Showing posts with label rolling stock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rolling stock. Show all posts

Sunday, 3 May 2026

Converting N Gauge Couplings to NEM

Here's how to convert N gauge couplings from Peco/Graham Farish/Dapol to NEM pockets using the Dapol conversion kit.

In my case I converted some Graham Farish wagons but the process is much the same for other brands. 

First you'll need the Dapol Conversion kit which includes the outer box, inner pocket and some shims to alter the height if it's too low. It also includes a tool with multiple uses, including height checking the pocket, wheel back to back, easishunt pin height, etc. You'll also need a length of track and the wagon you want to convert.


Step 1 - remove the couplings already on the loco. In my case these are the older spring loaded Farish mechanisms, which pry out of the wagon will relative ease. Mind the spring so it doesn't fling off into the abyss!

Next use a suitable knife or scalpel to remove any plastic nubs protruding from the underside of the wagon so that you're left with a flat surface to adher the outer coupling box to.


The photos above show the process of locating the coupler to the underside of the wagon. This is all covered in the instructions which come with the Dapol kit, but you simply line up the wagon with the tool until it won't move, then place the guide over the top against the buffers. Then you place a coupler (take care to make sure it orientated correctly, thin side up) in the space on the tool, apply glue to the top and the bottom of the wagon. Then place the wagon over the top and press down taking care to ensure it's a good fit and the glue starts to bond. It's recommended to use an epoxy glue but I stuck with cyanoacrylate which works fine. As you can see in the pictures above, there is a difference in height which meant the farish wagons ride up to go over the coupling box. At first I thought this would present an issue, but as you can see below, it matches the height of the newer NEM-coupling fitted Farish vent fine.

Here's the final result before fitting the couplers - 

Three down... 20 to go!
 


 

Monday, 14 August 2023

Building a collection

 It's been a while... sadly real life has an annoying tendency to creep up and get in the way of things.

However I've got a week off work coming up so track, underlay and some other bits and pieces are currently on there way to me.

 The rolling stock has grown too:

 


So what's planned for the week ahead?

Laying the flexible track and fixing the points with cork underlay

Building the two extra baseboards for the other fiddle yard

Working out how to attach and unattach those from the main baseboard

Fitting some kind of point control... not decided yet but due to the simplicity of the layout I suspect wires in tubes may be most practical.

 I'm going DC power to begin with using the HM DC unit I got a while ago, since Hornby aren't planning on releasing the 6 pin bluetooth decoder for the Class 08 until next summer (!!!!!).

 I will however be fitting droppers at each set of points in anticipation of moving to DCC in the future.


Saturday, 18 March 2023

A wagon appears!

I received a couple of Hornby TT items this week, and a further preorder release notification yesterday for my Toad E brake van.

My Next18 HM 7000 Decoder arrived - but no app so I can't use it yet.

But more exciting (to me anyway) is the arrival of a small wagon:


 
I must say I am impressed with the detail. I recently upgraded my phone to an iPhone 11 Pro to gain some extra cameras too.
 
Otherwise not much else is going on with the layout as I haven't had much time for it recently. Hopefully that'll change soon and I can get on with laying the track and making a start on scenery.