Loco and Tender wiring.

[ray lombardi]

I have purchased 6 Bachmann tenders with DCC ready in the tender. I plan to use them with super detail locos from several years past. I want to use the existing wiring (with connectors) that come with the tenders. I need to know which pins of the connectors carry which signals/power to properly connect to the locos. A simple wiring diagram or  a verbal description would do. If this effort is successful, I will be converting other locos to use the Bachmann tenders. Any assistance would be very much appreciated.

Thankyou.
Ray Lombardi

[Atlantic Central]

Ray,

Each style of tender may be different depending on which loco it was built for orignally. The following is a post of mine from some time back. It is a little long but I think you will find the info you need below.

Tender Swap – Bachmann medium Vanderbilt oil tender (Item #89905) with 63" driver 10 wheeler (Item #82307)

Initial test using jumpers provided with the tender – dead short, no operation.

Original plan – move 10 wheeler circuit board into new tender. This proved unworkable for several reasons, 10 wheeler circuit board too large and wires too short to fit into Vanderbilt tender without major modifications to both the tender and the circuit board.

New plan – can existing circuit board from Vanderbilt tender be rewired to work with 10 wheeler. A simple examination of both circuit boards revealed that while different, they both have the same basic connections, so the problem must lie in pin assignments in the connectors.

Tracing wires and a few simple checks revealed that the two wire connector simply brings the loco pickups to the circuit board. Reversing the wires on one end of the two wire jumper corrected this. Now the loco runs but in the wrong direction.

Two of the wires on the four wire plug are the motor leads. Reversing them gave us correct operational direction.

This only left the front headlight. The circuit board in the Vanderbilt tender is for the 2-8-0 which has 12 volt lamps for lighting. The 10 wheeler uses LED's, this is the main reason the circuit board is different. Rather than trying to modify the circuit, I simply replaced the loco headlight LED with a 12 volt lamp.

Additionally I added weight to the Vanderbilt tender bringing it weight to about 5 oz. and replaced all couplers with genuine Kadee #148 on both the loco front and tender.

Result – loco now converted, runs well with original 10 wheeler draw bar and looks great. 

This issue seems to be tied to what tender cam with what loco in the first place. I do not have all of the Bachmann spectrum locos, but from what I have seen, read and experienced, the following may be a good beginning of a compatibility chart:

Light Mountain & Consolidation will work with all of the "medium" tenders.

Heavy Mountain and 2-6-6-2 will work with the long coal tender, hicken tender and long vandy tender

Russian shares same tender with some 10 wheelers, so I am guessing they share the same circuit board.

The 10 wheeler is really a wild card here because it comes with three different tenders, depending on roadname. Some have the low, small "pre 1900" looking tender, some have the small tender from the Russian and one has the same tender as the consolidation, but obviously with a different circuit board.

But again, I think most of these differences are just the pin assignments and the type of headlight.

Sheldon

[Pacific Northern]

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/ez_content/1_Amp_Decoder_Instr.pdf

[Yampa Bob]

Hi Ray
Please refer to my thread "Pictures and Diagrams"

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,7439.0.html

The pinouts are listed for both USRA medium and Vanderbilt tenders, along with pictures and wiring diagrams. There are certain compatibility issues detailed in the thread, suggest reading all the comments through to my last post made today.  I have worked extensively with these tenders, and have additional updated information not included in the thread.  If you have any concerns, we can discuss them by email if you desire.

In the meantime, please advise the Bachmann description and stock numbers for your tenders. Included with the tenders is a small package containing 2 adapter plug assemblies, be sure to keep these packages in a secure place as the plugs will be needed to connect your locomotives.

I have to ask, are you by any chance related to "Vince Lombardi"?

Regards 

[ray lombardi]

Thank you so much for all your information and assistance. I am reviewing all the informayion and I believe I have learned quite alot about Bachmann tenders and their various configurations. This has been a wonderful experience and I feel I am now better prepared to tackle my various tender projects.

Regards,
Ray

[ray lombardi]

In response to a question in a prior post, I am not directly related to Vince Lombardi, unless the connection goes back to Italy where  my father's family has resided for hundreds of years. I am however a great fan of football and admire coach Lombardi's many accomplishments.

Regards,
Ray