Digitrax Zephyr

[Yardman]

What Digitrax told you to do was disable DC operation on your DCC decoders, which is what I told you to do in post 4.

The voltage you are measuring on the track will not be pure DC, so your meter will not be reading accurately. As long as your locos run satisfactorily go with it. The actual voltage you are reading doesn’t matter. However running DC locomotives on a DCC system is not recommended and can even damage some high quality motors. NCE long since removed the capability from their systems. I’m surprised Digitrax still allow it. Do your locos a favour either fit decoders or take them off the layout.

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

.. All my locos have either Bachmann factory fitted decoders or Digitrax - both types are dual use but I have never tried running my one analogue loco on '00' with DCC equipped locos on the track as well.  I assume they would not run as they are not being addressed but should go and try it sometime!

 Test and see. On the Lenz system address 00 is 'just another address' so decoder fitted locos carry right on, following whatever command they were last given.

 

First time I tried address 00, several decoder fitted locos kept right on running on the layout as a Mashima 1830 burned out without turning a wheel on the loco it was fitted too. I have since restricted the very occasional use of address 00 to old heavyweight open frame motors like the XO4 and similar, when no DC controller is to hand; no way would I let it anywhere near a modern can motor.

[ExPatBrit]

What Digitrax told you to do was disable DC operation on your DCC decoders, which is what I told you to do in post 4.

The voltage you are measuring on the track will not be pure DC, so your meter will not be reading accurately. As long as your locos run satisfactorily go with it. The actual voltage you are reading doesn’t matter. However running DC locomotives on a DCC system is not recommended and can even damage some high quality motors. NCE long since removed the capability from their systems. I’m surprised Digitrax still allow it. Do your locos a favour either fit decoders or take them off the layout.

Digitrax allow it because it's an extremely handy function to have, provided their instructions are followed sensibly. The biggest danger is leaving dc loco's standing with track power on, less when the loco is on the move, something Digitrax specifically mentions. I'm glad my system has the feature, a real time saver when testing new purchases, but then, I have no problem following sane and sensible directions in the owners manual. Required reading I find.....

[Oldddudders]

Digitrax allow it because it's an extremely handy function to have, provided their instructions are followed sensibly. The biggest danger is leaving dc loco's standing with track power on, less when the loco is on the move, something Digitrax specifically mentions. I'm glad my system has the feature, a real time saver when testing new purchases, but then, I have no problem following sane and sensible directions in the owners manual. Required reading I find.....

And it was reading the manual in 1998 that led me to only use the N-gauge setting on the DCS100, despite running OO & HO locos. Does the Zephyr, which otherwise apes DCS100 functionality, I think, have this facility? It surely further protects expensive decoders and motors.

[Sharpy1071]

Thanks everyone for answering this query i made, didn't quite expect to get all this attention! But the problem has been solved. Just to clear up a point. i have read and been told to check locos with DC before commiting to DCC.The train in question had another problem, ie screeching, until i fixed this it wasn't worth putting a decoder in it so that is why it was run until I was satisfied all was OK. It will now become a DCC fitted  Loco. I also have been given two very old trains whose wheel flanges are to big to go through the points so without running them on a DC track first i could have wasted time and money trying to fit DCC de-coders. That is the explaination of why I ran them on DC. Thanks Brian. p.s. being new to this hobby I didn't realise older trains might not go on modern track, I am learning.