Pretty basic question and I apologize if it has been asked and answered. I searched and couldn't find the answer.

What is the difference them and when would I use one vs the other?

I know a bushing has one female and one male end while the coupling has two of the same ends (female?). If it is a 3/4 to 1/2 reducing bushing, how do I know which is the male and female ends?

Thanks

in lumber you ask for a 2 x 4. the smaller size is always mentioned first.
in plumbing it is just the opposite. the larger size is always mentioned first. some tees are mentioned differently as you read the run (straight part) of the tee first and the branch last.
so a 3/4 x 1/2 bushing means the larger size (male) is 3/4.
an example of a tee reading differently would be a 3/4 x 1/2 x 3/4 tee.
now, if you aren't confused enough, copper by threaded adapters are always read copper size first and threaded size last. so an adapter that is 1/2 copper sweat on one end and 3/4 male threads on the other would be called a 1/2 copper by 3/4 male adapter.
cabeesh???

The male end has the thread on the outside, the female is on the inside, but it is really acedemic, because you can ONLY screw the 3/4 end INTO a fitting and screw a 1/2" pipe into the 1/2" end.

hj, i thought he was asking about the terminology of reducing fittings.
do you call it a 3/4 x 1/2 bushing or do you call it a 1/2 x 3/4 bushing???

3/4" x 1/2". But when I was an apprentice I told a journeyman to cut a piece of 3/4" pipe and put a 3/4 x 1/2 x 1/2 tee on it, and he asked which opening he should use.

All bushings reduce, but not all couplings reduce. In drainage, couplings can only remain equal or increase in the direction of flow.

'cabeesh', packy? I thought it was 'capiche'.

Some applications may require reducing couplings by code, and some applications may permit bushings. Both can reduce pipe size, but they may not both be permitted in all applications.

"'cabeesh', packy? I thought it was 'capiche'."
yeah but then we would have people like hj (with his chicago accent) saying "what the heck is cah-peachy?"

It is his Boston accent. His name is pronounced "Pahkey" regardless of how it is spelled.

quote; how do I know which is the male and female ends?

The male end would HAVE to be the larger size, otherwise it would be like the machinist who gave the engineer a box of brass shavings. When asked what they were, he was told, "that is what you get when you request a 5/8" bore down the center of a 1/2" shaft.

hj is correct. around here you paahk your caahr in haahvard squaaare..

Have you ever been to Iowar or Arizonar, is it just New Yahkers who go there?

New Yorkers don't go to Iowa, they fly over it.

That's right. They fly over it to Arizona and then complain about how much better it is in New York.

Let me see if I understand. The larger dimension on the bushing is the male end.

A 3/4"(female?) - 1/2"(female?) reducing coupling means a 3/4" pipe fits INTO one end and a 1/2" pipe fits INTO the other end.

A 3/4"(male?) - 1/2"(female?) bushing means a 3/4" pipe fits OVER one end and a 1/2" pipe fits INTO the other.

Right?

I'm talking straight pipe and fittings, no brass, no threads. I'm just trying to figure out how the pieces fit together.

quote: The larger dimension on the bushing is the male end.

That's about the only way a "bushing" could be made .Doing it the other way would make it a "reducing extension coupling" and I have never seen one of those.

Thanks. To say I have no idea what is what is an understatement. I think I can get the right pieces for my project now.

A 3/4"(male?) - 1/2"(female?) bushing means a 3/4" pipe fits OVER one end and a 1/2" pipe fits INTO the other.

No, the 3/4" male end would fit into a 3/4" female fitting.