Converting R380 Schools Class to DCC

[Fishmanoz]

Great you have it working Badger. For future reference though and particularly with more modern locos, the better runners are those with more than the minimum number of pickups, including using both loco and tender wheel pickups with the electrical contacts

 

incorporated in the tender connecting post.

 

And 0-6-0s are notorious for stopping on dead frog points, even though the wheels are far enough apart that at least 2 out of the 3 must be in contact at all times.

[LordGnome]

Help please,

Newbie wishing to convert 1981 Stowe to DCC. Have opened tender and everything is just as explained by all contributors.  I then opened loco body to check wiring here and found many wires attaching to the chassis.  There seems to be no integrity of colour in the wiring as all the wires appear to connect to the chassis all black except one red wire from the boiler front which also is connected to a brass unit with a black wire already attached so it must have the same polarity as the chassis. I assume this is from the smoke generator.  There is one additional red wire commons from the boiler which must be the other wire and is also red.  Unfortunately it must have come loose when I opened the chassis and I can't see where it goes back.  It has a spade connector but I can't see any spurs on which to attach it.

Has anyone got an answer to this.

I apologise if this is fairly unclear but I am electronically illiterate.

Thanks.

[LordGnome]

does this help

http://www.hornbyguide.com/service_sheet_details.asp?sheetid=65

Thanks for that.  I had looked at it before but I found the lack of detail in the small inset picture relating to the steam generator a bit unclear.  I have found a slot in which it may go and have put it in and closed it up.  It looks to be the right place but it is not clear what it is connecting to.  Just hope it is right will test it on DC track before I fit the decoder.

Thanks