Hi all,
I’m a bit of a newbie to the hobby (and first post here) with lots of reading up to do.
I’m collecting all the parts to build a DCC controlled N gauge layout using Kato track and a Lenz set 100.
It’s still at a very early stage of construction and should keep me occupied for a few months yet.
I have a bachmann spectrum baldwin 2-8-0 which was marked as DCC ready, but can’t find any info on how it is DCC ready.
There is nothing I can find in the documentation, I presume there is a socket somewhere.
Has anyone here fitted a decoder to one of these who could help shed some light on the subject - I’ve not pulled it apart just yet.
i have an n scale layout which is dcc. i don’t have any steam locos. i have about 30 diesel loco’s with 20 of them purchased as dcc ready. dcc ready means to me that a decoder can just be dropped in after removing the existing control board and replacing it with the decoder board which is all that i had to do to convert them. there should be a plug in the tender to install the decoder. your loco that is not dcc ready might have to use a z scale decoder to fit . the decoder manufacturer of your choice should be able to tell you what decoder will fit into your loco. you could also call tony’s train exchange for more up to date info. by the way i’m running a 50yr old ho ac gilbert hudson on a z scale decoder.
There are no standards for what “DCC Ready” means. So, manufacturers are free to put the label on anything, and interpret the phrase for themselves.
Before DCC, many locomotives were built with the frame of the motor, the frame of the locomotive and the wheels on one side all electrically connected. DCC requires an “isolated” motor, at least the electrical parts. So, the first step in retrofitting an old engine with a decoder was to “isolate” the motor by putting a piece of insulation (electrical tape, typically) between it and the frame, and replacing any metal mounting screws with nylon. As manufacturers began to understand the DCC system, they started providing engines with the motors already isolated from the frame. This was probably the first meaning of “DCC Ready.”
There was still no plug, of course. Gradually, the DCC world grew and loco makers started to understand the value of providing plugs for decoders, while at the same time, decoder makers started customizing their products to fit into specific engines. Now, we’ve come to expect this kind of “plug-and-play” compatability, but there’s no guarantee.
Bachmann Spectrum steam engines that are advertised as DCC ready have a decoder socket in the tender. There should be instructions with the locomotives on how to open up the tender and install a DCC decoder. The motors are isolated, so nothing else needs to be done in most cases other than finding a decoder that will fit, especially into N scale.
Spectrum HO scale tenders have a small phillips-head screw near the front truck that holds the tender together, and two hooks at the rear of the shell. If the N-scale tender is the same, remove the screw and take the tender apart by separating it at the front first, and then unhooking the rear and lifting it off.
The N scale Bachmann Spectrum steam locos are dcc ready. You have to remove the boiler, remove a small weght and solder a small Z scale decoder to the existing wires. Or you can pay someone to do it.