Has anyone ever had a TCS decoder fail? I just had a T4X quit on me. I did a filled a warranty form on thier website. Are they going to send me a new one without taking the old one and attempting to fix it?
It has all the light functions working but no motor control, which is pretty important for a loco. This decoder was purchased in June and had worked flawlessly until about a month ago. It was jerky in motion. It was installed in an Athearn P42 with the factory motor.
Will
They'll send you a new one, no questions asked. Once.
The fact that you said it started getting jerky before it died completely makes me think it COULD be a short, not just a decoder failure. Before just plugging a new decoder back in, check to make sure there are no intermittant shorts, like when going around curves, and verify that the motor isn't drawing more current than the decoder is rated for.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Did you properly isolate the motor from any contact with the frame? Did you remove the Athearn light bracket so it couldn't short against the decoder? Your problem sounds like an improper install or short circuit; possibly a bad motor overloading the decoder.
TCS has a "goof proof" warranty. Send them the decoder and they will replace it, no questions asked. Once, as Randy Rinker pointed out. If you blow a second one because of an improper install or shorted decoder, all bets are off.
Thank you all for the responses. I don't usually bring up old posts but I thought it would help. I have examined this problematic loco and have come to a conclusion. Whenever the motor gets a little bit of power such as when I start off in speed step 1, there are sparks and an electrical smell coming from it. The motor is jerky and is hesitant. The motor is open frame.
Could this be the problem?
Very definitely so. It sounds like you have a shorted winding in the motor armature, the brushes are worn out, or a worn bearing is allowing the armature to touch the field winding. A new motor is what you probably need.