N scale steam decoder installation (Digitrax)

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Having never installed a decoder before, I’ve got a few questions. I’ve got an N scale Con-Cor 4-6-4 (the newer version), and the decoder is a Digitrax DN163.

When I connect the Red and Black wires to the engine pickups, can I simply solder them to the two wires coming from the motor, or do I need to make sure that they aren’t touching the frame? And if that’s the case, how can I check?

Also, and probably more importantly, I bought the Digitrax Zephyr today, as well as the decoder mentioned above, and I tried to “test the decoder” using the LT1. The small LEDs seemed to light up briefly, and that was it. I wired things up per the instructions (including the resistor), and I’m not sure what went wrong. I also tried testing the lights (F0 FWD/REV) and couldn’t get them to work either.

Any advice? Thanks.

nick.

2

It turns out that if I had read the instructions with the LT1, I would have realized that to make it work, I had to program in the decoder. So, that’s figured out. I’m still unsure about the first issue regarding the leads heading to/from the motor.

Instructions…go figure.

Thanks