I got a brass Q2 that I wanted to put in..
I have tried it three times, though not with that engine, and decided that If I can do it anyone can. It does take some practice with the soldering iron. Do you have specific questions? I have tried both single decoder and dual decoder. The newer Sountrax have good sound and a fairly high stall current level. Stall the engine out and see what it draws. Don't try to save money on the decoder. I learned you do not have to isolate the whole motor, only the brushes which is rather easy with some of the old Pitmans. Good Luck.
Re-motor it with a can or a helix humper motor before installing any decoder. The old open frame motor that is in your loco will draw too much amperage for any HO size decoder. Then think about either a Tsunami, Loksound V4 or Select, or the new QSI Titan decoder we are all waiting for. Put the largest speaker you can fit in the coast to coast tender. You may also think about a cam for triggering the chuff. You will need an 8 sided cam or configure the 4 chuff cam to 8 chuff using CVs.
I have done the dual decoder like David suggested but still have too many wires from loco to tender that all my other brass installs has been a single decoder with a plug hidden either in the tender or under the cab. The last one I did was a Loksound select in a Sunset I1sa. I hard wired the harness to the loco so the 9 pin JST plug plugs into the decoder in the front of the tender. This way I can separate the loco if need be but it is a pain in the you know what.
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!
I'm planning to remotor it.. one guy sudjested this since I have the room for it..Going to order a 5 pole brushless high tork and rpm motor...When I do this I need all the help and advice I can get.....I want to add lights in this too..Any of those decoders work the smoke unit?
MR has done this in an article. Either this year or last year. They also did an article about putting a regular decoder in a brass engine with in the last few years. These were however both diesels.
joseywales,Before we get too deep into this, who made the Q2? It'll give us some idea of what you're dealing with. Also, if you could describe the motor (open frame or can) and tell us the stall current, that would also help.
And a smoke unit? Seriously? Good luck with that. These are a pain, and the Suethe ones are not linked to the drivers or anything...they just smoke like a cigarette and throw oily residue on everything on your layout, but especially your Q2. Personally, I think you'd be better off buying a BLI Q2 and selling this brass one if you want sound and smoke. The BLI Q2 actually has the smoke that chuffs in time with the sound effects, and your brass model will not. They go for $600 MSRP, and your brass model, unless it's a piece of junk, is probably worth $1000...more if it's a good model. Heck, you can probably get two Q2's from BLI for the cost of this brass one...maybe three.
David,Normally, we tend to agree on all things DCC, but really? A dual install? Unless it's a 1.5+amp motor or twin motor drive, isn't that overkill? I know it's a pain in the butt from trying the Blue Line duals...one has to "lock" one decoder to program the other, then unlock it, then lock the other, etc. A dual install should be the option of last resort, not first choice.
And how do we know the stall current of the loco in question? The OP didn't even tell us anything about the model other than it's a Q2 brass loco. Unless there's only ever been one Q2 made in brass? A quick internet search turned up at least three models of Q2's: Westside, Key, and some kind of brass kit made by Imperial.
So what 3 amp spike are you talking about? A 3 amp spike will blow any HO-sized Digitrax decoder ever made, too (listed as 1.5amp constant with a 2amp peak). And how do you know the wheels will ever lock up? I have a half dozen brass steamers that all have had decoders for 10 years or so, and not one of them have ever locked up. And these aren't display pieces.
locoi1sa,I have an NJ/Custom Brass New Haven I-4 Pacific that has an open frame, DC70-clone motor. I installed a DH120 into this model back in 1999, and I have used this engine for years. At no time has it ever blown the decoder. Your statement that the OP's motor will be too much for the decoder has not been established. It's perfectly possible that he can use a normal decoder install and not have to worry about it.
For the wiring, putting all the electronics in the tender results in 5 wires between the tender and the loco: 1 wire from the drivers, then 2 wires to the motor and 2 more for the headlight. Using a 9-pin seems a little large to me...unless you also have the firebox flicker, class lights, cab lights...? Personally, I use the Minatronics 1amp plugs for all my brass steam installs when needed. On my above mentioned I-4 Pacific, I don't use any. I just used the drawbar as the decoder's in the boiler and I didn't install a back up light in the tender.
Paul A. Cutler III
This is a westside modeI Q2..I was debaiting on keeping this or resell this after I saw BLI making a second run on the Q2's..I do like to thinker.. Was going to add detail to this where they didnt... heres what is looks like..When I got it ,it had a very bad paint job and I'd striped it down and now it looks like this now..The second pics you'll see silicon nitro fuel lines as coupler because the old black rubber lines where dry rotted..The motor is a KTM..the third pic is what the train used too look like but I'd used purple power to degrease it and that get a worn weather looked to it..It was just painted flat black..and it didnt run,now it runs smoothly.. was told the the westside Q2 has better and smoother running gear then BLI...
Paul.
This loco in question was posted and discussed in the General MR forum just a few days ago. I saw pictures of the loco and it has a GHQ large open frame motor driving 2 gear boxes with flex tubing. The DC70 and DC71 motors are much better than what is in this Q2. I have a few DC71 motors in my Bowser steam locos and they are close to 1 amp at stall. They spike out at over 1 amp starting. I have to kick start them hard.
http://cs.trains.com/TRCCS/forums/t/195434.aspx
Josey.
I would recommend a Helix Humper with flywheel and fabricate some struts for the gear boxes. Then a couple of short drive shafts can be fitted.
I have a Tsunami equipped Mikado (I bought it that way).
The installation included a new gearbox, motor, and the Tsunami. Only problem is the driven axle is a little tight on gauge, so it tends to hop over frogs, etc. That issue will be dealt with in the near future.
As to converting yours, I would suggest a new motor. The old open frames are decent, but, as time passes the magnets lose their energy and the result is more current draw. Putting in a newer, more efficient can motor would not only reduce the current draw, it would probably enhance operation at lower speeds. (Magnets lose energy, about 10% in the first year, then one to two percent every year thereafter.)
As a rule I tend to replace the old open frame motors in my brass as they are converted. That way I can also eliminate isolation issues, as they often just bent a tab over and soldered it to the motor frame to complete the circuit.
There are also repalcement rare-earth magnets available for many of the common older open-frame motors. Just repalcing the magnet can do wonders for the current draw and running characteristics of the motor. Getting a replacement modern motor in place can require some mechanical work to get everything lined up and securely mounted, and this may not be everyone's cup of tea. Replacing just the magnet retains all existing motor mounting and doesn't mes with any gear or drive shaft alignments.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
rrinker There are also repalcement rare-earth magnets available for many of the common older open-frame motors. Just repalcing the magnet can do wonders for the current draw and running characteristics of the motor. Getting a replacement modern motor in place can require some mechanical work to get everything lined up and securely mounted, and this may not be everyone's cup of tea. Replacing just the magnet retains all existing motor mounting and doesn't mes with any gear or drive shaft alignments.
To the topic of the thread. I know you are only interested in the Q2, but many (most?) PFM brass locos came "sound ready" from about 1979 on. There were even holes in the tenders for the speaker outlet.
True, I have several that have a "grill" in the tender floor for a speaker. One even has chuff cams installed.
I am working on an old PFM/VH Santa Fe that was built with sound in mind. It will be getting a Tsunami, with chuff cam, and speaker in the tender.
Here's one such reference, in the Proto87 store:
http://www.proto87.com/model-railroad-motor-upgrade.html