Jump to content

Class 56 pre-dcc


kevindelve

Recommended Posts

Welcome to the forums Kevin

 

I presume you have an older single motor bogie Class 56 chassis like the one below in which case there is plenty of room to install a DCC socket and a sound decoder.

 

/media/tinymce_upload/c4165b9bf031e7f297a918beb10a8f07.PNG

 

You wil find installing a DCC socket just as easy as installing a decoder hard wired but you get the later advantage of being able to swap the decoder easily if and when necessary.

 

I am hard of hearing so any noise that sounds like a tractor is good enough for my diesels.

 

If you need any more advice about installing a socket please let the forum know.

Rob 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kevin

Just do the standard check for DCCing ringfields in that when the wires are disconnected from the motor brushes that there is no continuity between either motor brush and the motor bogie wheels live side (i.e. side without traction tyres). If there is continuity then you have to isolate per one of several different methods depending upon the motor type.

Rob

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kevin

Just do the standard check for DCCing ringfields in that when the wires are disconnected from the motor brushes that there is no continuity between either motor brush and the motor bogie wheels live side (i.e. side without traction tyres). If there is continuity then you have to isolate per one of several different methods depending upon the motor type.

Rob

Thanks for that Rob, will get my trusty multi meter on the case.

Kevin

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kevin 

While you have it in bits see if the dummy bogie wheels have cogs on them. If so you can swap out the traction tyred axles of the motor bogie for a new set of these. I did it on a Class 90 (see article on my linked website) and also on my ringfield Class 56 but I can't recall the part number of the wheels I used. You can also add an extra pickup to the motor bogie dead wheels for overall better pickup treliability.

I will crank up the train PC later and retrieve the pictures and PN of the wheels then update this post.

Rob

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kevin

Uopdate to above.

I used X936 wheel sets from the very old 6-wheel motor bogie, which are about the same diameter as the Class 56 wheels.

Picture showing these installed with additional pickup. The other side wheels pickup from an axle wiper inside the lower chassis.

 

/media/tinymce_upload/23b4d49b2c4d9aedeed0d38c2b15c509.jpg

 

/media/tinymce_upload/f550e64e32414436e665e69405083d24.JPG

Rob

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kevin I used Markits springy handrail wire 0.7mm but you can get 0.45mm.

 

The 0.7mm wire was going spare as it was too big for the handrails knobs I bought.

 

You can of course modify front bogie pickups to fit the motor bogie by cutting in half lengthways and gluing to the bogie frame. There are several ways to provide pickups including mounting to the ringfield housing. Have a look on Peters Spares for pickups for various models and see if any look likely candidates.

 

Rob

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Well folks, thank you all very much for your help.

Finally converted my 56 to DCC today, by wiring in a NEM socket.

After an initial short circuit caused by the pick ups on the trailing bogie touching where they shouldnt, all is well now. Lights work either end, but being grain of wheat bulbs they light up everything when they come on. So may be an LED conversion is on the cards (any help would be accepted gracefully!) , as well as swapping the chip for a sound chip.

Kevin

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Kevin

Are the GoW bulbs still connected per the service sheet. If so I would advise you disconnect them completely in favour of LEDs.

 

Assuming you are installing your own LEDs and not a kit from the likes of Express Models which will come with full instructions.

 

Working from the new socket you have fitted, connect the leds thus:

 

Important to avoid blowing the LEDs you will need a resistor/resistors in circuit to control the current - a typical standard value is 1K ohm, but you can fine tune and balance brightness with other values. You can use just 1 in the blue wire but having 1 each in the white/yellow/green wires is preferable.

 

Blue wire to the anode of your LEDs.

White wire to the front white lights and the read red lights. (cathode legs).

Yellow wire to the rear white lights and front red lights (cathode legs)

Geen wire to the cab lights (but both will come on together) (cathode legs).

Purple wire to a single cab light (cathode leg) if you want them separate, noting that if you fit TTS sound that decoder does not have a purple wire so plan ahead.

 

I think on my old 56 there was a plastic prism thing to route the light from the bulbs, which I removed and drilled out the body to suit 2mm LEDs. 3 x white and 2 x red at each end plus a 3mm yellow cab light poked into a hole in the drivers cab bulkhead.

 

I have also used the Express Models kit and that was easy to install but in addition to their pcb resistors I used an extra 1K ohm resistor in the blue lead to further control current to protect the TTS decoder.

 

Fitting TTS sound is easy. Unplug your existing decoder and plug in the TTS decoder. Find a suitable place to stand the speaker in its enclosure. We can discuss speaker installation more later.

 

Heres a rough old picture of the job in a dual ringfield 56...

You can see the resistor board for the cab lights (black/green wires) and the Express Models PCB on the right. The speaker is under the decoder facing downwards.

 

Rob

/media/tinymce_upload/bb719c187950da307cef51489cfa5e79.JPG

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A few more pictures of a single ringfield 56

 

/media/tinymce_upload/7b66670d4718eb92754dab00ad5a02f5.JPG

 

/media/tinymce_upload/6dc31eb2ce695199afe0851203c947bf.jpg

 

/media/tinymce_upload/f320cbb3605eb2c22d70c2845ea1b170.JPG

 

/media/tinymce_upload/a771a344e597595697695dccfc6b14fe.JPG

 

/media/tinymce_upload/1523078e4df79fcceb756f93161b034a.JPG

 

Rob

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
  • Create New...