66C Posted July 1, 2016 Share Posted July 1, 2016 A fellow club member, who does not have access to the Internet, wishes to fit a DCC decoder to his Bassett Lowke Flying Scotsman loco. He would be most grateful for any advice in achieving this. Areas of concern include the wiring within the loco and the control board for the smoke unit fitted to the loco. One option being considered is placing the decoder in the tender but does anyone know if it can be dismantled?Thanks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted July 1, 2016 Share Posted July 1, 2016 Bill can't provide any specific advice here, but the key points are that the red and black wires go to the right and left rail pickups respectively, and the orange and grey go to the motor terminals - if you wire orange to the terminal that was connected to the right pickup, you should be the right polarity (but this can be flipped by changing a CV) It is absolutely vital that there is no connection between the motor terminals and the pickups other than via the decoder, as this would short the decoder and destroy it! Be particularly wary if the chassis is live to one of the rails. Regarding the smoke unit, it will be supplied by the blue (common positive) and one of the other colours (green, purple?) Again, no short to the chassis can be allowed. Ensure that the decoder can supply enough current. you may need to check with a multimeter (10A range) the current the smoke unit takes. Hope this helps Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
66C Posted July 1, 2016 Author Share Posted July 1, 2016 Hi Simon Thanks for your reply. The problems with this particular loco are way beyond the basics of DCC installation. There is very little space available in the loco body - most is taken up with a large motor and what appears to be a voltage regulator for the smoke unit as it has both a heating element and a fan motor. The circuit board for the voltage regulator also has a pair of switches. One is a simple on/off for the smoke unit so that the loco can be run without smoke oil. The other is a selector switch for 3-rail/off/2 rail. Both switches are operated by push/pull rods from the cab - similar to the controls in old clockwork locos. This circuit board means that the wiring from the pickups is routed through it and adds a little complication. At present we are reluctant to strip down the loco any further than taking off the body - that's a little challenge in itself! The location with the most space for a decoder is in the tender but there is no obvious way to disassemble the tender - it looks awfully as though it was painted after soldered assembly. Now you know why we would love to find someone who has successfully fitted a decoder. Regards. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nearholmer Posted July 1, 2016 Share Posted July 1, 2016 There is a discussion going on right now on Classic 0 Gauge Forum (I think you can view it, even if you're not a member) about fitting DCC to Darstaed locos, which are similar to modern BL. Assuming that your BL is a modern one, not a Classic one, that discussion might interest, or even help, you, and if anyone knows how best to strip a modern BL loco, they will be a member of that forum - I know one who is in that discussion definitely knows how to do it. Kevin Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
66C Posted July 1, 2016 Author Share Posted July 1, 2016 Thanks Kevin - looks like it will be worth following up. Regards. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simond Posted July 1, 2016 Share Posted July 1, 2016 Bill although I have no interest at all in the coarse scale models, I'm always interested in technical challenges! please do let us know how you get on good luck! Simon Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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