Let's see, make a jig: find some tiny brads, precisely locate and drill two plumb holes, find your Dremel tool, whittle a notch; then untangle the Kadee springs, separate the knuckle springs from the centering springs, and cut a piece of styrene rod to exact length if you don't like the wig-wag effect, find out why Kadee sends extra springs, then try to hold onto the dang assembly or risk ruining it with CA, or find some tape....yep, sounds like a piece of cake!
Or cut the box parts off the sprue, drop in a whisker coupler, and snap the box together. And it mounts with a 2-56 screw: http://www.kadee.com/htmbord/page242.htm Charles Weston --- On Thu, 3/7/13, grchud <[email protected]> wrote: From: grchud <[email protected]> Subject: {S-Scale List} Re: Kadee No 5s To: [email protected] Date: Thursday, March 7, 2013, 4:31 PM Kadee No 5s Ed Loizeaux writes: I just love oneupsmanship. Here is my version of it: I use the easiest coupler of all. Hands down the easiest. It comes completely assembled and RTI (ready to install) to the car. Use the Kadee #3 coupler! It is a Kadee factory-assembled #5 and cannot fall apart in your hands. The lid is held on by sonic welding (uneducated guess). Easier by far than the larger #802 allegedly-S coupler. Easier even than the standard KD#5 kit. And available bulk packaged to save a buck or two. My couplers are the best! How are yours? Chuckles..........Ed Loizeaux Ed, Actually, I don’t find it difficult to assemble the KD 802’s at all. Not my idea, but I followed the example of someone on the List that described putting two finishing nails and a notch for the simulated air hose near the edge of a small wooden board. The nails are spaced to fit the two lateral holes in the coupler box and then cut off with a Dremel tool slightly taller (make sure the nails are straight up and down) than the box. Then slip a coupler over the box with the hose in the notch, shoot a little dry lube in and use KD’s spring insertion tool, or a modeling knife with the tip broken off to insert the spring. Once the spring is in place, snap the cover over the box. If you feel uncomfortable holding the box while installing on a car, carefully use some CA glue, or a small strip of tape to keep the cover in place. I’m 73 and, as I said, it ain’t that difficult! Try that on for oneupsmanship! J Gary Chudzinski
