Electrical Connections

Hi All.   I not blaming anyone for the design of the electrical couplings with this unit, but, my eyes and fingers are not what they used to be. Would someone please advise me on an easy way to do the job.  Best wishes Kevin

Place both coaches upside down on a soft surface and push the couplings home. Take care if your model has air horns as these can easily break off. 

Hi Robert.    Thank you for your reply. It is a pity that one cannot purchase a double length Peco cradle, maybe when lockdown is over, please God, I may be able to purchase a suitable block of foam.  Best wishes Kevin 

The 2EPB couplers are a notoriously tight fit.  Invert the unit into a T-shirt or tea-towel, what ever you have to hand which is reasonably soft yet accommodating, and carefully offer one end of the bar into its pocket.  I find keeping a thumb or finger on the pocket also useful because they are on a cranked and sprung assembly which breaks too easily if pressure is applied.  You need to offer resistance at the point where the pocket is cranked 90-degrees so that it cannot move either horizontally or vertically when the bar is offered up.  Then repeat with the other car.  They also don't part company very easily at all.  

Hi Rick.  Thank you for your reply. I will give that a go. And then get ready to purchase some spares. Best wishes Kevin 

If that fails you could invest in some Hunt couplers.  They don't have power connectors so you lose the lighting in the rear coach unless you make other arrangements but they are good positive couplers and being magnetic can be parted more readily than the Bachmann bar if required.   

Hi Rick. Thank you for your reply. My plank with the extension only totals eight foot, which rather limits my running but given the space I would stretch my wings, it is a shunting layout with an extension just for fun and the Kadee couplers work really well.  Best wishes Kevin