Plug-n-Play decoder, non-Plug-n-Play Loco?

[P5se Camelback]

Well, Gentlemen, the reply from Soundtraxx Technical Support Management arrived early this afternoon!

Mr. Irish suggested, in part, that I …

“ … take some tape and secure around the board so it is wrapped like the universal style board so that it can't contact anything, also make sure to NOT use an acidic base solder flux. Other than that it is a very straight forward installation. … The decoder would be completely covered under warranty, just save your receipt and if the install fails and you need to send it in I'll get that file loaded to a TSU-1000, but let’s try the production one first.

- Jarrette”

By the “production one,” he is referring to the TSU-AT1000 decoder, which is a “Plug-n-Play” replacement for the “light board” inside an Atlas Alco S-2.

So, who am I to spurn the advice of one of the “Big Guys” at Soundtraxx. I’ll go ahead and give it a the old college try as advised, although I believe I will find a more elegant way to isolate the board than to merely wrap it in tape plus give it a chance to “breathe” at the same time. (If it seems I’m preoccupied with breathing … well, I am!)

The sun never really burned through the overcast today (clouds must be from that tropical storm down around Cuba) so I took the little S-2 outside anyway, figuring flat light, no disturbing shadows to deal with and I was correct. “Horace Dodge” loaned the use of the top of his pick-up bed toolbox for a solid surface on which to place the necessary white melamine board and the display track for taking photos.

First, a “builders photo” …


[Oh, and that's handlaid code 70 rail on Campbell Profile ties, four spikes on every tie, painted railweb and a mix of Campbell ballast.]

… followed by removing the shell …



… and then, the “prime mover” and the drive mechanism.



Ah … Squidbait, you and Randy were right! There’s not much wasted space under that hood! I’m going to have to get creative about how and where to mount a speaker! But then …

I just love a good creative challenge!!