Has anybody experienced fitting dcc chip to a hornby class 31 loco(r357)

[Bowbelle121]

I am trying to fit dcc chip to the hornby class 31 loco.

The motor has twin pickups and black and green wire from trailing bogie.

Have insulated the brush arms and soldered the grey and orange wires,but where do you pick up for the red and black? should i just cut into the green and black from the tailing bogie,and cut both from motor pickups

Any help would be apprecated

[96RAF]

After all the forums traffic about Class 31 chassis corrsion and body splitting I'm surprised you have enough left to convert to DCC.

The simple way to do these jobs (short of installing a decoder socket) is to have a bit of veroboard 9 strips wide and solder to one end of each strip in turn - the 2 motor leads, the front and back left hand pickup wires grouped onto one, the front and bacl right hand pickup wires grouped onto one and at the other end connect all 9 wires from the decoder matching the colours and connections per the instructions for the basic 8 pin decoder diagram shown at the bottom of the page here https://www.hornby.com/hornby-dcc/decoder-installation-guides

I'm not familiar with the Class 31 but if its like some of the early Hornby/Lima/Dapol diesels it may not have LH and RH pickups from the motor bogie only one. In this case one side may have front and back pickup wires and the other side only a front pickup wire. Connect these per the diagram.

If later you want to fit lights then you just need to connect these to the veroboard again matching the diagram.

 

[Bowbelle121]

After all the forums traffic about Class 31 chassis corrsion and body splitting I'm surprised you have enough left to convert to DCC.

The simple way to do these jobs (short of installing a decoder socket) is to have a bit of veroboard 9 strips wide and solder to one end of each strip in turn - the 2 motor leads, the front and back left hand pickup wires grouped onto one, the front and bacl right hand pickup wires grouped onto one and at the other end connect all 9 wires from the decoder matching the colours and connections per the instructions for the basic 8 pin decoder diagram shown at the bottom of the page here https://www.hornby.com/hornby-dcc/decoder-installation-guides

I'm not familiar with the Class 31 but if its like some of the early Hornby/Lima/Dapol diesels it may not have LH and RH pickups from the motor bogie only one. In this case one side may have front and back pickup wires and the other side only a front pickup wire. Connect these per the diagram.

If later you want to fit lights then you just need to connect these to the veroboard again matching the diagram.

 

 

[Bowbelle121]

Thanks for the info,but i should have said that i have used a 8 pin soket and leads and have connected the orange and grey to the brushes.

The green wire goes from the right of the motor to the right  rail pickup on the rear bogie,and like wise the black goes from the left of the motor to the left rail pickup on the rear bogie.

Do i understand from your info i should beable to join the red from socket to the green wire and likewise the black to the black?

[poliss]

What is the running number of the locomotive?

[Bowbelle121]

What is the running number of the locomotive?

 

Running nos is D5572       R357

[96RAF]

OK - you are nearly there Bb.

 

You have disconnected both wires from the motor and connected the motor brushes to the decoder socket motor pins (orange and grey). So far so good.

 

You should now connect these bogie pickup wires (in your case green and black) to the decoder socket rail pickup wires (red and black). So for simplicity of connection just join the green to the red and the black to the black.

 

That's it.

[poliss]

Is this your motor bogie?

http://yourmodelrailway.net/view_topic.php?id=10378&forum_id=10#p188112

[Bowbelle121]

OK - you are nearly there Bb.

 

You have disconnected both wires from the motor and connected the motor brushes to the decoder socket motor pins (orange and grey). So far so good.

 

You should now connect these bogie pickup wires (in your case green and black) to the decoder socket rail pickup wires (red and black). So for simplicity of connection just join the green to the red and the black to the black.

 

That's it.

 

Sorry to come back,but do i disconnect the green and black from the motor and just connect the bogie wires to the socket?

[Bowbelle121]

Is this your motor bogie?

http://yourmodelrailway.net/view_topic.php?id=10378&forum_id=10#p188112

 

Yes this is the one thanks will follow your pictures.

[96RAF]

When you fit a decoder to a loco you are effectively cutting the existing wires between the motor and the rail pickups and inserting the decoder in there by way of direct wiring or using a socket.

 

What you have to make sure is that with the motor wires disconnected there is no circuit between either motor brush and the rails. If there is then it means the chassis is live somehow and must be insulated. /This can take several forms, such as the springs mentioned in the link article, a little pip behind one of the motor contacts touching to the chassis or a long screew holding the brush retainer which can be changed for a nylon one.

[RDS]

@Bowbelle121

Good Luck with your conversion but when answering posts, you should really type your answer in the white area (below the yellow area) , so that it is more obvious which of the text, is your reply. 

[Fishmanoz]

Bb, from my reading through this and looking at Service sheet 97 obtained from the Hornby Collector Guide site, I'm not sure you have your answer on the green and black wires from the other bogie.  These must be disconnected from the motor and connected to decoder red and black, making sure that in so doing that the pickups and their wires from the same side of each bogie go to one of red and black and from the other side of the bogies to the other,  if you get this wrong, you will be shorting out the track and may damage the decoder.

 

On the service sheet, the green wire was originally attached to the side connected to chassis and so the uninsulated side of the spring holding the brushes.  The black was connected to the insulated side.  Are you thoroughly confused now?  It is just a matter of ensuring both pickups on the one rail go to say red and from the other rail to black.

[Bowbelle121]

Bb, from my reading through this and looking at Service sheet 97 obtained from the Hornby Collector Guide site, I'm not sure you have your answer on the green and black wires from the other bogie.  These must be disconnected from the motor and connected to decoder red and black, making sure that in so doing that the pickups and their wires from the same side of each bogie go to one of red and black and from the other side of the bogies to the other,  if you get this wrong, you will be shorting out the track and may damage the decoder.

 

On the service sheet, the green wire was originally attached to the side connected to chassis and so the uninsulated side of the spring holding the brushes.  The black was connected to the insulated side.  Are you thoroughly confused now?  It is just a matter of ensuring both pickups on the one rail go to say red and from the other rail to black.

 

[Bowbelle121]

Fishmanoz

Thanks for info, have disconnected both wires from motor and connected to chip socket red and black.

Just waiting for some chips to arrive then i can test,using the m/meter all looks good !!!!!

 

[Fishmanoz]

Bb, now you have a very important final test to do.  Using the multimeter, check to see that there is no connection from chassis to either the Orange or grey wires, and none between them and either red or black.  If there is, you'll blow the decoder as soon as you plug it in and power it.

[Bowbelle121]

Bb, now you have a very important final test to do.  Using the multimeter, check to see that there is no connection from chassis to either the Orange or grey wires, and none between them and either red or black.  If there is, you'll blow the decoder as soon as you plug it in and power it.

 

[Bowbelle121]

All finished chip fitted,loco runs like a dream and have fitted lights to each cab.

Thanks for your info

[Fishmanoz]

Glad to be of assistance Bb.