The decoders are Digitrax....
SKL,Digitraxx is and IMHO the best decoders.
Also,Digitraxx makes a decoder for Athearn BB locomotives that is almost plug and play.
All you do is isolate the motor with double sided electrical tape and then side the decoder connectors onto the locomotive's pickup posts(where that old metal pickup strip made contact) then tape the decoder to the shell.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
I tend to grasp onto new technology when it comes along, if I can see the immediate benefit. My layout was designed when the choices were either DC Cab Control or Dynatrol (a previous system similar to DCC). I looked enviously at Dynatrol for years! So, I was very familair with DC Cab Control; but also understood how much more realistic, fun and easier it would be to run trains using DCC; or the Dynatrol System. What put me over the top for DCC was when Digitrax came out with their Zephyr system. I felt this system put DCC within my price range and most of the decoders I've installed in my loco collection cost less than $20.00, 5-10 years ago.
I realize that many might consider my statement: "I tend to grasp onto new technology when it comes along" to be incongruant with some of the topics I have some passion about on these forums. However, I don't understand the myopathy many demonstrate here, either.
NP 2626 "Northern Pacific, really terrific"
Northern Pacific Railway Historical Association: http://www.nprha.org/
Get'em while you can though, the Athearn harness decoders and the also seperately available harness have been discontinued because Digitrax can no longer get the parts - I take it to mean that means the clips are no longer available in quantity from Athearn.
However - one look at one and you will see how ridiculously simply it is to just solder the wires from a plain wired decoder to your existing motor clips and replicate this harness. The trick for isolating the bottom of th emotor if you DIY, besides the strip of tape, it to swap the top and bottom clips. They are interchangeable, the bottom one just has the extra tab that sticks out to contact the frame, the top one is flat. Swapping them adds an extra level of protection by not having that pointy tab to potentially rub through the tape.
Better results can be had by drilling and tapping a hole int he frame and running in a brass screw, as I mentioned. The normal pickup in the Digitrax harness clips on to the headlight post at the front - this post is usually somewhat loosely riveted to the frame and the contact is less than ideal.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
rrinkerGet'em while you can though, the Athearn harness decoders and the also seperately available harness have been discontinued because Digitrax can no longer get the parts - I take it to mean that means the clips are no longer available in quantity from Athearn.
Randy,Forgive but,like always I'm a mite confused here.
The decoder had ends that slipped over the truck pickup bracket (for the want of a better term I guess) and every BB locomotive has that.
Now is that because the BB line is discontinued?
But,there there's still older BB RTR locomotives that hasn't been upgraded to DCC ready.
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besides the strip of tape, it to swap the top and bottom clips. They are interchangeable, the bottom one just has the extra tab that sticks out to contact the frame, the top one is flat. Swapping them adds an extra level of protection by not having that pointy tab to potentially rub through the tape.
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Wooo! Great information!
Danke!
Just passing on what Digitrax said, the harness is discontinued because parts are no longer avaialble. Surely the don;t mean the 9 pin end that connect to the decoder, most ever decoder maker has that, and surely they don;t mean fine fleible wire, every wired decoder has that.
That leaves only the clips - I suspect sicne the BB line has been discontinued, AThearn prefers to save what stock they have in the old style motor clips to fix BB locos rather than sell to Digitrax to make decoder harnesses. I just checked the ATheanr parts web site and the clips are listed as "TBD" under delivery - so looks like they aren;t selling them direct either. You can still buy some of the old motors - but some are listed as "sold out"
Like I said, there's nothign special about the harness - you have to take the stock clips off to fit the new harness ones, so the next step would be to use an decoder with a 9 pin connector and wires - DH123, DH163, or other brand liek NCE D13SRJ, or TCS T1, and solder the wires to the clips yourself, using the existing clips. You've now in a couple of minutes replicated a harness Digitrax charged over $7 for. By using a decoder with a 9 pin plug, you can remove the decoder and repalce with a different one, or a sound one, withotu reqiring the loco. Or repalce the decoder with a 9 pin dummy plug and convert the loco back to DC.
Ok,I had to look at the AT123 decoder..They're talking about the brass motor contact strips.I see the issue.
I used the AT123 decoders when I was using DCC and really liked the simplicity of the install..No fuss no muss..