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What does "DCC Ready" really mean?

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Posted by hobo9941 on Friday, June 19, 2015 10:51 PM

Well, many are now. BUT, As a DC non sound operator the last thing I want is to buy a DCC ready diesel loco who's weight, and thereby pulling power, has been dramiticly compromised to make room for a speaker or two.

Well, you could add weight in the empty space a lot easier than we can remove it. Whistling

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Posted by NP2626 on Saturday, June 20, 2015 6:53 AM

carl425

 

 
NP2626
Is the plug shown in the exploded view of the loco, with the plans supplied? Tell me where the plug is in the exploded view provided in this link: http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/dwg/dwgs/HO_ALCO_S2_DCC_READY.pdf

 

It is right in the middle of the circuit board.  If you zoom in you can see that the rectangular box has 2 rows of 4 holes in it.  That's where the 8 pins go.  It comes from the factory with a jumper plugged into the socket that looks like the back of a PC board.

 

That I had to have overlooked the plug would seem obvious.  This fact is irrelevnt to the topic of this thread and it needs to be understood that I was successful in converting this locomotive to DCC operation any way, although at some extra work.  The little boxes that trap the wires onto the circuit board tend to fail over time, so all my connections have been soldered and will last a long time. 

NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"

Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association:  http://www.nprha.org/

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Posted by Doughless on Saturday, June 20, 2015 10:21 AM

It seems to me that any complaint against Bachmann here is unwarranted. 

The loco comes with an 8 pin plug that has the standard DC jumper pushed into it.  That is the modern term for "DCC Ready", IMO, since most producers now isolate the motor from the frame and install a circuit board with the plug.  Just remove the jumper and push a decoder into the plug.

Of course, if you install a decoder that can't be pushed into the plug, but one that must be hardwired and soldered, then the factory circuit board must be removed and resistors may have to be installed if the decoder does not support the proper lighting. 

No matter what type of decoder the owner wants to install, the Bachmann S4 is DCC Ready.

 

 

- Douglas

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Posted by carl425 on Saturday, June 20, 2015 10:24 AM

NP2626
That I had to have overlooked the plug would seem obvious. This fact is irrelevnt to the topic of this thread

Huh?

You asked "Tell me where the plug is in the exploded view provided". I answered. How is that irrelevant?

I have the right to remain silent.  By posting here I have given up that right and accept that anything I say can and will be used as evidence to critique me.

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Posted by NP2626 on Sunday, June 21, 2015 7:29 AM

To the employess and officers of Bachmann, please except my sincere appology for my overlooking the DCC plug on your "DCC Ready" Alco S-4 switcher! 

NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"

Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association:  http://www.nprha.org/

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Posted by zstripe on Sunday, June 21, 2015 8:03 AM

Mark,

What can I say! Bow Bow

Take Care! Big Smile

Frank

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Posted by carl425 on Sunday, June 21, 2015 8:38 AM

I'm not sure we should conclude that Bachmann is completely without fault here.  For anybody that's doing this for the first time, I'd say the odds are no better than 50/50 that they will recognize that piece of PCB as the jumper that needs to be removed.

Based of the thousands of these things they use, would it really be that big of an expense to make something that looked more like a jumper - with a label that says something like "remove for DCC"?

The instructions, while they show the socket, don't show the jumper as a separate part.  Why not at least include a picture of the jumper in the instructions and tell the user that it needs to be removed to plug in a decoder?

I have the right to remain silent.  By posting here I have given up that right and accept that anything I say can and will be used as evidence to critique me.

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Posted by maxman on Sunday, June 21, 2015 8:53 AM

Exception noted.

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Posted by Geared Steam on Sunday, June 21, 2015 11:34 AM

I think maybe a quick Google search may have answered all the questions asked here concerning adding a decoder.

"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein

http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/

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Posted by NP2626 on Monday, June 22, 2015 7:33 AM

The jumper was not recognized by yours truly as a plug for a decoder and is not described as such in the instructions.  That Bachmann stated there even was one was found at the Model Trains Stuff website after the fact.  

I have found over the years that instructions tend to be so poorly written that I'm sorry, I tend to ignore them, much to my own detriment!

NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"

Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association:  http://www.nprha.org/

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Posted by richhotrain on Monday, June 22, 2015 7:46 AM

NP2626

The jumper was not recognized by yours truly as a plug for a decoder and is not described as such in the instructions.  That Bachmann stated there even was one was found at the Model Trains and Stuff website after the fact.  

I have found over the years that instructions tend to be so poorly written that I'm sorry, I tend to ignore them, much to my own detriment!

 

If it's any consolation, you are not alone.

Rich

Alton Junction

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Posted by ATLANTIC CENTRAL on Monday, June 22, 2015 8:03 AM

NP2626

The jumper was not recognized by yours truly as a plug for a decoder and is not described as such in the instructions.  That Bachmann stated there even was one was found at the Model Trains and Stuff website after the fact.  

I have found over the years that instructions tend to be so poorly written that I'm sorry, I tend to ignore them, much to my own detriment!

 

I agree that the information provided by many of these compaines is very lacking. Maybe not a big deal years ago, but today, with all these elctronics choices, a little better info would be nice.

One of the best quality locos out there comes with ZERO paperwork - the Intermountain F units. Good thing they have customer service that is even better than Bachmann - I consider these two at the top of the customer service list.

Sheldon

    

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Posted by richg1998 on Monday, June 22, 2015 9:04 AM

Many make assumptions with DCC. The Internet is loaded with DCC info if we don't need hand holding.

If you are going to remove an engine shell, you will need electrical, mechanical experience. Two wires, DC is a lot different than seven wires or more, DCC.

When we did engine conversions on cars many years ago, we learned by doing. Taking things apart. Making mistakes. I go to cruise nights and amazed what many are doing on car mods and don't even use the Internet.

Today, many want others to do our research. Thats just the way it is.

It is amazing how far model railroading has come, even before the Internet.

 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.

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Posted by ATLANTIC CENTRAL on Monday, June 22, 2015 3:28 PM

richg1998

Many make assumptions with DCC. The Internet is loaded with DCC info if we don't need hand holding.

If you are going to remove an engine shell, you will need electrical, mechanical experience. Two wires, DC is a lot different than seven wires or more, DCC.

When we did engine conversions on cars many years ago, we learned by doing. Taking things apart. Making mistakes. I go to cruise nights and amazed what many are doing on car mods and don't even use the Internet.

Today, many want others to do our research. Thats just the way it is.

It is amazing how far model railroading has come, even before the Internet.

 Rich

 

Yes, just amazing. How did we ever live without the internet?

I remember, we had those things called books. And we talked and learned from people "in person".

And amazingly I did stuff like built a 1963 Nova convertible with a 325 HP, 283 cid V8, at only 19 years old, without the internet.

And I had a working model railroad in my basement too - simply amazing - it had Kadee couplers, hidden staging yards, multi train control, electrically controlled turnouts, all before the internet.

If all the computers died tomorrow, is there anyone left who knows how to build one from scratch and make it work? I design, build and restore houses for a living - and if need be I could build one from scratch with minimal tools and some additional labor.

It seems many today do not want to learn "how to do things", or how things work any more.

While the OP of this thread may have missed seemingly obvious plug on the circuit board, as I said earlier, I think this stuff has become sofisticated enough to expect better instructions from these manufacturers.

Personally, I strongly resent this new trend in computers that I shoud go buy a product, then search forums, message boards, and such to learn how to make it work.

Same applies to model trains. 

Sheldon

    

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Posted by richg1998 on Monday, June 22, 2015 4:22 PM

I have seen the DC adapter in the parts page and some loco diagrams at the Bachmann website.

Have found a lot of useful info at the Bachmann site for the past few years.

I have some Bachmann locos.

The PDF's can be expanded a lot for detailed analysis. All part of research.

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.

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Posted by NP2626 on Tuesday, June 23, 2015 6:21 AM
My other hobby was R/C Airplanes.  The fact is that Almost and Ready to Fly airplanes have all but supplanted kits.  It is my understanding (from those who feel they are in the know) that writing and producing instructions for kits is the reason that kits are dying a slow; but, sure death!  I find this hard to believe.  I've always felt it is a lack of interest in building by the majority that is causing this change.
 
The fact that I find instructions to be confusing and sometimes providing conflicting information that made me stop reading them and relying instead on the plans when building airplanes.  This doesn’t help with model trains. 
 
I’m finding that this thread has turned more into an admonishment for me to read my instructions, than as I intended, simply to discuss what “DCC Ready” means.

Some of you really need to get off your high horses!  We all make mistakes and this is universal!  Learning from mistakes is one way in which we learn and it is very clear some of you think you do not make mistakes!

NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"

Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association:  http://www.nprha.org/

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Posted by Geared Steam on Tuesday, June 30, 2015 8:09 PM
LOL at this entire thread.

"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein

http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/

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Posted by softail86mark on Thursday, July 2, 2015 11:31 PM

NP2626
My other hobby was R/C Airplanes.  The fact is that Almost and Ready to Fly airplanes have all but supplanted kits.  It is my understanding (from those who feel they are in the know) that writing and producing instructions for kits is the reason that kits are dying a slow; but, sure death!  I find this hard to believe.  I've always felt it is a lack of interest in building by the majority that is causing this change.
 
The fact that I find instructions to be confusing and sometimes providing conflicting information that made me stop reading them and relying instead on the plans when building airplanes.  This doesn’t help with model trains. 
 
I’m finding that this thread has turned more into an admonishment for me to read my instructions, than as I intended, simply to discuss what “DCC Ready” means.

Some of you really need to get off your high horses!  We all make mistakes and this is universal!  Learning from mistakes is one way in which we learn and it is very clear some of you think you do not make mistakes!

 

No admonishment from me. I don't think I make mistakes...I know I make mistakes...

MC

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