Types of Digitrax chips


RFANDPVILLE

RFANDPVILLE

Member
I have 7 locomotives that need digitrax chips. I am wanting to know what types I should get for each unit?

Ok before you guys go throwing me out on the rails, these are sentimental units that I would like to make work. I have not been able to find stuff like new chasis' or repower stuff. Some of these still have pancake motors. I'm willing to take a shot with them. I just want to know what types of chips I could use for Digitrax decoders to make these things work?

Bachmann b23-7
Walthers trainline GP-9
Bachmann F-7
Bachmann GP-9
Athearn GP-38-2
Lifelike GP-38-2
 
If you don't get an answer here, or find that they are somewhat contradictory or confusing, the people at Tony's Train Exchange are very helpful with suggestions and guidance.

I am not an employee or in any way connected to Tony's, but I am a purchaser of their products...with their advice. So far, I have no cause to complain.
 
Go to the digitrax website to find which of their decoders fit each of your locos. But they don't NEED those as there are plenty of better decoders out there.
 
Actually Mike, any loco can take a decoder except the ones with the pancake motor. The rest are just a matter of isolating the motor from the frame. The pancake motor is part of the frame. Next time ya come out here I can show ya how to do them. I have a few Digitrax chips, 121s, 143s etc in the bin and you can install one just to get the hang of it.
 
I was told the pancake motor can take a decoder. The parts just are not available for repowered chasis to get better chasis in them.
 
Mike, usually a DN135 series will be more than enough decoder for your old engines. The pancake motors had the one advantage that they didn't raw much current.
Isolating the motor from the truck frame will be your biggest challenge.
 
The truck frame is plastic. the pancake motor is a powered truck. It's not connected through a drive shaft to a centralized motor in the middle of the engine. (it's like one piece) If people can make that little "Thomas the train" work for the kids, clearly that wasn't meant for a decoder. All the gears and everything are in the truck itself. the frame is merely cosmetic. Sorry I guess I am just determined. Between fixing this and fixing my car, I got work cut out for me!
 
RFANDPVILLE said:
The truck frame is plastic. the pancake motor is a powered truck. It's not connected through a drive shaft to a centralized motor in the middle of the engine. (it's like one piece) If people can make that little "Thomas the train" work for the kids, clearly that wasn't meant for a decoder. All the gears and everything are in the truck itself. the frame is merely cosmetic. Sorry I guess I am just determined. Between fixing this and fixing my car, I got work cut out for me!
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Ya gotta fix the car so you can go to the train store and buy train stuff.
 
I put a decoder in a pancake motored diesel once years ago. It ran for a grand total of about 10 seconds before the factory installed smoke got out. Once that smoke gets out they don't work no mo!
 
plastic frame or not, the motor must be totally isolated from the track power when the wires are removed. If it isn't the decoder will fry.
 
I want to replace the pancake motor engines with something better but I am struggling with finding the replacement chasises and motors.
 
Hey guys remember that as long as the brushes are isolated from the frame, that is just as good as isolation of the entire motor. While installation of a decoder on to a pancake style motor is not that hard, it can be challenging. One brush is already isolated, so the trick is getting the other one isolated. This can be as simple as removing a metal strap from the other brush, that's touching the frame, all the way to rebulding the brush mount so it doesn't touch the motor frame in any way. This will vary from brand to brand.
 
RFANDPVILLE said:
I want to replace the pancake motor engines with something better but I am struggling with finding the replacement chasises and motors.
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Problem is the replacement is usually a centerline motor with drive train that feeds geared trucks.
It would be cheaper to just buy used loco's with drive trains in place.
 
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