Dapol Easi Shunt couplers

[Jack]

I don't know if this is the right place or the Angry thread after spending nearly three hours trying to get one pair of them to work!   

Having decided to get some Easi Shunt couplers for my clay hoods and silver bullets, along with some rare earth magnets I thought I'd set up a trail area within a not yet ballasted area of my layout. Fitting the couplers to my 08 and one of the bullets, pushed eight magnets (two on top) between each sleeper, making three rows of magnets. (Pushing the magnets into the correct place without them wanting to join with the other rows was fun in it self). I did try just single rows of magnets but nothing happened. I rolled the wagon over the magnets and got a 'throw'. Great thought I this was going to be easy. Wrong!

Which ever way I tried to adjust the throw bar, up, down or from side to side, I couldn't get the loco and the wagon to uncouple! I've since re-set the throw bars on both couplers as per the rest in the pack and walked away before I totally lost it!

I've read the instruction sheet over and over, I've tried using the 'Search' button. Can someone try to point me in the right direction please.

On another issue with these couplers: Has anyone tried glueing the springs in place (so as to stop losing them) without mucking up the hinge on the coupling?

Thanks in anticipation.....

[Ben A]

Hello Jack

Have you tried using Dapol's own uncoupler magnet?  We used this on our NGS area group layout "Horseley Fields" and have virtually 100% uncoupling reliability.  The "delayed action" can be temperamental I gather, but we don't use this function on our layout so I can't comment.

As to the coupler springs.... it's probably a good idea to fix them in place - I have lost a couple - but I'd be inclined to use a tiny spot of varnish or Klear rather than adhesive; tacky enough to fix the spring, but unlikely to be strong enough to lock the coupler!

cheers

Ben A.

[tim-pelican]

Hi Jack,

I can only say that I do have them working pretty reliably (not 100%, but certainly the majority of the time) using the Dapol magnets under the track (without removing any sleepers).

I know that doesn't directly help with the specifics of your alternative magnets, but perhaps a glimmer of hope that the couplings can be made to work as they're supposed to!

Regards,
Tim.

[johnlambert]

Depending on what I've had to hand I've used either a tiny drop of superglue or a drop of varnish to secure Dapol coupling springs.  Can't say I've noticed a difference in performance of glue or varnish.

I tend to use a cocktail stick to apply the glue/varnish and hold the coupling in some 'helping hands' with a magnifier so I can see exactly what I'm doing.

[PostModN66]

Jack,

Just checking, you have used the magnets so that on one side it is North pole facing up, and the other side South pole facing up have you?  If you have the same pole up each side it won't work....

Just checking....

Cheers  Jon 

[Jack]

Many thanks for you responses one and all,

Ben & Tim,
The reason I didn't use the Dapol magnets is where the magnets are to go is already ballasted with scenic work done so I'm trying to avoid major surgery to the areas where the magnets will go. Alone with the fact that I don't have room to just slide a long magnet under the sleepers as I choose not to use any track underlay, I laid straight on to baseboard. If I can get these very small magnets to work I will only have to dig out the ballast between a few sleepers.

Jon
I have to say, for what ever reason, your thought is the one thing I didn't think about!  I'll give it a go later this afternoon when playtime becomes available.

Thanks also for the tips regarding making the springs a bit safer.

[Karhedron]

Hello,

I have used rare earth magnets on my layout for the same reasons as you and they work pretty well. It is vital that you get them correctly aligned with all the magnets on one side being North pole up and the ones on the other side all being South pole up. I did a post about my experiments on RMWeb which can be found here.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/48728-dapol-easi-shunt-magnetic-couplings-in-n/?p=569182

I also did a bit of adjustment on the trip pins to ensure the "delayed action" worked properly.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/48728-dapol-easi-shunt-magnetic-couplings-in-n/?p=570075

[Jack]

Happy Days!!

Having read through your thread from the "other side" Karhedron, and made sure the magnets were the right way up as to polarity/side of the track, as first mentioned by Jon, I've now got things working after a fashion and much tweaking.

While Karhedron's second thread related to centralising the throw pins, I did find that seem to cause, on occasions, to throw the pin the wrong way so I found that tweaking the throw pin more to the outside of the track made a big difference when over the magnets.

Weather it was my imagination or not I don't know but I also found that things appeared to work better if there was a gap between the magnets, as per photo.
[smg id=11107 type=preview align=center caption="P1020023"]
I'm sure with a little sleeper grime painted on the magnets they will be less noticeable when in place.

Now it will just be a matter of practice and time to get shunting off to a fine art. 

Thanks again to one and all. 

[Zakalwe]

in the new Dapol catalogue, the springs seem to be listed as a spare part (page 120) although no part number

maybe able to use the 3 i lost before using the super glue trick 

[Ben A]

Hi Zakalwe,

Dapol short and long bulk coupler packs come with a small bag containing spare springs too.

Cheers

Ben. A.

[BobB]

I read all of this with much interest. I only returned to N because both Dapol and G F said they were going to produce auto couple/uncouple systems. We have Dapol's and with their magnets it works (out of the box) albeit for me with the magnets cut in half.

If we ever get a G F system, the competition is good so long as both systems remain compatible (the one good thing about the so called standard N coupling).

Given the cost of Dapol's magnets and the messing about that seems to be the norm when rare earth cylindricals are used instead; I just wonder if any cost saving that is actually realised worth the effort ? Using Dapols system; there was no spring or rod adjustment, just fit and run.

I enjoy solving problems but not when the problem is a self made cost cutting exercise - my time is more valuable - at least to me anyway.

[Jack]

Hi BobB, This exercise was not a cost cutting one I can assure you.

In the areas where these magnets will eventual go, if I were to lift the track to put Dapol magnets in place under the track, I might as well have ripped up the whole layout and started again because the places where the magnets are going are all ballasted with multiple points and have had scenic work done. It was only because of a daft mistake on my part (north/south problem) that the experiment took longer than expected causing a little frustration.  Others, maybe in a similar situation, can now learn from my errors.

Since the experimenting turned out okay in the end, all I now have to do is dig out a bit of ballast between sleepers, there by saving me a great deal of time doing major rebuilding work on the layout, because my time is valuably too.

If,(more like when), I do another layout then Dapol magnets will be planned into the layout.

[EtchedPixels]

I'm sure with a little sleeper grime painted on the magnets they will be less noticeable when in place.

You should also be able to glue a spot of ballast over the top without it affecting anything. You can even get grey/black speckled paint ('granite' paint) from I believe it's Faller - one of the continental lot, which is great for hiding things in grey ballast.

[mr magnolia]

slightly O/T, but staying with the magnet chat, I have been experimenting with longer magnets laid between the sleepers, for exactly the same 'lets not rip up the track' reasons. I'm not sure of my results as I have been playing with USA outline couplers, some of which work fab and some of which don't...  here's some pics of the experiments, magnets fixed with double sided tape, which was quite easy; I dont have pictures yet of the magnets that I have glued into place on the layout (no ballasting yet), which was a bit more messy and needs some more thinking about.

[Les1952]

There is a very large flat magnet in the Kadee range which works well if placed under the baseboard. 

An alternate way of using your small magnets would be to place four together as a barrel and lay this between a pair of sleepers crosswise to the track.  You need to experiment with how deeply they are placed.

Finally, be aware that small magnets can easily be pulled right out of their location- I've not yet found a glue that is strong enough to withstand repeated use.

All the very best
Les

PS- I can shunt Dapol couplers with an Atlas New York Central switcher factory-fitted with Microtrains couplers- admittedly not with the claimed remote coupling but they uincouple over a dapol or a Microtrains magnet.....