This is one of those threads that seems to spell TROUBLE.
Thinking of using DC power packs as boosters and possibly running DC equipment on a DCC powered layout???
Dunno.
Rich
Sorry for the delay getting back.
To clear things up- I bought these locos from a store and they all are factory DCC equipped. Bachmann & Atlas.
I only have the PowerCab for power and only have one engine on the track at a time. No transformers are hooked to anything. These locos are new and were never used on my DC layout.
After much reading on DCC operation it appears I need to program each engine and it should fix my problem. I was only using a temporary set-up to test my engines and familarize my use of DCC.
I have a very sick wife (stroke) and will be putting things on hold for a while. Thanks to all that tried to help and I’m sure I’ll be back with more questions. I really enjoy reading the posts and solutions. I’m learning something new every time I check in. (At 76 learning new stuff is hard to find a place to store it). If I’ve learned anything from this it’s to keep my DC Transformers away from the DCC track.
Bob,
OK, that clears things up a lot. No bridges – or electronics – burnt, so we can all relax about that. I didn’t start learning DCC until I was 50, so I know what you’re saying about the steep learning curve for those of us who didn’t grow up around PC and Macs[;)]
Bachmann stuff probably comes set to address 3. Yes, you’ll want to give each loco a unique address, probably its road number. If you layout is small and you’re OK with taking the other locos off while programming the loco you’re working on, you can use the entire layout as the Programming track. Otherwise, a piece of flex track mounted on a board will do. The PowerCab can do Ops mode programming of the loco address with NCE decoders, but I suspect Bachmann will require using the Programming Track to do that.
There are lots of other options on settings, but once you have each loco uniquely addressable, the factory settings should allow everything to work without further programming, so you should be good to go at that point unless there are things you want changed. Should also be able to use Ops mode programming to do those without needing to use the Programming track.
Keep in mind, if you do any work inside the loco, it’s always good to place the loco on the Programming track first and let it check for any shorts at the reduced power it puts out. It saves a lot of trouble with fried decoders to test mods and repairs this way first before applying full track power.
Good luck with things. A hobby is a good way to keep perspective on more important and more demanding things in life. We’re here to help, so please let us know if we can be of further assistance.
Ok, there are two pieces of good news here.
The OP is not using DC power packs as boosters on his DCC layout, and the locos are DCC equipped, so they have decoders already installed.
But, one problem remains unresolved. None of those 6 locos even begin to move until he reaches speed step 90.
So, he still has a problem.
Rich
Rich,
I agree, but I think we’ll have to be patient and work in assisting with MRR stuff around caregiving and other responsibilities. Probably nothing that some work with CVs 2 thru 6 can’t solve.
Then there’s the issue of those dang capacitors hanging like leeches from the motors on those Bachmanns. But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it after some CV work.
It will be interesting to see how this is resolved. It is really strange that all six locos are not moving until speed step 90. Seems like it is going to be something more than just adjusting those CVs. Just a reset to factory defaults ought to make those locos move a lot sooner than speed step 90.
Rich
Maybe not so strange. You can do a lot of amazing – and frustrating – things with a PowerCab. For instance, if all six locos were on the layout and you entered Programming Track mode thinking you were changing CVs on just one loco, you could easily reset all six to something funky without even realizing it. I’m sure we’ll get to the bottom of this with a little more info from the OP.