Roundhouse 0-6-0 vs DCC/Sound

[sailormatlac]

Final countdown: rewiring the entire thing (a first for me)!

Tender with its new pickups and IDE connector. Steel weights were slotted and insulated with tape.




Original factory decoder and wiring:



Motor reconnected to the new NCE Z14SR decoder (made for Z scale locomotive, but strong enought for HO). All new soldering done in the boiler were protected with shrink tube.



Decoder installation completed:



Notice the headlight LED is directly connected into an IDE connector. Saves a lot of problem when disassembling the model or needing to replace the headlight: push and pull. For stability but possibility to adjust its height when the shell will be on, I used Blu-Tack to keep it in place.




Tender connectors:

We could have used these small connectors, they are nicer and smaller. In a next project, I'll use them:



The idea was to use the feeder wires to tender to represent hoses connecting a real locomotive to its tender. I've never seen people doing it this way, habitually we try to conceal them as much as possible. But I guess the idea isn't new. It makes pluging and unpluging a tender an easier task. It's also stronger than small connectors we often see on steamers nowadays.

Wires from the locomotive go through holes into cab floor:




Cab was then replaced using a screw and shell replaced on the boiler.



Headlight inserted in its IDE connector:


Tender with its IDE connectors ready to be plugged:




Feeders to tender pickup trucks. We soldered them to get a more realistic look (downward).



Connector to tender headlight:




The final result:



The maiden trip with Bil's LS&W double-sheated boxcar:

At Villeneuve's crossing:


Meeting big sister CNR 2500:




Emerging from Bld. Ste. Anne overpass at Giffard:


Now, I need to touchup the paint and mask headlight backlighting. Performance was good on track. But the engine is too light to perform well (I means, pull enough cars). I'm seriously thinking about adding weight in the domes, cabs and smoke unit cavity.

BTW, not shown, but I had to cover the entire motor with tape ton insulate it. Brass parts added to the boiler made shorts.

More to come in the following weeks.

Matt