Lit Pullman coaches and DCC

[Spireblade]

I am considering buying the Bournemouth Bell limited edition set with lighting in the coaches. Obviously the loco will need a decoder but will the coach lighting work on DCC? Will I have to add a decoder to each coach? 

Cheers

[96RAF]

The lights will work with DCC and be permanently on, but if you want to control them then some fettling will be required to install a decoder. If the coachese are linked electrically then one decoder would control them all but if each coach is isolated then a decoder each would be the norm.

 

Hake a look at SS379. There are circuit bords in there but they are not illustrated very well for the purpose of working out the lighting.

 

I also seem to remember this question being asked before so a forum search on Belle may find it, if not in the title then also search on content.

Rob

[Chrissaf]

Not being familiar with this particular Hornby product, but from my limited experience with lit coaches they fall into two flavours.

.

1. Each coach has it's own individual wheel pickups and the lights are powered from the track and no DCC decoder is required or a Decoder socket provided. They could, of course, be modified for DCC Decoder operation but that would necessitate finding a suitable location in the pickups to lamps wiring route, cutting them and inserting a decoder. On a DCC track, the coach lights are on permanently at full brightness. On a DC track the lights go on and off with the track voltage. These coach circuits usually include a bridge rectifier so that the DC track can still power the lights regardless of the loco direction of travel. The bridge on DCC removes the AC part of the DCC signal. These type of coaches will normally have Tension Lock couplings.
2. Usually only found in either EMUs or DMUs. The coaches are linked together using special couplings (not Tension Lock) that extend two electrical connections. The lighting is therefore extended from the coaches back to the power car with the decoder. The lighting is then powered via a decoder function.

[Howbi]

@Spireblade,...... there is an electrical connection in the coupling so only one decoder is required in the driving car,..... function F1 turns on the table lights....HB

/media/tinymce_upload/6f94410a283f4a786bb2bd279f2976a9.jpg

[96RAF]

Looking more closely at SS379 the couplings are described as ‘with wires’ and item 10 circuit board shows an 8-pin pattern so presumably the socket for a decoder.

 

Hence I amend my previous waffle to say it looks as if a single decoder in the power car will link to the other car(s), as already stated by HB.

 

Rob

[Spireblade]

When you say "Power car",  I'm presuming you are referring to one of the coaches and not the loco? This would mean I could couple up any loco and the coaches will light up.

Cheers

[Howbi]

Sorry, Spireblade, just realised my post refers to the 'Brighton Belle' so not relevant to your question.......doh.......HB    😬

[96RAF]

I was following HB’s lead to the wrong Belle. Belay my last pipe.

 

There are many Belle trainsets, mostly using a Brittannia loco and standard Pullman cars, so my original statement is closer in that, yes they will work and I expect they will be on all the time as there will be no direct connection between them and the loco which may have DCC controlled front lamps depending on the actual trainset you have.

 

Rob

[Chrissaf]

Just for super clarity the "haul by any loco Pullman lit coaches" fall into my Type 1 description.