redesigned the whole thing to achieve what I considered to be a major
improvement in almost every aspect of appearance.
The first thing to tackle was to make all the parts in house from wire and scrap odds and ends which reduced the Hook unit to a much more
inconspicuous appearance and the "OVER RIDE remote shunt top bar" was removed so that the hook could be moved much closer to the BAR.
This meant I had to find another way to permit the remote shunt facility. This was achieved by making the wire hook bend upward and
backward then doubling it back down again below the first bend and finally bending it horizontally sideways for a few mm. Each wagon was
then fitted with a wire "L" which was fitted vertically down below the headstock and then at right angles horizontally away from the wagon.
2 Steel coupling links fitted to the wire hook at the correct position are magnetically attracted down to uncouple but by slightly drawing the
wagons apart the horizontal bar on the end of the hook drops below the "L" and when the wagons are pushed together the couplings cannot
engage until the wagons are separated.
I have been able to reduce the gap between wagons when being pulled to the minimum possible with regards the track radius without
buffers being forced together. The thin wire used is much less visible than the etching and costs are minimal. I am sure this will be
incomprehensible to you all so I will try to draw the scheme out if I can, unless some bright spark understands it and can do it for me !!!
thought them unnecessarily large, even using the TT version for 4mm or the 4 mm version for 7mm . In particular, although the remote
shunt facility was what drew my attention to them and the fact that they prevented buffer locking, the distance between buffers was so
excessively large it destroyed the other advantages. In the end I redesigned the whole thing to achieve what I considered to be a major
improvement in almost every aspect of appearance.
The first thing to tackle was to make all the parts in house from wire and scrap odds and ends which reduced the Hook unit to a much more
inconspicuous appearance and the "OVER RIDE remote shunt top bar" was removed so that the hook could be moved much closer to the BAR.
This meant I had to find another way to permit the remote shunt facility. This was achieved by making the wire hook bend upward and
backward then doubling it back down again below the first bend and finally bending it horizontally sideways for a few mm. Each wagon was
then fitted with a wire "L" which was fitted vertically down below the headstock and then at right angles horizontally away from the wagon.
2 Steel coupling links fitted to the wire hook at the correct position are magnetically attracted down to uncouple but by slightly drawing the
wagons apart the horizontal bar on the end of the hook drops below the "L" and when the wagons are pushed together the couplings cannot
engage until the wagons are separated.
I have been able to reduce the gap between wagons when being pulled to the minimum possible with regards the track radius without
buffers being forced together. The thin wire used is much less visible than the etching and costs are minimal. I am sure this will be
incomprehensible to you all so I will try to draw the scheme out if I can, unless some bright spark understands it and can do it for me !!!
