Coupler Problem on LGB 30700 - Hanging too low / catching

curtis

curtis

Registered
Country flag
Hi all,

I'm sure someone on this forum will have come across this before. I appear to be having trouble with a coupler on an LGB 30700 (the red, Harz style ones). The end of the hook is catching on the electric uncouples, track contacts and diamond crossings. Sometimes it's okay but most of the times it catches.

It appears to be hanging too low. If I pull it up it moves over fine. I've checked the screw holding in the hook and loop and it's tight. The arm from the bogie isn't bent so I'm not really sure why it's running so low.

I've included a video to try and show the problem more...

 
Is this a genuine LGB coach, or one of the Chinese copies?

Is the little plastic 'spring' either missing, or not properly seated, on the coupler?
 
curtis said:
It's one of the genuine ones - I have a couple of the green Chinese copies and they run fine.

The sprint is there and seated properly, but I wondering if it's just old and needs replacing. I've got a couple spare so I may give it a try!
Click to expand...
Well worthwhile to turn the spring over, in time it takes an almost permanent memory effect of where it is. This can also happen if the coupling spring has been in tension for a long oeriod of time perhaps not properly stored somewhere. Other possibility is that the arm from the bogie may be bent down somewhat, this can happen over time if a coach has been abused (was ut second hand).
 
I had a similar problem on a very old LGB (yellow box) bogie wagon which had very angular hooks and the point on the end of the hooks kept catching on uncouplers like in your video. The solution was to just file the angular end of the hook to a more rounded profile. You could try the same, do it gradually so that it does not catch but the uncoupler still works when it is raised.
 
curtis said:
Hi all,

I'm sure someone on this forum will have come across this before. I appear to be having trouble with a coupler on an LGB 30700 (the red, Harz style ones). The end of the hook is catching on the electric uncouples, track contacts and diamond crossings. Sometimes it's okay but most of the times it catches.

It appears to be hanging too low. If I pull it up it moves over fine. I've checked the screw holding in the hook and loop and it's tight. The arm from the bogie isn't bent so I'm not really sure why it's running so low.

I've included a video to try and show the problem more...

Click to expand...
Are you sure it is an LGB coupler, I had similar problems with Aristocraft hook and loop couplers catching .
 
I checked the hooks and the do appear to be the original LGB ones (I compared with a set on another). I flipped the spring but the hook was already pushing as high as it could go.

I did notice that the arm that extends from near the axel was bending down (in a way it wasn't doing on the other side of the wagon nor on its sister). I applied a bit of pressure to try and straighten the arm and it snapped. Soo, the good news is that it no longers catches - the other good news is I have an excuse to order some more stuff from modell-land.de to make the most of that flat rate postage...
 
curtis said:
I checked the hooks and the do appear to be the original LGB ones (I compared with a set on another). I flipped the spring but the hook was already pushing as high as it could go.

I did notice that the arm that extends from near the axel was bending down (in a way it wasn't doing on the other side of the wagon nor on its sister). I applied a bit of pressure to try and straighten the arm and it snapped. Soo, the good news is that it no longers catches - the other good news is I have an excuse to order some more stuff from modell-land.de to make the most of that flat rate postage...
Click to expand...
Aha not needed, you could repair it with a little bit of metal and some suitable self tapping screws. This would give you some possibility to make sure that the height is correct. If you need to bend anything like this again a short bit of heating the plastic with a hair dryer will likely stoo it breaking but allow it to bend.
 
dunnyrail said:
Aha not needed, you could repair it with a little bit of metal and some suitable self tapping screws. This would give you some possibility to make sure that the height is correct. If you need to bend anything like this again a short bit of heating the plastic with a hair dryer will likely stoo it breaking but allow it to bend.
Click to expand...

Can you elaborate on how I would use the metal? Are you envisioning a bar or a plate?

That advice on the hair-dryeris one of the many reasons I love this community! It's actually quite cold outside too so I should have been more aware the plastic was brittle.

I was a little tongue-in-cheek about modell-land. I live in Germany so the shipping is only ~€5
 
curtis said:
Can you elaborate on how I would use the metal? Are you envisioning a bar or a plate?

That advice on the hair-dryeris one of the many reasons I love this community! It's actually quite cold outside too so I should have been more aware the plastic was brittle.

I was a little tongue-in-cheek about modell-land. I live in Germany so the shipping is only ~€5
Click to expand...
Yes a plate that would fit inside the groove of the bit you have broken assuming it has broken somewhere in the middle. Roughly shown on a similar bogie from a similar coach I believe, this one could have a bend where the plastic is not flat.
AAB2C0E7-C49C-4D27-9EE9-B9DA9B481597.jpeg
 
curtis said:
Unfortunately, I managed to break it closer to the join. I will, however, have another look tomorrow and see what options we have at our disposal!
Click to expand...
Do you mean where it joined the cross beam by the screw? If so I am sure a piece of metal with a bit cut out for the bogie screw and made like a fork with 2 screws either side of the bogie one would work.
 
Have you checked that the wheels have the standard diameter. If someone replaced them with smaller ones, you would have exactly that problem.
 
Trains and More said:
Have you checked that the wheels have the standard diameter. If someone replaced them with smaller ones, you would have exactly that problem.
Click to expand...
No they are the correct wheels one set is LGB ball bearing pickup the ither standard LGB metal ones.
 
Use another car that does not have a problem as a standard, and push the troubled one against it. Are they touching squarely, or does the coupler hang lower then the one on the standard? If so, you have to heat it with a hair dryer and gently bend it upward. The bending should occur as close to the attachment point as possible.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom