03-11-2009, 07:00 PM
Right now...I have the following engines with decoders installed:
Kato SD90MAC UP
Kato AC4400 CEFX
Kato GG1 PRR
Kato SD40-2 BNSF
Kato P42 Amtrak
Atlas B23/30-7 Norfolk Southern
Bachmann HHP-8
I have another 12 Kato diesels plus another diesel still on order, plus about 9 Atlas diesels, 6 Athearn diesels (and they're not decoder friendly), 6 InterMountain diesels. I'm not sure about all the Life Like engines I have...there's some I'd like to install decoders in, but I'm not great at soldering wires (which assumes I can figure out which wire goes where). There are some Bachmanns that won't see a decoder, some less expensive Life Likes, and some Atlas engines that won't get in line for a decoder installation either. What can I say...I have more power than room to run it all. But I'd like to MU some trains to add some realism and mimic what I see around my local area. This overly ambitious number of engines to add decoders to will be most likely cost prohibitive to do all at once (or even quickly unless I inherit a small fortune), so I'll take my time and install decoders within one manufacturer at a time. I started with the Kato's first since they're the easiest. I'll probably do some of the InterMountains next, then the Atlas, then the Athearns. I know I can only run about 10 loco's at a time, and that's fine for my operation. I'll need to add two Loco-net cabs later on, but right now, keeping three or four trains safely running around the layout is about all we can handle anyway. All of my turnouts are manual throws as well...so we have a lot to watch.
Thank you for your ideas and help. I'm really glad everything turned out all right. This is too expensive an endeavor to burn up a decoder making an installation mistake.
Kato SD90MAC UP
Kato AC4400 CEFX
Kato GG1 PRR
Kato SD40-2 BNSF
Kato P42 Amtrak
Atlas B23/30-7 Norfolk Southern
Bachmann HHP-8
I have another 12 Kato diesels plus another diesel still on order, plus about 9 Atlas diesels, 6 Athearn diesels (and they're not decoder friendly), 6 InterMountain diesels. I'm not sure about all the Life Like engines I have...there's some I'd like to install decoders in, but I'm not great at soldering wires (which assumes I can figure out which wire goes where). There are some Bachmanns that won't see a decoder, some less expensive Life Likes, and some Atlas engines that won't get in line for a decoder installation either. What can I say...I have more power than room to run it all. But I'd like to MU some trains to add some realism and mimic what I see around my local area. This overly ambitious number of engines to add decoders to will be most likely cost prohibitive to do all at once (or even quickly unless I inherit a small fortune), so I'll take my time and install decoders within one manufacturer at a time. I started with the Kato's first since they're the easiest. I'll probably do some of the InterMountains next, then the Atlas, then the Athearns. I know I can only run about 10 loco's at a time, and that's fine for my operation. I'll need to add two Loco-net cabs later on, but right now, keeping three or four trains safely running around the layout is about all we can handle anyway. All of my turnouts are manual throws as well...so we have a lot to watch.
Thank you for your ideas and help. I'm really glad everything turned out all right. This is too expensive an endeavor to burn up a decoder making an installation mistake.
Mark
Citation Latitude Captain
--and--
Lt Colonel, USAF (Retired)
Citation Latitude Captain
--and--
Lt Colonel, USAF (Retired)