Sorry, I'm sure this has been discussed to death, but I gotta' ask. I have about 15 old Athearn blue box diesels that I have custom detailed/painted, and am thinking about converting to DCC. Feel free to re-direct me to a past thread, but my question is, What's the best outfit to get started with for DCC with older Athearn engines? I'm not really looking for all the sound/remote switches,etc, Just individual engine control on a common wired track. I'd like some cost estimates too if anyone could chime in with that.
Thanks,
Todd.
First off, sound is produced by decoders and speakers in the locomotives and has little to do with the systems themselves except for capacity (total amps). Second, remote control of switches and other accessories is part of all of the DCC systems and is not an additional cost factor, essentially, the same controls you use to control the trains also controls the switches, (to actually control switches, you have to add switch decoders to them - just like locos).
Their are several good starter systems from Digitrax, EasyDCC, NCE and MRC amounst others, (these seem to be the most popular). Some can be expanded and upgraded and some are dead-end systems. I, personally, skipped the starter systems, bit the bullet and went with a full-on system from NCE and no regrets.
In the case of running older Athearns, there is one thing you need to be concerned with and that is power capacity, (Amps), of both the system you choose and the decoders for those locos. Depending on their age, Athearn locos can require from .5 to 1.0 amps to run and need as much as 2-3 amps to get moving needing a decoder that will stand up to the current requirements. Several manufacturers' decoders fit those needs.
More importantly you need to consider how many of those locos (double/tripple heading) and/or trains will be run simultaneously for your total power (Amps) needs. Here's where sound does come in, sound decoders use more current (.5 to 1 amps additional) than basic motor control decoders, so if, later, you want to add sound to these or other locos it's another thing to factor in to your total power requirements.
Most of the starter systems are limited to 1.5 to 3 amps, this could be increased with additional "power boosters".
There are many other things to consider when you chosing a system such as features and ease of use. I would recommend that you read up a bit on DCC and start here: www.tonystrains.com (2. DCC For Beginners). Digtrax and NCE also have quite a lot of info on their websites. And of course there will be other posters with good info as well.
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
Converting BB Athearn locos to DCC is easy after you've done a couple. Digitrax makes a decoder which makes it even easier. It has everything you need to just clip it on and go.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
Just how old are these engines?
A month or two ago, I was thinking about re-motoring an old Athearn F7. Old, as in 50 years, probably built in the Eisenhower administration. This engine still ran, and I'd even given it a decoder, Kadee couplers and a LED headlight. But, it was extremely noisy, sounding like an ancient kitchen meat grinder with the cover off. I brought this up as a forum topic, and someone suggested replacing the entire chassis. Turns out, Athearn makes F7 chassis, and you can find them for $40-50 online. I got one, and now I have a modern, "fuel efficient" engine with the original shell.
I have a couple of old Athearn diesels that didn't run quite so well. Like that F7, I looked into re-motoring and re-wheeling the units, but found that I could buy a brand new GP-9, with much better detailing, for less than the cost of a new motor. It took a while, but I got over the "nostalgia" factor associated with my old Geeps. Actually, I ended up "gutting" one of them, and it's now available to run as an unpowered dummy unit. If you've got engines that still look great, but don't run very well, consider "neutering" them so you can still run them along with more reliable power.
One pretty good rule to remember: If an engine doesn't run well on DC, it's going to run even worse on DCC. Hopefully, your old engines are a bit newer than mine, and they're all in good working order. If so, it won't take much to add simple decoders ($15 each in bulk) to each engine, and you'll be on your way.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Ones from about 15 years ago should be the gold-colored motors, not the old 3 amp kind. Converting them isn't all that difficult, Digitrax has a harness that replaces the stock clips. That plus som tape under the motor to be SURE it doesn't touch the frame and you're good to go. You can do the same thing yourself just soldering the wires to the existing clips, and flipping them around and using what was the bottom clip on the top - the bottom clip has the extra tab to touch the frame.
Slightly related, I never measured the current draw, but one of those old Bowser PRR T-1 (4-4-4-4) kits with dual motors was runnable with the 2.5 amps of my Zephyr. It had never been run after construction, and it just tripped the breaker on the 1 amp MRC DC pack I tried, but it ran on address 0 on the Zephyr - in fact the harsh pulses seemed to be just what it needed to free up the mechanism and get it to move. I ran many Blue Box Athearns with it, I don;t think the gold-sided motors draw more tham 1 amp stalled, half that running free.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
I also have quite a collection of the BB's. I have used the Digitrax 163AT, and the Soundtraxx 101's. Never a truer statement has been made about "be sure they run well on DC first". Both decoder types work well. I had bad luck with the MRC 1634. Just not enough power. In my case sentomental value of the BB's was really high so it meant alot despite the lack of detail to make them run well. Just take your time, and isolate the clip on the bottom of the motor from the frame!