Type 4 couplings

I wanted to design some easy to make 006 couplings for fitting to locos and larger wagons, styled rather like my type 2 couplings but made from square styrene section for convenience. I chose to use 3mm material, and prepared a sketch on the back of an envelope (literally);

As I use link and pin couplings for 006 work there's a .4mm hole drilled for either a pin or split pin. The front face is filed to a curve.

The advantage of these is threefold, they're quick and easy to make, I can hold the material in a self-centring 4 jaw chuck, and, I can drill the pin hole by hand rather than set the machine up. 

Here's a batch that I've made (there were 6 but 1 didn't cut the mustard);

Note the front two coupled together. And that white plastic is a pig to photograph.

As these are 3mm square and I'm using a coupling height of 6mm a centre line needs marking on the bufferbeam of any vehicle they're fitted to, using a 4.5mm gauge that I made to use with my earlier couplings;

Once the height is marked a 1mm hole can be drilled and the coupling temporarily fitted;

The photo shows a 'link' coupling.

Like all of my 006 work these are an experiment, so I need to fit them to a pair of waggons to see how well they work.

Paul.