Decoder Installation in LGB Locomotives
Decoder Installation in LGB Locomotives
Installing decoders within existing LGB locomotives is not difficult but does require some skills. If you do not wish to perform the conversion yourself please contact a qualified and experienced installer. We are currently working to find a list of qualified installers. Should you know anyone you would recommend, drop me a line.
LGB distributes decoders designed for its locomotives. Other DCC decoders with additional features can also be used.
First a caution: In 1994, Rolf Richter of LGB expressed a valid concern that users would improperly install DCC decoders in their locomotives and in the process break a portion of the locomotive or destroy some existing electronics, (it can happen, we have done it ourselves). Installing a DCC decoder within an older LGB locomotive requires modification to the motor block, and knowledge of how the existing electronics work. If you mess up, your warranty may not be valid and some parts may or may not be available.
There are two elements to any conversion.
All DCC sit between the rails and the motor. They all require that there be no connection to either terminal of the motor to either track other than the connection through the decoder. Until recently LGB produced motor blocks that connected one or both sides of the motor to the rails. To install a decoder you must first completely dissemble the motor block and isolate the motor. We have used two techniques: a) solder a new wire to the motor and cut the motor terminal so that it no longer contacts the existing electrical connection or b) install new contacts to the rails that bypass the motor.
Once you have isolated the motor you should have four connections external to the motor block: Left Rail, Right Rail, Left Motor Brush, Right Motor Brush. These connections are then connected to the appropriate wire of the decoder.
Most LGB locomotives contain electronics and if you wish to continue to use these electronics their function must be understood. The simplest method for continuing to use the electronics is to install a rectifier and capacitor between the existing electronics and the track. This technique provides pure DC to the existing electronics. In many cases this is not needed but if you do not know otherwise this is the safest technique.
Note also that the bulbs in the locomotives are most often 6 volt bulbs and electronics is used to lower the track voltage when the track voltage exceeds 6 volts. With DCC this is not needed and these electronics tend to just consume power. A simpler approach is to replace the lights with 19 volt bulbs, LGB Part #68513.
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