Tidying up a Fleischmann BR 86 (H0)
One thing always leads to another.
I decided long ago that my H0 locos would get replacement Originalbügelkupplungen (OBK) couplings. Here after work over the last few days is the front of my Fleischmann BR 86. For sure there is a still dirty great hook but the NEM pocket is gone, it's far more subtle than anything the industry could provide and to my mind the incorporation of the scale coupling hook and turnbuckle is very neat.
It's got lovely wheels made and fitted by Holger Gräler (Germany's go-to engineer for replacement H0 wheels) and I doubt any of my modifications will really live up to them. However, the OBK in the buffer beam is a massive step up from the NEM coupling that was sticking way out before.
Catch is, the guard irons (Schienenraümer) were cleverly incorporated into the coupler mechanism -- they swung side to side as the coupling moved. Once exposed by removing the coupler, the whole thing looked dreadfully crude and was in the way of the OBK, so it's gone. Same at the back. And so now there is a rather glaring absence below the buffer beam.
And that means I now need to create new guard irons front and rear.
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