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Shunting with Alex Jackson couplings

Dave John

Entry posted by Dave John

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Much has been said about couplings over the years. I like the Alex Jackson coupling, simple, unobtrusive, cheap and reasonably reliable. Yes they get out of alignment and sometimes get bent beyond repair, but what coupling doesn’t. The hassle with couplings in general isn’t coupling them, its uncoupling them.

I have been thinking about this. My layout is traverser to storage yard, and I want to run around at each end. then some sidings , and a shunting back move off the main line. Thats 32 places where I could do with remote uncoupling. Hmm.

On the last layout I had tried solenoids and iron nail droppers in a few places. Kinda worked, but you had to be quick or else they got very hot and needed vaguely awkward holding a button down while operating a controller type things. 32 of them isn’t going to happen.

So I have been experimenting.



Yep, I have been messing about with magnets again. Thats it in cruel closeup. 3mm long , 1 mm wide. Sits 2-3 mm above rail height.

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Underneath the board its really simple. two sticks and a magnet 20mm x 5 mm.

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Still a work in progress. I might move up a size for the magnet under the board. Of course if you have a set of parallel tracks in a storage yard you can just add more magnets on the same bit of dowelling. Could even have the magnet moved by a servo or a wire in a tube if its in an awkward to get to place.

One thing is clear though. I am going to have to be careful about my AJs. Over the years I have made them by eye and my eyes are not as sharp these days. Time to order some jigs and start giving them all a going over.
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Middlepeak

Dave,

 

A nice simple idea. I have something similar fitted to my set-up track for AJ's. In my case the magnet runs in a section of brass tube through the baseboard and is raised by a brass paddle pivoted around 20mm away. The paddle holds the magnet in the raised position for as long as the lever is depressed. Releasing the lever allows the magnet to drop by gravity, falling against the paddle at its lowest point.

 

I'm sure you could rig this up with a longer operating rod to the front of your baseboard. Not sure whether I can post pictures with this comment, but I'll hopefully send you a PM with the pics attached.

 

As you say - simple and cheap, and with 32 to build, a lot easier than winding and wiring all those coils. However, given the delaying uncoupling potential of AJs, I do wonder why you need so many for your layout?

 

Regards,

 

Geraint

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Dave John
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Thanks for the pm, looks a very neat way of doing it. 

 

The figure of 32 looks high, but 22 will be needed for the 6 road traverser and the 5 road storage yards. Thing is thats two lots of six and two of five , but only 4 dowels since they are in a nice straight line. That way I'll be able to run round a train easily at both ends of the layout. 

 

Thats the idea anyway, might not work in practice but worth a go. 

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Mikkel
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Very clever Dave, and a solution that even I can understand. 

 

If one dowel operates several roads, might it unintentionally uncouple wagons stored in the next siding?

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Dave John
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It might Mikkel. I will just have to get into the habit of moving a train back an inch or so, the magnets only work in a fairly limited range. 

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