In a previous thread, I discovered that Bachmann is not presently in the position to offer replacement decoders for their locomotives. Since I have two of these with defective decoders (the motion ones; the sound works fine), I decided to do a little research to find out what was available. DigiTrax has a cross-reference page on their website that I found quite useful. One of my locomotives is the "Light Mountain", for which DigiTrax lists 4 different replacement decoders. This seems to solve one problem for me. The second locomotive is a "Ten-Wheeler" that I got with a "whistle Stop" train set. This locomotive is not listed in the cross-reference, but the Bachmann "Consolidation" (2-8-0) is listed. Since this is of about he same size and period as the "Ten-Wheeler", it is possible that one of the two decoders DigiTrax lists for the "Consolidation" is a possible replacement for the "Ten-Wheeler".

Since the Bachmann people came forward in my previous thread to answer my questions, I hope they are able to answer a couple more. First, does the "Ten-Wheeler" share the same decoder as the "Consolidation"? (If so, there is a good possibility that the DigiTrax replacement will also fit.) Secondly, are the decoders hardwired in or do they use the standard 8-pin connector? I am not to the level yet that I want to dig into one of these miniscule units without all the knowledge I can accumulate.)

Here is a link to the DigiTrax cross-reference page I found useful : https://www.digitrax.com/products/engine-matrix/decoder/.

In the past year, I have purchased two Bachmann DCC locomotives, a "Ten Wheeler" and a "Light Mountain". Although they were treated with utmost care and operated only with Bachmann equipment, both failed during the first few months of use. Both failures are obviously DCC related. I have sent them back for repair under warranty, but I am quite concerned over the viability of the N scale DCC products. My concerns are what do I do after the warranty runs out and potentially extended turn-around times if further repair is required.

I deally, I would like to be able to keep a spare encoder for each locomotive so I could quickly put them back into service myself quickly. Are spare encoders available?