Bulleid Merchant Navy class, which are dcc ready?

[Stormbringer]

Hi all

        I wish to fit sound to one of my 3 Hornby  Merchant Navy locos 35025,  35028 and 35029. However there seems to be a bit of confusion, particularly around 35029 ( NRM collection) . In some places they state that the loco is dcc ready and in others dcc compatible. Unfortunately I seem to have mislaid the paperwork that came with the loco so am unable to confirm which is which. Can anyone confirm please either way?

     Tia

          Pete

[melmerby]

According to Hattons (and others):

Hornby R2267 - 35025 has no socket, so it's a wire-in job for a decoder

Hornby R2169 - 35028 also no socket.

Hornby R2294 - 35029 (NRM), again no socket

These are all a similar vintage before universal fitting of sockets

 

R2294 is from 2002

 

 

 

 

Edited May 5, 2020 by melmerby

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

In my opinion, in common with much of Hornby's earlier Chinese production of steam models, these are 'DCC unfriendly'. It was only with the introduction of the loco drive Britannia (2006 if memory serves) that Hornby abandoned their previous method of using the chassis block casting in the conduction path from one rail. This can be a fruitful source of momentary short circuits, especially on curves, and is best eliminated.

 

All you have to do is drop the keeper plate 'sandwich' on the loco, identify the wiper strip that has no wire attached, and remove the protruding peg on the bottom of the chassis block that contacts it, then solder on a wire to the now isolated pick up strip, to take track supply to the decoder (if hardwiring) or to the DCC socket pin with a wire connection to the chassis block. Also cut and remove the (usually blue) wire on top of the gear cover that makes this connection to the motor terminal (earlier models) or DCC socket (later versions).

 

(Hornby have I believe over time updated the construction to eliminate the live chassis block but from which model number and whether the process is complete I don't know.)

[melmerby]

As above

The first Merchant Navy with a decoder socket looks likely to be R2310 35016  "Elders Fyffes" from 2006 as shown on Hornby service sheet HSS 267, they do not seem to have a service sheet for the previous non-socket versions

[geoffers]

The live chassis block may explain why my early issue Bulleid Original light pacifics (34041 Wilton, 34043 Combe Martin, 34051 Winston Churchill, and 34091 Weymouth) keep shorting in certain parts of the layout. The later issue, 34006 Bude, behaves a lot better as do the rebuilt light pacifics. No Bachmann, Heljan, or Dapol locos show this problem. The other offender is a Hornby Q1 33037. Is there anyway around this - apart from a large hammer that is?

Edited May 9, 2020 by geoffers