Kadee coupler replacement on Big Hauler rolling stock

[btwilson86]

Hi guys, new to the forum and new to large scale railroading. I have recently acquired a few 4-6-0 "Ten Wheelers" (2 gen 2 and 1 gen 3) with a small assortment of rolling stock, all from the "BIG HAULER" line. I'm looking at converting the couplers on all components over to Kadee's. The reason for this is to have a functioning front coupler on the locomotives for double heading and pulling cars in reverse, and to have uniformity on all the rolling stock and locomotives. From my research on some other threads I believe I need the Kadee 791 for the locomotives, and the 831 for the rolling stock with truck-mounted couplers.

My hiccup on this conversion project is a bobber caboose I have has body-mounted couplers. Does anyone have a recommendation on what Kadee couplers to use to convert this caboose?

[armorsmith]

BT, my first question to you is do you have and are you using the Kadee 880 'G' coupler height gauge for you mounting? If not, before you spend a butt load of time and effort, purchase one. First step in mounting Kadee couplers of any shape for reliable operation.

That said, there is no short answer as Kadee does not make a direct converson for the Bachmann bobber caboose. A qick answer would be to use an 830 body mount coupler and shim as required to get the proper coupler height. I have one that has a Kadee 830 on one end and a Bachmann Big Hauler knuckle on the other - flexible operation .

Personally, if it were me, I would invest the time into converting to all body mount #830 couplers (unless you plan to run solely on the 24" radius track). They will operate much better, especially if you plan to do switching where pushing more than one or two cars is in the ops.

A little more info on location, indoor/outdoor, persona/club laout, etc. helps give better answers. OH!!! and pictures too.

[btwilson86]

Armorsmith, thanks for your reply! I do not currently have a coupler gauge; I can definitely see the value in having one for projects like this little bobber caboose where there doesn't seem to be a "standard" conversion coupler. The Kadee couplers I mentioned in my OP are from some other threads regarding adding a functioning front coupler to the Big Hauler locomotives and also from Kadee's website's conversion information. It seems like your suggestion makes a lot of sense, and if I decide to convert and run this caboose I'll buy the coupler height gauge and go from there. I don't have any definitive plans on layout size at this time, but I think it is unlikely I will use the tight, unrealistic looking 4' curves. Body mount couplers may be the way to go.

I'll be the first to admit I don't know much about swapping out couplers; this jump into large scale is simultaneously a jump into garden railroading and modeling in general. My previous experience has been in HO scale, and that was more of a toy than modeling. I have been reading extensively on various modifications I plan on making to the locomotives (such as converting to "Annie" chassis when the online store reopens), and that led me to this coupler conversion project.

I wish I had some pictures to go along with what I have and what I'm planning; everything is essentially in the beginning planning stages. I bought everything in a lot, which includes: a *Rocky Mountain Express" set, "Red Comet" set, "Liberty Bell Limited" set (although the locomotive has been swapped out with the locomotive from the "Fast Mail" set), a straight rerailer (LGB brass), and 50 feet (10 5' sections) of additional track (brass, unknown brand). My wife and I are creating a fictional rail line, and we are planning to repaint the locomotives/tenders and some of the rolling stock for this new road. For my track I will buy more brass track and set up an outdoor railroad (likely a simple elevated 2 track loop through the flower gardens) possibly with a spur to an engine house and car yard. I'd like to convert the 3 locos to DCC and upgrade the sound systems, as well as the driving gears as mentioned earlier with the "Annie" chassis swap.