Since it's going to be a while before I attempt any sort of serious layout, I've been keeping myself busy playing with XTrkCad and reading books and magazines. Right now, I'm getting through the "Track Planning for Realistic Operations" book and it's a real eye-opener. It may seem obvious to most everyone else, but the idea of thinking about what functions your railroad is performing, and how you're going to carry out tasks realistically brings a whole 'nother level to the hobby. I'm the kind of guy who mostly just likes to watch them run, but now I'm all excited to set up industrial sidings and efficient yards. I've got this nagging question in the back of my mind, however, and if the book eventually gets to it, then great, but I still want to know how people here handle uncoupling. It would seem that in order for somewhat-realistic operations, you'd have to be able to back a bunch of cars into an area, release the ones you're dropping off, and pull the rest away. Yet I see very little in the way of uncouplers on websites and in discussion. Do you just reach out there and break them apart with a tiny stick or something, or is there a more elegant solution? I've seen magnetic uncouplers discussed, making use of the metal "air hoses" that the microtrains couplers come with, but those seem unreliable as well. Juuust curious. Thanks.
Personally, I prefer the "reach out and uncouple" method, using a toothpick. It gives me the feeling a train crew is out there uncoupling just where they need to, not where the magnet force you to.
Both methods rely on the car being properly weighted. A very light car will do a wheelie when you push down on the coupler on the other side! :we-spinny: The lunch shop upstairs at the Museum uses long toothpicks in their sandwiches which work great as uncoupling picks! I've also seen people use kiddie sewing needles, real fat and unpointed so you can't get hurt. Skewers are good too. but most need the end to be whittled flat before use.
Maybe that's my problem. I thought it was maybe the left over grease from the shish-ka-bob that was making them too slippery. Joking aside, I do use the shish-ka-bob skewers. I like manual uncoupling. But I will try flattening the point on one of them to see if it gives me better results. Regards Ed
I use two types of manual uncoupling tools. One is an Accumate Switchman (yellow plastic with pocket clip) that was given to me by the Pres. of our NTrak club. The other is a Rix Pick that I bought through my LHS. With a little practice you can uncouple even light cars without derailments. However, I hasten to mention that my uncoupling activities tend to be in well lighted, and easily reached areas. If you're still in the planning stages of your layout, I'd definitely keep those industries that you plan on doing a lot of uncoupling at within close reach. My $.02.
I use a dental tool. Comes with its own flat spot. I could never get Microtrains magnetic couplers to work as well as needed. I sometimes derail trucks with the pick, but then use it to rerail the triucks.
I attach rare earth magnets under the tracks for uncoupling of slow trains when they roll over the magic spot. The magnets have to have exact placement for it to work.
Precisely said. Foth's rare earth magnets are stronger and cheaper (I think) than MT magnets. But you do have to fiddle with either variety to get them to work correctly.
I use an incredibly cheap method for magnetic uncoupling that's not only invisible but reliable enough you don't need to worry as much about trip pin height. http://whiteriverandnorthern.net/clinic_30.htm
There is also a product commercially manufactured with 4 small magnets. It fits under the track as a unit and is advertised in every MR magazine. If I recall correctly, the price is $5.95.
I used magnetic ramps on a previous layout. They worked ok, but could also be a p.i.t.a. On my current layout I use manual uncoupling. I bought a couple of Rix tools that have since either broke or have been lost. Anymore, I use the bamboo skewers. They work well enough and a bag of 100 costs about the same as 2 of the Rix tools. I'm going to have to try making the point a little flat to see if it improves operation.
By the way, the wafer shaped ones I was using were at Radio Shack for $1.99 the pair. I will be ordering from one of the commercial wholesale places now.
Micro Mark has a very nice stainless steel tool for uncoupling manually...search their site for uncoupler, should pop right up.
I bought a half dozen of these a few years ago and they work great. I prefer to manually uncouple the way the prototype does it, (I wish we did have full size magnets so we didn't have to get our hands dirty), until we get scale size couplers with working cut levers an uncoupling tool will do. A well designed layout should have all the switching areas somewhere accesable.
I like uncoupling cars myself, too. I use a small bamboo skewer. I don't flatten the tip. I make it just a little sticky by putting a little bit of accent glue on it with my fingers, then wiping it off.
I've been using MT's and magnetic uncoupling for many years. I find it pretty reliable, actually, but I seem to be the exception here. Coupler and trip pin height is critical. Between that and doing any coupling on curves, I find the MT truck-mounts preferable to body mounts, which is kinda sacrilidge on current wisdom, but hey, you asked how I do it. I DO NOT use full-length in-track magnets, I score and snap them in a vise and make them much, much shorter. That means you have a relatively small uncoupling target area, that also minimizes false uncoupling. You also have to have a good throttle, clean track, and a good slow-speed locomotive that can be precisely controlled. I've had no luck at all getting any reliability out of accumates. I'll use them in cuts that normally don't get uncoupled. I have one electromagment in the yard throat that will uncouple about anything. I think its a great system and can be near perfect if you tune it. The fewer times I have giant hands reaching into a yard or around buildings, trees, telephone poles, etc. the better.
