Just a cautionary note - I recently bought 12 Peco Code 83 turnouts, and on one of them I discovered that the bare frog wire was not fully connected. If you look on the underside, you'll see that the wire is connected, by means of what looks like 3 spot-welds, to three metal parts - the frog and the two adjacent rails.
On my faulty example, one of the rails (at the end of the bare wire) was not connected. I only discovered this because I was doing all the 'DCC modifications' mentioned, and was checking connectivity and isolation for each turnout with a meter as I went along. I was able to solder it back on OK.
Bob
The wire already on there goes to the frog. For most reliable operation, you're going to want to power the frog. That wire would connect to pin 4 on the Tortoise, track power would go to 2 and 3. If there's a short, reverse the wires on 2 and 3.
You said you cut the small jumopers - did you add on the two in the spaces provided, those should get connected to your track bus. Those connections get power to the inside of the turnout and to the closure rails without relying on the point contact.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
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I got some PECO electrofrog turnouts and want to wire them for DCC with a tortoise switch machine and the DS64. I red the modification instructions (cutting the little wires, soldering, insulated connectors etc.) but I have one question: There is a bare wire preinstalled on the PECO. I get mixed messages about that wire. It seems like that wire may need to go to connector 4 of the tortoise, but some people dont seem to connect it. Do I need to connect this wire to the Tortoise or is this only for DC?