This past week I had occasion to upgrade the coupler swing arm on another of my Proto 2000 E8A units. While these units are truly work horses and run great the coupler swing arms have too much vertical play. This excess play leads to unwanted disconnections during operations. The fix is pretty simple, yet effective.
New York Central Proto 2000 E8A coupled to Kadee height gauge 
Close up of E8A coupled to height gauge
Close up of E8A coupled to height gauge with a bit of tension applied. Notice how the coupler rises up. This is the issue we are looking to overcome
Another close up of the E8A coupled to the height gauge with a little tension applied. This simulates the E8A coupled to a string of passenger / freight cars
The rear coupler swing arm assembly
Rear coupler swing arm assembly. Notice droop of coupler and the press pin that is holding the coupler swing arm to the body
Front coupler swing arm assembly
Coupler swing arm and press pin
Coupler swing arm assembly now attached to frame with 2-56 screw and nut. Nut has been tightened to eliminate vertical play but still allow lateral play.
Close up of coupler swing arm held in place with 2-56 screw and nut. The Kadee #5 coupler in the coupler box has also been upgraded to a 2-56 screw. For ease of installation on the rear of the unit the electrical board was unscrewed and slid out of the way. The rear truck was dropped down by removing the gear cover (background). There is enough slack in the wires to easily accomplish this. On the front there is enough clearance that removing the truck is not necessary.
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