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dc to dcc

Started by en4cer, October 13, 2009, 10:31:25 PM

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en4cer

Is it possible to convert N scale engines from dc to dcc?

herc driver

The short answer is "yes" but it depends on how the engine was made and if it is "dcc ready" or not.  I am no dcc expert, but if the engine was not made for dcc to be added in the future, and the motor isn't isolated from the frame, then it is more complex to add.  For those engines that are "dcc ready", it takes only a few minutes to install a dcc circuit board.  In general, almost all Kato, most newer Atlas, the newer Athearn, and some LifeLike (Walther's) engines are DCC Ready, which is to say they can quickly and easily be converted from dc to dcc.  Some of the newer Bachmann engines already have dcc installed, but I've read adding dcc to their older Nscale engines is challenging but possible. 

There's some excellent websites that discuss DCC operations and necessary materials, as well as some good books on the subject.  A quick search should bring up some of the better known.  Digitrax, TCS, NCE and MRC make most of the dcc circuit boards and all have their own websites that give a lot of good information on converting dc engines to dcc operation.

We're in the middle of converting all our engines from dc to dcc.  Some are easier to convert than others.  But fortunately, there's plenty of good information out there on how to accomplish the conversion.

Good Luck!