Martin S-C

Hi, is the Bristol & Stroud one still available please? If so I would love to take it off your hands.

I've received some packs of Bachmann couplers now and both types of Parkside mount. Conclusion: Use the Parkside PA34 mount with the Bachmann 36-030 straight shaft coupler with NEM pocket. This combination can be mounted direct to the underside of the Slaters, POWsides and Ratio wagon frames. Cambrian wagons which use a prototypical "star" or diagonal timbers structure for the plastic struts representing the wooden underframe need a small sheet of ten thou plasticard gluing under the frame first, then the Parkside mount can be glued to that. You just need to shave off a few thou from the mount by rubbing it over sandpaper for a few seconds. This is because while the Slaters/Ratio/POWsides underframes are not prototypical and have two longitudinal struts that are perfectly placed apart to accept the "legs" of the Parkside mount, the Cambrian frames do not. The cranked Bachmann coupler 36-027 with the PA34 mount does NOT work as the coupler loop is too low. I suspect the height difference is designed for the builder to glue the Parkside mount direct to the wagon FLOOR underside and not the FRAME underside. Likewise the PA27 mount for the Bachmann 36-025 and 36-026 with the twin spigot holes also gives the wrong coupler height if glued to the frame underside. This combination also must be mounted direct under the wagon FLOOR. The attached pics I hope show this. 1) PA34 mounts glued to the bottom of the frame of a POWside (aka Slater's) wagon frame (New Bowson No.358). 2) PA27 mount with Bachmann 36-025 coupler glued to the bottom of a Cambrian wagon frame (Sully & Co No.963). 3) Height mismatch between PA34 and Bachmann 36-030 on the left and PA27 and Bachmann 36-025 on the right. 4) Height mismatch between PA34 and Bachmann 36-030 on the left and PA34 and Bachmann 36-027 (cranked) on the right. 5) Correct height match between PA34 and Bachmann 36-030 on the left and Bachmann 36-025 fitted direct to an old Tri-ang mount on the right. I know this old Tri-ang loco has a correct height coupler as I've used it for decades, so its a good test vehicle. Sorry if this is all old news to many but I thought a few newer modellers might find these images and notes of some use.

Thanks for all the helpful replies; this gives me something to investigate and try out. Very grateful to the members of this forum and the great advice you come up with!

Hi all Am converting one of the more 'modern' Hornby clerestories (not the older Tri-ang ones) and would like to know which white metal or brass or plastic kit bogies are most suitable for them to ride on. I am sure this question has arisen many times but a quick trawl through the forum didn't expose any obvious thread titles so I apologise in advance if I'm asking a many-times-answered question. Another query concerns the Hornby wheel diameter which looks to be 12mm and not 14mm. I'm concerned I might run into problems with the flanges fouling the body underside or, if I add a spacer between pivot and body, that the vehicle will ride too high. Any thoughts and suggestions appreciated (even derogatory ones!)

Of course! Thanks very much. I have thought of that but have concerns I'll punch through the floor of open wagons. Thanks for that. I have bags of the replacement screw-on ones to replace the Hornby wide ones and the mid-width older Mainline ones but need to grab a stockpile of the cranked ones.

Many thanks guys for the welcome and yes, thanks Jason, those Parkside ones look like they will do the job. I have tried the home-made plasticard layers thing in the past but have had too many failures to want to use that method again. This time around (new railway project starting up) I'd like to do it more reliably. Not going to get into the tension lock argument. I am using them because they are readily available, work 99% of the time, do not look too obtrusive in their slimmed down Airfix-design format and I have hundreds of rolling stock items so converting everything to some other system is simply a no-go.

Hello all. I have just joined the forum today and this is my first post, though I've been a lurker and a "leecher" of all the good info available on here for many a month. I've bought several 4mm scale plastic wagon kits on e-Bay from a number of manufacturers. I use the newest narrow style Bachmann coupler on my railway and need to fit these to the kit wagons. My question is (and Its probably been asked and answered a zillion times before), what methods do people use or suggest for attaching the soft "bendy" plastic couplings to the hard injection moulded plastic and what spacers do people favour to get the correct coupler height above rail? I am thinking of a short length of square section plasticard rod as a box to glue the couplers to but of course depending on kit manufacturer there will be different gubbins under the solebar/behind the headstock. So I'm seeking guidance on what might make the most flexible system. Thanks all.