Un-Kawaii Freight Operations

[Mudkip Orange]

I picked up my first few freight cars a couple months ago, a mix of Kawaii and Popondetta branded Hokis.

 

They don't like to stay together. The primary problem that I can see is the couplers aren't anything approaching a standard height, one car will be low and one car will sit high. The secondary problem is that even where the couplers are even, the wheels pick switch points. This isn't a problem when continuous running, because my current layout design is 100% trailing point (get on my level y0). But it makes it impossible to back the train into anything.

 

Is there any way I can adjust the couplers or otherwise tweak these cars to work right?

[Welshbloke]

The derailing could well be out of gauge wheelsets, either that or the models are too light. Try comparing the back to back gauge and weight to something which has no problems running through the points in either direction.

[katoftw]

I always had issues with Tokis and Toras that were empty.  Not enough weight in them.

[cteno4]

Rapidos can sometimes have small sticky places on the T shank going into the housing. I've had to clean some up with an xacto knife so that they would sit straight and couple cleanly. Also the springs can get bent or not sit flat on the back of the T shank and also make the coupler not sit straight.

 

As other said on many freight cars weight is really important for them to run well as the coupler strain can lift trucks slightly when going thru frogs and more apt to derail. Weight also tend to help the couplers as well.

 

Wheel gauge as well as we usually just assume they are right, but I've always found a few way out of gauge.

 

Jeff

[katoftw]

Oops, forgot to add that my Tomis Hokis have weights attached.