Have two of these engines that I am bashing with a roundhouse boxcab. question is this. What is a good decoder for these? N scale good? And do I cut off the 3 yellow resistors on the motor? Also what and are there any special considerations with putting a capicator in them. Thanks in advance
Mike
alco's forever!!!!! Majoring in HO scale Minorig in O scale:)
For my single motor one, I put in a TCS MC2. The one time I wimped out and just attached the decoder to the labeled holes on the circuit board, and you clip off the capacitors, the two long things that look sort of like resistors are inductors, and they can stay if you remove the capacitors. When I next take it apart to paint it I am going to stript he facotry board completely and repalce the lights with LEDs.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Hey Mike
Tsunami TSU-750 will fit in Boxcab and Climax shells, below is a link to my boxcab build using the sound decoder.
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/2012/01/installing-sound-into-boxcab.html
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/2009/09/boxcab-construction.html
For non sound the Digitrax Z-Scale DZ123 worked for me before I installed sound. This was 4-5 years ago, there may be better selections for non-sound decoder now.
"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/
As far as a stay alive capicator, can i use any capacitor, say like one from an old computer or is there something special to look for in one? How is one wired up? Being as these are short wheelbase engines i dont want any stalling over turnouts.
Also should i just tear out the old board or reuse it? Just completeing the body details on the two and have one in primer already. Not sure i want sound but it would be pretty cool if it did. Hmmm old car parts or sound in two engines? Decisions decisions.
mike
I build HOn3 locos out of the 70-tonners. I usually use NCE decoders and could use one of the smaller decoders, but they're more expensive and then you still have to do something about the rear lightt that's in the cab.
I originally ordered some NCE-BACH decoders, thinking they're a drop-in. They are, but only for the full size diesels. But as it truns out, besides being cheap, they allow an easy hack that also takes care of the rear light. Some pics, were epoxy and some lifting of PC traces and soldering does the trick. These are of the first one and it's a bit more crude than ones done since.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
RS2Mike
I would recommend tearing out the old board and hardwiring the decoder, it may not seem like much but it gave me more room and a better fit. MHO
As far as a stay alive, I'm using #4 Atlas and #5 Peco's (code 83) with dead frogs, I have no stalling probelms at all.
Here is some discussion concerning TCS caps
http://www.members.optusnet.com.au/mainnorth/alive.htm
Geared Steam,
Yeah, the old board is actually already out. That's all the cheap, but much better than stock NCE-BACH board you see, creatively rearranged, except for the board with the rear light, which was desoldered from the factory board and reinstalled on this one.
What is not shown is that there's still room for the weight, which I Kapton over underneath and tape to the top of everything.
Yes, you can go smaller if you need to fit sound, keep alive, cab interior, whatever.
I use the LokSound Micro in two 44 ton and one 70 ton. Used a 16mm x 35mm oval with styrene baffle.. The LokSound do very well and don't need a stay alive cap.
Ripped out everything. Ripped out upper wieght in 70 ton and made my own that fit better. Kept the LED's in the 70 ton. Kept the light bulbs in the 44 ton.
Did that about five years ago and things do evolve.
I posted the photos here sometime ago.
Rich
If you ever fall over in public, pick yourself up and say “sorry it’s been a while since I inhabited a body.” And just walk away.
Loksound Micro is what I will be putting in my 44-tonner. Even smaller than the TSU-750 AND no heat problems. I do want to get another one and then get some of the nice cast resin GE sideframes and put it in the Roundhouse boxcab body, but the only CORRECT Roundhouse boxcab body shell is the one from the track cleaner version - for whatever reason, they made those with the correct end doors, the regular Boxcab body shall has no end doors, correct only for the very first one or two of them. And the prices I've seen for the track cleaner model - well, it' going to be a while, especially when we're talking $79 and up, even for ones that don;t run! I just need the shell, not even the track cleaner components, definitely not the chassis and drive.
When I did my Micros, they were 500 ma max. V3.5 I think. The Micros are v4.0 now.
The 44 ton and the 70 ton were about 600 ma at 12 vdc with a little pressure on the drivers.
I never ran them at over their max prototipical speeds. Never had them over heat.
Select and V4 Micros are 750ma steady state now.
Sorry Mike, I was responding to "RS2Mike"
No problem, lots of Mike's around.
Thanks fornall the replays and ideas guys. I just finished one. I call it my 300 hp one. It ison the 44 ton chasis and does not have the doors on the ends. Getting ready to start the 70 ton one which i will call my 400 hp engine. One or both of these engines will end up with sound. Right nownthe 44 ton has a bachmann decoder wired into a board. I kinda like the board as i can adjust the lights as needed using an led bent and lowered to the right height. Pics will come shortly of #15 the 300 hp engine
here is old number 15. She looks like she had a recent paint job but used some parts on the roof from another scrap loco as the rust is showing through a little.
another view lastly a roof shot next for the 70 ton frame should be in base paint tomorrow, possible final paint tomorrow, then final assembly next week sometime. mike
another view
lastly a roof shot next for the 70 ton frame should be in base paint tomorrow, possible final paint tomorrow, then final assembly next week sometime. mike
lastly a roof shot
next for the 70 ton frame should be in base paint tomorrow, possible final paint tomorrow, then final assembly next week sometime. mike
next for the 70 ton frame should be in base paint tomorrow, possible final paint tomorrow, then final assembly next week sometime.
today it pulled 4 roundhouse log cars 5 athearn 40' flatcars with log bunks, 2 50' flatcars with logbunks, a flat with a container and a caboose. All cars have metal wheels and been properly weighted. No weight has been added to the 44 ton frame at all yet.
Good looking loco, Mike. Sounds like a worthwhile conversion.
Thanks. I think it will make a good shop switcher or yard switcher somewhere?