Picked up some Proto 2000 light boards and they have an 8 pin connection to "plug and play" DCC. Rigged a few up on athean F7 blue box locos which I put out for sale on EBAY. Is this process worth my time - runs on DC now but you can pop in a decoder - or is wiring in the decoder just not the hard???? Seems like a saw a few questions on how to convert blue box locos to dcc.
I have about 6 more boards to play with. Very interested in opinion on this modification to the blue box locos. thanks
Are the Athearn BB locos DCC ready, or did you need to isolate the motors?
If you have the time to do it, and you can make a little money doing the conversions, why not?
Rich
Alton Junction
Rich - you need to isolate the motor, liquid electical tape does the job. You can tap the ground on the headlight stand but I like the PPW ground pins - It is not hard to drill a #53 hole in a BB frame.
Make Money?? Well that is the question. I am asking if folks would pay say $12 more for a BB loco that is DCC ready VS the stock Athearn. My experence is they won't pay more for constant/directional lighting, soldered connections, polished wheel, completed number boards, Kadee couplers in Kadee boxes, painted handrail, accurate to prototype and alike. They will pay for pretty....its kind of like used cars. Its how it looks more than how it runs....
thank for your reply. DH
I think you may be on to something. I would encourage you to put a couple of conversions on eBay and see what happens, either a bidding type auction or a Buy It Now. I'll bet that you will get some takers and, if you do, you may be encouraged to do even more. I really like the idea. Let us know how this turns out if you do it.
Clip the tab off the bottom motor clip, too, or it will eventually wear through your liquid electrical tape and fry a decoder if installed. Or swap clips and put the tabbed one on top.
Directly installing a decoder is really no different than what you did to connect up those P2K boards. But, there are people in this hobby who can barely connect two wires together, so I'm sure there is market for this.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
If anyone is interested here is my EBAY listing for 2 LV F7A's rigged as noted above. Lots of photos.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/171069934261?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649
Not much interest in them yet, but its early. they end sunday
Jersey Southern RR If anyone is interested here is my EBAY listing for 2 LV F7A's rigged as noted above. Lots of photos. http://www.ebay.com/itm/171069934261?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649 Not much interest in them yet, but its early. they end sunday
Thanks for the link. I looked earlier, but quickly, and couldn't find the listing.
You already have 24 views, so that is good. When I sell stuff, usually with a 7 day listing, I get up to 100 or more views with no bids until the last day, usually beginning in the last hour, and sometimes not until the last few minutes. Nowadays, most buyers are concerned about being sniped, so they wait until the last moment to bid.
Good luck!
Well No Bids. They are now up for sale (Buy It Now). For what I am asking I am losing money on the deal. I have 2 more Geeps with the 8 pins out on ebay. Does not look like it is worth my time and effort to re-wire a blue box.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/171075455854?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649
http://www.ebay.com/itm/171072839583?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649
http://www.ebay.com/itm/171072062013?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1558.l2649
I wouldn't conclude that it is not worth your time and effort at this point.
Lehigh Valley is not a highly popular or sought after road name.
A pair of Santa Fe, or Union Pacific, or New York Central, or Pennsylvania probably would have sold.
What other road names do you have?
thanks for the response rich. A UP gp-9 is out there right now - a popular RR - along with an ACL gp35. Used those two models as they are close to prototypes (which I included a photo of in the postings).
I have one BN F7 shell, a EL GP35 and a Burlington GP9. Also have a B&O GP35 shell with broken mounts. I sold a BN F7 a few months back and it only got a minimum bid. You are correct the the Sante Fe F7s I rebuilt went quick.
I also have a few undec. GP-9s that I am thinking of painting CNJ - cause I have the decals - and because a BevBel GP9 dummy went for $60 last week. Can not do anymore DCC ready complete chassis as all the motors I have left are the older grey ones that draw too much current.
If I could find some Athearn motor top and bottom brush contact strips I could make a DC/DCC snap on solder-less conversion kit (truck clips, headlight mount for ground W/1.5 v light glued on, one shielded bottom contact, one normal top, constant light board with double sided tape) but those strips are nowhere to be found today. Even if I had them likely your looking at $8 a kit ,
We will see how the Geeps sell, I must say far more interests early than the LV's.
Keep us posted. It is an interesting project.
Took a bath on the LV units. I have cost/fees of over $60 in the two units, that does not count the parts I had (motor, gear trucks, mounts, DCC board, lights, more) which I used to convert the dummy to powered. After 3 weeks posted I got $53 for them both shipped. It appears the DCC ready is a deterant, not an advantage. I can easily get $26 shipped for a stock F7 bluebox, for that matter I can get that for a chassis alone.
Live and learn.
Part 2 - the two GP's sold for the $30 minimum bid that included free shipping. No more, maybe even a little less than you run of the mill blue box geeps. I recently got $26 shipped for a GP9 chassis with an old grey motor, steel flywheels & metal sideframe trucks. Both geeps that sold tonight had can type motors, brass flywheels, plasitic sideframe trucks with details installed. I even painted the UP unit trucks silver. I had to have 12 hours into the 4 locos with the DCC clips - wiring, installing, numbering, detailing shells, tuning the BB chassis, test runs, installing Kadee Couplers w/draft gear and alike. I did not make a dime for those 12 hours.
If anyone is interested in trying a Blue Box conversion like mine I will send you a constant light board with soldered colored leads, wiring diagram and even some 1.5V lights. email - hamer1234@aol.com