American Flyer Link & Knuckle Couplers

Рет қаралды 5,405

Roger Abbe

Күн бұрын

Compares American Flyer link and knuckle couplers and gives suggestions for making each work better.

Пікірлер: 37

@TwistedMacGyversTrains 10 ай бұрын

Fantastic video Roger! Thank you 😊

@josephschuster1494 8 ай бұрын

I, too, like link couplers, and have found they work well and are very reliable. Several of my freight cars acquired in the past have a link coupler on the one end and knuckle coupler on the other end, allowing flexibility in hooking up with a link or knuckle-equipped engine. Thanks for the excellent video! 🚂

@AFTrainsND 8 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comments. I ended up putting all of my conversion knuckle couplers back to link couplers except for two cars that have one at each end as you mentioned. We all do what works for us! Thanks for watching.

@flyerjunction Жыл бұрын

What an education on couplers and how to adjust them for proper operation. Thank you for sharing.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching and for your comment

@HallofScienceWest Жыл бұрын

Great tutorial. I love the line “If it was good enough for the A.C. Gilbert Company, it’s good enough for me.” I’m a subscriber! Looking forward to more great tutorials.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your comments. I don’t plan too far ahead but I have a few ideas for the next few months. Thanks for watching..

@michaelgmoore5708 Жыл бұрын

Thank goodness somebody agrees with me about not converting couplers. I run 21 car link coupler trains. They look more real and stay coupled if adjusted correctly. I use the tiny black rubber bands on çars that do uncouple sometimes. Proper adjustment is the key I have found.

@steelcityrailroad5095 Жыл бұрын

Tim Coe takes his couplers apart for a good cleaning and uses a slightly larger drill bit through the pin hole then puts them back together for a flawless operation. I done this to mine and haven't had any uncouple.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Yes, I think I saw that video, too. It’s good to get a variety of ideas. Thanks for your comment and for watching.

@willamettevalleyAFtrains Жыл бұрын

I agree with your assessment on the increased gap between cars when links are converted to knuckle. I prefer to leave link couplers original, and restore them when needed.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Yes, I wish I had know that 20 years ago! Thanks for watching

@michaelgmoore5708 9 ай бұрын

I sure do agree. Proper adjustment and lubricant is the trick. Use mineral oil, not Spirits! Wahloil is great oil too.

@MarkWick Жыл бұрын

Thank you for producing this video. You provided me with a couple more ways I can keep my American flyer trains connected.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the comment. It’s nice to know it’s appreciated. I couldn’t help but notice the trumpet in your picture. I’m a retired music teacher and still play as much as I can (woodwinds). Apparently model trains and music make a great combination!

@ronalddevine9587 2 ай бұрын

Funny, I've never had a problem with the prewar Gilbert 3/16 0 gauge link couplers. They are all metal and never fail.

@jimshaw1747 Жыл бұрын

Thank you great information im a newer flyer man and really like the video good help

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Welcome to the hobby & thanks for watching!

@michaelgmoore5708 9 ай бұрын

Put small rubber band on metal links, not on the weights. It's easier to put the smaller black rubber band on the metal links and won't break or come of while running the trains. Stretching bands from weight to weight is not as easy and the tiny black rubber bands are far better and smaller and again easier to put on. Beauty supply stores sell packages of them really cheap. A 50 year AF repairman showed this to me back in the 1990s. He was a good friend as well as an unusual repairman who did plastic mold work for making new steps for American Flyer hoppers and gondolas too. He passed away at 80 just before the pandemic hit us. He became a good friend and miss him alot. If you know anyone who does step work let me know because I have a 24222 Domino Sugar Hopper and a 631 Gray T&P gondola, both cars missing 2 steps. Thank you for reading all this. Mike

@AFTrainsND 9 ай бұрын

I’ll have to give this a try- it does make sense. Thanks for the information. Having a colleague like that was a real blessing. I’ve tried molding some steps but they didn’t come out satisfactorily but I’ll keep trying when I get time. I hope to attend a session of the local HO club in the near future so I’ll ask if anybody there has expertise in that.

@AustinsAmericanFlyertrains Жыл бұрын

Thank you Roger. This was a very well done and informative video.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your comment. You may have noticed that a few ideas that I used were also in your recent video. I hope you don’t mind. As I said in the video, I wanted to take what I learned from other videos and add some of my own thoughts.

@AustinsAmericanFlyertrains Жыл бұрын

@@AFTrainsND I certainly do not mind. I think there is great value in collaboration. You may consider, naming specific people or, with permission, connecting their videos in yours. This further connects the community of flyer KZbinrs and promotes one another.

@arthurleino 9 ай бұрын

Thank you for this video. Have link couplers on mine.

@AFTrainsND 9 ай бұрын

I hope you got a few good ideas from this. I’ve come to really liking my link couplers. Thanks for watching.

@MygrandpasTrain Жыл бұрын

Excellent tips! Thank you. I've used the hair dryer and soldering iron too. I found that the hair dryer evaporates that chemical on the outside of the plastic. I also wipe off the plastic right away with a swab or paper towel, on some couplers, the white stuff doesn't fully evaporate. I also wonder if the soldering iron evaporates that chemical around the metal pin, which would loosen it a bit. I don't yet have the tools to replace the link couplers, but I do like how they fit close together.

@AFTrainsND Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the comments. I don’t really have to answer to your questions either. Thanks for watching.

@andy41417 4 ай бұрын

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="630">10:30</a> Wonder if the weight is not fully pushed onto the stem? Place weight on something solid and using a drift tap top of stem down towards the weight. Be careful not to slip off the top of the stem and hit the coupler body. Will need to support the car or train to free up hands.