Am converting DC Bowser to DCC usin DH166 8 pin, silent decoder. Yes it is a head scratcher. I easily added 6 driver wheel pickups, but cannot find straightforward way to add pickups from the tender trucks. Do you think only using drivers will be adequate? Thanks
Regrettably, almost certainly......nope! I could, it might, but you'll probably come to thank yourself for simply gritting your teeth and getting the tender included in the pickup chore.
Some use mangled Kadee centering springs to wipe the backs of tender wheels. The copper ones with the 'arm' slat that acts like the spring. I believe it might have been the late Howard Minkowitz who posted his work with this particular idea, probably in 2005/6. If it'll work, do a search for 'hminky' and add center spring pickups. Might work. There might even be a video on the Tube site.
Streamlined Backshop has a variety of wheel and axle wipers, maybe one will work for you.
selector Regrettably, almost certainly......nope! I could, it might, but you'll probably come to thank yourself for simply gritting your teeth and getting the tender included in the pickup chore. Some use mangled Kadee centering springs to wipe the backs of tender wheels. The copper ones with the 'arm' slat that acts like the spring. I believe it might have been the late Howard Minkowitz who posted his work with this particular idea, probably in 2005/6. If it'll work, do a search for 'hminky' and add center spring pickups. Might work. There might even be a video on the Tube site.
Simon
Are the tender trucks metal? If so, that is how the power is probably being picked up.
Most older (pre-DCC designed) HO steam engines were set up that the drivers on one side were used to pick up track power from one rail, and the tender trucks were connected to the other rail. So like the drivers would make contact with the right rail and tender wheels contact the left rail (or vice-versa).
In the tender, the uninsulated metal wheels on one side transferred the power to the metal trucks, which then transferred the current to the metal floor of the tender, with a wire going from the tender floor to the motor. There were no wipers like you'd have in a more recent design of engine, and no wire connecting the trucks to the tender floor.
wjstix Are the tender trucks metal? If so, that is how the power is probably being picked up. Most older (pre-DCC designed) HO steam engines were set up that the drivers on one side were used to pick up track power from one rail, and the tender trucks were connected to the other rail. So like the drivers would make contact with the right rail and tender wheels contact the left rail (or vice-versa). In the tender, the uninsulated metal wheels on one side transferred the power to the metal trucks, which then transferred the current to the metal floor of the tender, with a wire going from the tender floor to the motor. There were no wipers like you'd have in a more recent design of engine, and no wire connecting the trucks to the tender floor.
Power pickup from the tender is nice but really not necessary if you're trackwork is good. My Bowser 2-10-0 with a TCS WOW decoder only has pickup from the locomotive drivers.
I feel that your biggest concern is current draw. Unless you have a can motor or modified Bowser DC71 motor, the current draw will pop that decoder in a split second.
Pete.
Thank you for your comments. I have the new skew wound open frame motor and swaped out the old one. Communication with Bowser indicated this arrangement will work with decoder they recommend. Right not, the problem I am trying to solve, is that there is no provision for auxillary power pick up other than from the drivers. Many thanks Andy
thank you for all your ideas. Andy
Sorry to repeat myself, but most likely your engine is designed to pick up power on one side by the drivers, and the other side by the tender wheels. There won't be wires connecting to the trucks, the metal wheels and metal trucks transfer electricity to the metal tender chassis, and then there would be a wire going from the chassis to the motor. The wheels will be insulated on one axle, some old engine may even have tender wheels with one metal wheel and one plastic wheel on each axle. I have several old Mantua engines that work that way, and I'm 99% sure the old Bowser engines were the same.
You can convert the engine to plastic trucks and add wipers as suggested of course so you're picking up power from both sides with both the engine and tender. You would need to drill holes in the tender chassis to run the connecting wires up to the decoder.
Whichever way you go, using a decoder with some version of a "keep alive" would be a great idea.