and he recalls - The first time I met John Bortz was at the 1968 NESGA Convention where he had couplers and (I'm sure, but memory is not a reliable source) he had gauges. However I got mine (along with a supply of couplers) from Gene Fletcher in the early 60s. I recall him telling me he bought them from John. They were machined phenolic and worked quite well.
I also have a modified Kadee height gauge made by the late Ron Koch and if I recall correctly, there was a Herald article back in the 60s on making one. And, if I'm not mistaken, Claud Wade offered a gauge. It would seem that back in the dark ages, anyone capable of building a kit (or scratch building a model) would be capable of building a gauge or modifying a Kadee gauge. Tom Coughlan, Gene Fletcher, Don Riley and just about everyone I knew had a length of track with a gauge to check rail to coupler center heights and trains ran on each others' tracks. I remember one fellow though (the late Leon Walker I believe) who had a slew of cars with Devore couplers (remember them?). He started changing them to Kadees and either didn't have a gauge or (in Leon's typical manner) didn't think he needed one. The couplers were about half the height of a coupler low but the d- - -'d things worked with other cars anyway. If one hung up on a switch frog or an uncoupling ramp, he just bent the rod with a pair of pliers! Now that was model railroading back when. Now maybe John didn't make the gauges (although he was more than able of doing so) but somebody did and '"inventing" a gauge? You may have "produced" a new and improved gauge and that in itself was an asset to the hobby. The fact that NASG uses the same design should be considered a form of flattery. As the late Gene Fletcher would say; "When you find a good thing, don't mess with it!" Incidentally, who would check a coupler height with the power on? Wouldn't this be done at the work bench? Seems a bit risky - unless you've got insulated fingers!... At 01:22 AM 9/2/2008, Trains wrote: >Hi Raleigh, > >I too knew John Bortz, having visited him at his home and meeting at >several national conventions. I also knew about most of the products >he made, including "the only, at the time" S coupler made by >lengthening the trip pin on Kadee #5 couplers. But I do not recall >any coupler height gage made by him. Was it machined brass? I have >seen a few one-off hand made gages over the years that were made >from machined brass. There was nothing offered at the time in S to >"gage" the coupler height of a Kadee coupler of any kind. I and >several other S people checked extensively at the time, OK! > >The "Loeb Investments" coupler height gage, as invented by me, was a >new, unique design and offered "new" advantages and qualities that >no other height gage did in any scale at the time ...and still does >not. Coupler height gages have been around since couplers existed, a >properly sized block of wood will do, so whats your point? > >I made mine out of brightly colored plastic to be easely seen and to >avoid shorts on live powered rails. The current NASG gage IS the >same design and general apearance (an exact copy) of my design, >except that the NASG produced gage was modified to accept a Kadee >#802 coupler. > >I was into producing a number of S items under the name of "Loeb >Investments", in Houston, Texas... and I believe was involved with >this from mid 1960's to mid 1970's. When I sold "Loeb Investments" S >products, my railroad only hobby shop, known as "Pete's Switch >Stand", and S scale layout (Houston S Gaugers 1st. operating layout) >in my garage (Layout was later featured on the cover of Model >Railroader after being purchased and added to by another S gauger). > >Dr. K. Loeb, (Peter) > >"Loeb Investments" Manufacturer of a variety of S scale kits, >precision brass 3 point track gages in S standard gage, Sn3/S and >Sn3, coupler height gage, and other items for S enthusiasts. (aprox >mid 1960's -1970's) >"Pete's Switch Stand", Houstons premier, railroad only hobby shop, >and home to the best scratch building supplies and prize winning >modelers in HO, Sn3, S and O scales around anywhere. > >Check out the beginning of my web/blog site at ><http://www.trains-4-u.blogspace.com>http://www.trains-4-u.blogspace.com > >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
