Type of onboard decoder?

[fallnflags]

I'm attempting to install a TCS KA2 in an older Bachmann 0-6-0 with a factory DCC board, which surprisingly runs pretty good.  My issue is identifying in correct soldering points for the KA blue and white-black wire.
I know most instructions say solder to the blue and brown wires or use the wires off of the bridge rectifier which I haven't a clue on how to ID it.  Any help from the images I provide for the correct solder points? In this case the blue wire is for the on/off switch for the smoke unit. So no help there.
There is some nice discussion about adding KA's and sound board in the forums, but most are 10 years old or so. Images provided in these threads are gone.
Any help here?
Thanks. Don

[trainman203]

I myself pay people to install decoders.

[jward]

Looking at the TCS documentation , they reference the KA2's wiring as blue and black w/ white stripe leads. The black w/white stripe is a non standard colour code for an 8 pin decoder, and I suspect that code is proprietary to TCS decoders.

I don't know which decoder is in your Bachmann 0-6-0, and looking online at the decoders in the Bachmann store I can't readily identify the rectifier. It should be a chip with 4 leads and usually a heat sink. But even if you can identify it I'd be hesitant about soldering on a board with surface mounted components. Apply heat, or an inadvertant static discharge and you'd probably ruin the decoder.

In short, I'd advice against trying to solder anything to a decoder other than at the solder pads provided for that purpose.

If you are adding a keep alive because the locomotive is stalling on switches, perhaps you should consider these two options:

1. if your switches have insulated metal frogs you can power them to eliminate the dead spots. This is easy to do using the contacts on a Tortoise switch motor, or if your switches use the twin coil type you can wire an Atlas Snap Relay is parallel with the switch motor to power the frog.

2. It is possible to add electrical pickup to the tender wheels, effectively more than doubling the amount of pickups on the locomotive, and helping to span short gaps like those switch frogs. This is presumably the reason you'd want a Keep ALive in the first place: to prevent loss of power in situations like this.

[fallnflags]

Thanks Jeffery,  I've too many turnout to start retiring them, but it never occurred to me to power up the tender, good idea.   I'll give it a check. Thanks

[jward]

I handlay all my track including switches, so it's easy for me to power my frogs. I also have some shorter locomotives like the Plymouth switcher that will stall on unpowered frogs. So I've never had the need to power the tender trucks on my 0-6-0s, but I've seen others online who have.

This is listed in the Bachmann parts store. I assume they would fit the 0-6-0 tender.

https://estore.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=68_596&products_id=6033