I just installed MT 1033-1 truck sets on two of my Bev-Bel 50' box cars. (Now, keep in mind I'm new to working with Micro Train stuff!) No problems with the installation part, however, the couplers will not couple. The couplers are hitting on the knuckle or backside of the knuckle and not engaging. I double-checked that the couplers are centering, which they seem to be, and even took one apart to verify the assembly. Followed the assembly directions too! Now, here is the strange part: the 1033-1 sets work fine with the 1037-1 I installed on some covered hoppers. So, how do you adjust these couplers? Looks like I need to get the couplers to sit a little off center to get them to engage. The knuckles need to "hit" the "jaw" of the coupler, right?
Mark I converted 600 cars to MT trucks. Never had a problem such as not coupling. Are the couplers body mounted ? if yes check if they're mounted in the center of the car. If truck mounted check if the trucks are in the center of the car. I assume that you didn't mount the couplers head-over-heels.
600! Wow! And, I can't get three or four to work. The couplers are truck mounted and just bounce off each other when I push them together. I'll check the alignment of the mounting hole for the pins, but I doubt that would be off.
Another thing to keep in mind is the little washers that MT provides with it's truck sets. The washers are almost always need and keep the truck from wobbling from side to side on almost any non-MT car. Always install them.
Little washers are installed. What if the couplers are not truly "centered" in the pocket? How do you get them centered? I think only a minor adjustment is need, but what do I do? Could the spring tension be "pushing" the couplers off center? Bent or damaged springs? Maybe I just have defective trucks, the 1037-1 work great on the covered hoppers.
I don't think the spring tension would be enough to cause them to be off center. Did you put these together yourself, or did they come together? Sometimes the springs do turn sideways inside the spring housings and that can cause the coupler to be forced to one side or another.
Does the knuckle or its trip pin come in contacted with the end of the car? if so file off some of car bottom then retry. Another thing to look into is, on the bolster there is a ring cast on, it can enterfear with the free-swinging of the truck side-to-side. Trim this off then apply the shim-washer that MT supplies. But if the trip-pin is draging even slightly on the bottom of the car this could and does enterfear with coupler function. Well that is a couple of other things to try.
The bolster pin and washer have nothing to do with your problem. Ignore them. The problem is probably that the coupler halves do not move within the pocket. See if the pocket is crimped or if somehow super glue got into it. The coupler halves have a spring in them that keeps them centered, they are supposed to part when contacting another coupler, the knuckle faces are supposed to slide apart and allow the knuckles to pass one another. If the knuckles just bounce off one another, they are not moving,ergo something is preventing their movement. [ 18. July 2002, 19:39: Message edited by: Johnnie C. Scott ]
I fixed the problem! Here is what I did: Looking down on the coupler pocket, I noticed there is a rectangular slot next to the pivot point for the coupler. There is a similar slot on the under side of the pocket, but on the opposite side of the pivot point. To the best of my reckoning, these slots are used in conjunction with the molded pins on the coupler shanks to center the coupler. The molded pins are stops that rest against the back end of the slot when the coupler is at rest (not under load). I disassembled the coupler pocket and compared the top and bottom slots. The top one was slightly shorter in length than the bottom. I took a few light passes with a sharp no. 11 knife blade to lengthen the top slot toward the rear of the pocket. A very small amount of material was removed, probably .002-.004” if that! By lengthening the top slot, I enabled the coupler to move more towards the right (or direction the trip pin points). After reassembly, the couple work perfectly! [ 19. July 2002, 01:14: Message edited by: MarkJ ]
