Proto S1 and Decoder Problems

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

My luck with Protos has not been good.

This one started by having light problems. The lights work fine with the light board and DC, but drop the decoder in and nothing.

Now the engine only runs in reverse. For a switcher this is not a good thing. Eventually it will run out of gas somewhere.

So, do I figure I have a bad decoder or a bad socket. I don’t want to throw any more money after this one than I have to.

2

Chip,

Did you put in a Digitrax decoder in your S1, like the one that Randy used in his handy pictoral? I put a Lenz LE0512 “Micro” (N-scale) decoder in mine and haven’t had any problems with it. I also bypassed the socket and soldered the wires right to the decoder.

Tom

3

I don’t remember which one it was. It was one Tony recommended. I did use the socket.

4

Try turning the decoder plug around. Normally, if you plug one in backwards the train will run in the opposite direction, but should still run in both directions. Having the decoder plugged in backwards in some engines will cause lighting problems.