When installing a Tsunami or QSI decoder into a tender, you need to run five wires to the engine - red, orange grey, blue and white. I would prefer to have a plug and socket between the engine and tender, but have not been able to find anything small and flexible enough to work well. The Miniatronics three-pin plug is the best I can find, but it requires two to make all the connections and they tend to be too stiff. Has anyone come up with a good solution to this problem? Several of my engines are hard wired to their tenders, but that isn't good either.
Any online electronics retailer can help you. I personally have found separating into 2 or more plugs and harnesses to be more flexible than one 5 or 6 wire bundle. Putting the plug itself inside the tender shell and just having the wires painted black to see between the loco and tender is not too bad. My P2K 0-6-0 has a draw bar plug and socket that seems like a good idea. Until one of the wires broke at the plug from all the flexing.
Pete
I pray every day I break even, Cause I can really use the money!
I started with nothing and still have most of it left!
davidmbedard Where is the black wire?
The black wire is in the tender, along with the decoder, sound wires and speaker.
I like the factory installed plug and receptacle systems but haven't found similar parts to duplicate them. I have harvested used sound systems from damaged locos, and they work well, but that is a pretty expensive way to go about it. The biggest problem is finding a suitable place to mount the plugs and sockets.
Also, speaking of wires going bad from flexing, I just last week had a P2K Berkshire short out a Tsunami when bare wires in the loco harness crossed. The wires can be repaired and so can the decoder, but there is always the chance of it happening again.That's OK. Repairs are half the fun of the hobby.
There shouldn't BE any bare wires. If you have to join a decoder wire to a loco wire, use some heat shrink tube to cover the joint and youw on't have these kind of problems.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Randy, of course you are right. There shouldn't be any bare wires, but in time the normal flexing of the wires causes wear and tear of the insulation. It breaks and the wires eventually touch. Walthers repair people are aware of the problem and suggested I fix it by separating the wires and applying liquid electrical tape. The liquid will dry into a ribbon of new insulation. They do not have replacement wiring harnesses with plugs. I did not have to join a decoder wire to any loco wire in this case. The Tsunami installation was a simple plug in. The problem was in the original equipment wiring harness of the P2K Berk.
I shouldn't have mentioned the Berkshire, because it confused the issue of my original post, which I meant to be about installing a sound decoder in a loco which had no factory installed harness.
I remember them. The harness was all twisted real tight and the action of the loco going through turns would rip the insulation at the plug. Sort of like the Athearn steamers that would break the wires at the plugs. On all my steamers I have removed the shrink wrap and untwisted the harnesses so each wire would flex on its own and not get pulled by the bundle. One of my BLI I1s needed a tether right out of the box and BLI sent me it fast.
I use a small 6 wire tether I get from TraintekLLC.com. Gary and staff are great to deal with.