Quote from: Len on July 09, 2018, 02:54:51 PM
Beat me to it! I was about to post the same link.

For the record I have never seen an HO Bachmann FP7 and did not know Bachmann even made one.

Quote from: dillman50 on July 09, 2018, 02:33:19 PM
How do you disassemble an FP7 to install dcc?

https://tcsdcc.com/Customer_Content/Installation_Pictures/HO_Scale/Bachmann/FP7-B/bachman_fp7-b.html

Quote from: NEC on July 08, 2018, 04:20:56 PM
Yep, it's the "NOT DCC ready" version.

Every locomotive that came from the factory in that box either had DCC or was DCC ready just to be clear. So your locomotive either is not the locomotive that came in that box or someone rewired it or repaired it and removed the 8 pin socket. If it is the locomotive that came in that box then it was DCC ready at one point.

Quote from: NEC on July 08, 2018, 10:13:06 AM
There is a hardwired PCB (site is not allowing photos to be posted) in the tender but no mount for a speaker and no harness.

Try uploading your photos to a photohosting site. Also the locomotive that came in the black box with gold lettering never had any speaker or provisions for adding one.

I think the only way you would be able to get a model of what you are seeking is if you have a 3D printer or have access to one.
As an aside a seldom known fact is that the city of Cincy has the largest abandoned subway in North America and 2nd largest in the world.

Quote from: NEC on July 07, 2018, 08:33:49 PM
The box is the dark green one at the bottom of your photo and was shrink-wrapped. There is no harness and no mount in the tender for the speaker, but I can overcome that.

If it came in the black box with gold writing as seen below, then it definitely should have a 8 pin socket or a decoder already installed depending on if it says DCC ready or DCC on board.



The only one that should not have a 8 pin socket is this one:


If your locomotive came in the plain black box with gold writing and did not have an 8 pin socket then that means that someone modified it or repaired it and resealed it.

If it is a mid to late Spectrum K4 then it would be DCC ready and have an 8 pin socket or already have DCC.
If it is an early original Spectrum K4 then it would not have an 8 pin socket and would not be worth converting to DCC to most people.
This is the early original model, note the box


This is the late and mid models respectively, note the boxes again:

You should have better results with a 2% grade, the most I would do is 3%
The steepest grade until recently on a mainline in real life was a four and a half percent grade on Norfolk Southern in North Carolina. The Pennsylvania Rail Road formerly had a five and a half percent grade in Madison Indiana. At present the steepest grade is on the Santa Fe with its 3% grade at Raton Pass New Mexico.
Being an engineer I have done some real life calculations to give you a rough idea:
For each 1% of ascending grade, there is an additional resistance of 20 pounds per ton of train compared to on level, straight track it is only about 5 pounds per ton of train. Therefore, a locomotive in real life, can haul only half as many cars up a quarter of a percent grade than it can on a level grade.
Additionally when it comes to curves, 1 or 2 degree curves are the most common on mainlines. Sharp curves also are limiting to the pulling ability of a locomotive.

The jumpers improve performance on analog DC and I would install them especially if you are using a controller with pulse.
The jumpers are intended for use if running solely on DC, the model will no longer operate on DC unless you take them out and put the decoder back in.

Quote from: BobZ on July 06, 2018, 01:25:52 PM
Planning on moving from DC to DCC. I understand that DCC Ready means loco has the NMRA 8-pin plug installed and a decoder must be purchased. Looking at the Bachmann catalog, I see that some locos are DCC Equipped and others are DCC Sound Value-Equipped. I assume that all will run on straight DC power. What is the difference between the two.
Thanks

There are a variety of differences between Bachmann models when it comes to this, and also there are differences depending on the scale. I will assume you are asking about HO scale.
For HO scale Bachmann has made the following
DCC-Ready in which there is no 8 pin socket however everything is isolated
DCC-Ready in which there is an 8 pin socket and also may or may not have an area will holes drilled for a speaker
DCC-On Board/Equipped in which the DCC is built into the board and there is no 8 pin socket
DCC-On Board/Equipped in which there is a DCC decoder with an 8 pin plug and 8 pin socket and there may be and area with holes drilled for a speaker
DCC-with Full Sound in which a Tsunami or other sound decoder with full features is installed with a speaker
DCC-with the ability to add a special sound module with a speaker and all other required components already installed (ie the B&O EM-1 2-8-8-4 was an example of this)
DCC-Soundvalue in which there is a sound decoder installed into the board or with no 8 pin socket but includes speaker
DCC-Soundvalue in which there is a sound decoder with an 8 pin plug and socket and speaker included

As far as running on analog DC:
All DCC-ready models have no decoder installed and therefore will run without modification on analog DC.
Most models with full sound decoders are earlier Bachmann models and will not run on analog DC
All Soundvalue models have dual mode decoders and will run on analog DC or digital DCC
Early Bachmann DCC models will only run on digital DCC and will not run on analog DC as the early decoders were not dual mode
All current and recent Bachmann DCC models have a dual mode decoder and run on analog DC and DCC
The special case B&O EM-1 has a dual mode decoder and will run on analog DC.

Keep in mind most DCC models include jumper plugs because often modelers prefer to remove the decoder if they are going to run them on an analog DC layout for better performance. Also keep in mind you cannot control any sound features directly without running them on a DCC system.
Hope this helps a bit.

Quote from: Trainman203 on July 04, 2018, 04:44:54 PM
Yes of course, but the absurdity of cost savings via a dummy coupler is especially writ large on a brass steam engine.

I was referencing the Bachmann 0-6-0, not brass locomotives.

Quote from: bbmiroku on July 04, 2018, 04:29:05 PM
A coupler is, what, $3.00?

Adding a working front coupler to some locomotives is a lot more complicated then you would think a lot of careful considerations are taken into the design of Bachmann locomotives sometimes concessions have to be made in some areas. Adding a working coupler to the front of steam locomotives is a lot more expensive than $3. Sometimes it is hard to understand, but you will have to take my word for it.

Quote from: sandman8355 on June 26, 2018, 02:31:26 PM
Don't really know why they come with a dummy coupler.

Pretty simple really, the 0-6-0 is an entry level locomotive for beginners to the hobby, dummy front couplers help keep costs down to make them more affordable.

Possible suggestions:
1. Buy another locomotive on ebay, a fleamarket, garage/estate sale, or a train show to scavenge for the parts you need.
2. Buy a brand new Bachmann N&W J, the newer Bachmann N&W J models are very nice quality and are available with sound and DCC
3. Perhaps you did not get as good of a deal as you thought since the parts were missing and the only way to get them is to scavenge off of another locomotive.

One other thing of note, no offense to Bachmann but eventually at some point you will need additional replacement parts because eventually things will break or wear out just from use and age. You may be better off in the long run buying a brand new J than constantly searching for old models to scavenge for parts and the unfortunate eventuality is that at some point in the next 10 to 20 years; parts for a lot of the older locomotives of all manufacturers will be very scarce. And at that point when there are no parts to be had you will have no other choice to buy a new model, so scavenging for parts is nothing but a short term solution or stop gap to your problem.

Good luck with whatever you decide

Here is my advice to determine if the decoder is faulty...
Take the decoder out of the other locomotive you have and put it in the locomotive that won't run. Put the decoder from the locomotive that won't run into the locomotive that will run. Depending on which locomotives run will tell you if you have a problem with the decoder or if it is something else.

My opinion is that your problem is not at all with your motor. Your problem is either with your DCC decoder or with your wiring.
I suspect you possibly have a loose or broken wire somewhere, so check the wires going between the engine and the tender, check the wires going to the drive wheels and tender wheels. Also check to make sure a wire didn't become unsoldiered from the board or decoder. The last thing to check is that the decoder isn't damaged.
Good luck