dwragg Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 Hi, I have a Hornby Mallard Engine and Tender, approx 20 to 25 years old and analogue, the two parts are in good condition with the original motor in the tender, although not a very good runner at all, is it possible to convert, or what is the best way to convert, this to DCC ?, it will need a new motor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pidder Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 (If this is the right thread to reply to)...I would suggest don't even try. Much easier and better to get a newer more up to date DCC model. I've tried doing an old Albert Hall, just not worth the effort. Of course, other folk will think differently...You could always remove the motor and use with another engine as a double header?.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo1707820979 Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 Hi, I have a Hornby Mallard Engine and Tender, approx 20 to 25 years old and analogue, the two parts are in good condition with the original motor in the tender, although not a very good runner at all, is it possible to convert, or what is the best way to convert, this to DCC ?, it will need a new motor.Hi dwraggJust a maybe frivolous suggestion. As your loco will need a new motor, you said, why not try running it in the meantime on an "0" address on your controller for a bit of fun. I am doing this with an analog King Arthur and it runs strongly pulling a rake of 8 coaches. The King Arthur could not be chipped - it blew the chips twice for some reason. Dealer said "too old". Good luck anyway with your Mallard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morairamike Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 It would appear to have a ring field motor if it's in the tender. These originally had a 3 pole motor which can be jerky at low speed. With age the magnet decreses in strength. On that well known auction site you can buy a 5 pole armature conversion. Some are a direct fit, having the same diameter shaft as the original go for that. You can even buy a new magnet for it. Conversion of the tender drive is possible, I did it with my Hornby 9F Evening Star, changed from a 3 to 5 pole and then installed a DCC decoder with stay alive. It runs well. Don't be put off have ago at it. You will need a decoder that will allow 1.5 to 2A current. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2e0dtoeric Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 Conversion to DCC is possible, but you have to make VERY sure that the motor brush connections are NOT using the chassis as the return 'wire', as this will guarantee an instant fried DCC decoder.There are many threads on here telling how to go about it.You say it is very rough-running - try new brushes and a good clean and lube of all the moving parts, first! The brushes an maybe the commutator might be worn out. If the loco won't work well with dc, it will be a waste of time convertng it to DCC, as it still won't work very well! DCC isn't magic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishmanoz Posted April 20, 2015 Share Posted April 20, 2015 It could be one of 3 different types of Ringfield, the hardest being those with LH brush connected to chassis. Brian Lambert site has conversion instructions for all 3 in his DCC section. No loco is too old to convert. And SoT will tell you performance difference between well maintained 3-pole and 5-pole is marginal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwragg Posted April 21, 2015 Author Share Posted April 21, 2015 Thanks for the answers, I have tried cleaning and replacing brushes to no avail, I am an engineer, so know what I am doing in that respect. It runs very slowly and eratic, actually runs better in reverse! but still not good. If I change for a new ringfield motor, stay analogue and use '00' my local stockist says I should not leave it on the track stationary! I like to park my engines in the sidings ready for use, so not really an option for me.A new analogue motor and hard wire a decoder onto it.....is that my best option?You say 3 pole and 5 pole motors, this is where my knowledge falls a bit, how do I know what is in there now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teedoubleudee Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 How sure are you it's the motor? Sounds more like a mechanical problem to me. Have you tried running the motor outside of the chassis? At the same time check the driving wheels move freely and there is no F.O.s on the worm or the drive cog. I would do all this before spending money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poliss Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 Look closely at the ends of the commutator. Is one edge more worn than the other? This could be why it runs better in reverse than forward.It's easy to tell whether you have a 3 or 5 pole motor. When you take the cover plate off you can count the commutator arms. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Augustus Caesar Posted April 21, 2015 Share Posted April 21, 2015 As Fishy says above, SoT says there is little difference between a 3 or 5 pole motor.I can confirm I noted little difference between an old 3 pole from the eighties and a replacement 5 pole I put into a friends loco a couple of years ago. Admittedly the 3 pole was still in good condition but this friend wanted it changed after talking to someone else earlier so I obliged.A conversion is simple and, again as Fishy says, the left hand bruish being connected to the chassis should be your only concern. When converting this type of motor you must remove the (usually) metal screw that makes that connection and use a non conducting screw, like nylon, should be used instead to allow DCC conversion to work as it should. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The son of Triangman Posted April 24, 2015 Share Posted April 24, 2015 Most older loco's can be chipped, don't believe all the hype the shops tell you. Someone mentioned Albert Hall not being worth the effort, the old Hall is a very easy one to convert, I've done loads of conversions on these locos, the Hornby Sapphire decoder is the best for the job I have found over the years, the old King Arthur from the 1970's is another easy conversion again a beefy decoder capable of taking a stall current of 1amp or more is needed. Locos should be clean and good runners before DCC conversion.A new motor may not be needed for your R.350 Mallard if it runs, all it may need is a really good service, new brushes and maybe a new field magnet or a remagnetise, there are specialists who do this work. Changing to a 5 pole aramture will not improve it's running performance, the difference in performance between a 3 pole ringfield motor in good fettle and a 5 pole is very minimal.If you DCC the motor then the motor contact with the tiny link wire that runs to the chassis has to be insulated, it has a link wire and underneath the contact is a metal pin that touches the contact. If you unclip the feed wire and place a piece of insulation over the contact where the wire fits so that the contact doesn't touch the pin then that will be fine, I usually also lever the contact away from the pin a little as well. Keep the link wire as you will need it for a feed off the live chassis casting.Never run locos on address 0 on a DCC controller as the DCC signal is still present and it will burn the motor out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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