During the link and pin era, a few railroads issued a sort of paddle to aid brakemen in coupling cars.....Most were considered to be more of a hinderance than a help to brakies and switchmen that wanted to do the job as fast as management expected them to..........and they made a poor brake club.......In those days, it was a proof of proficiancy to new hires to be missing a few fingers.......
I saw a u-tube flick recently of a man in Briton working a fan trip I think, standing between the rails between a loco and a car with either the loco or the car without buffers. He was trying to hook them together. He told a man outside the guage to tell the loco driver to ease it back while he held the hook......he got squashed, not seriously because when the loco pulled away he managed to walk away........a bad piece of railroading all around........But maybe the Brits do it differently........
