2-10-2 Wiring Error???

[OkieRick]

Thank you Bach Mann!

Rick

[HO-Ron]

I have reopened this thread to close it again.
First the tender with the bad decoder was sent back to Bachmann service. I finally got a hold of a tech there and he took great care of me and the problem. Only two and half weeks turnaround time. I think that this is great. I have spoken with the tech since then and he told me that the backlog is six weeks out at a minimum. Because things slow down during the summer months they feel that they can catch up by June.... not this year. Maybe July.... 

Now to the final scene of this three act play. The initial reason for this post was to ask about known wiring issues. You can probably guess.... I got the tender and new decoder back and hooked it up. NO Decoder found..... Turns out that the wiring is and was an issue. Yes, the decoder I sent back was bad, but so is the wiring. The 4 pin socket is/was wired with the motor contacts on the two outside pins and the headlight was wired to the two inside pins. Of course the tender was wired for the typical socket with the motor being on the two left pins and the headlight on the two right pins. So there are 2-10-2s out there with "different" wiring than the quote norm.... Also I tested the decoder with my Mountain and it worked just fine. That is how I knew that the wiring was the source of the issue. I have since rewired the light board so the correct pin out for this engine is in place. It won't work with any of my other engines, but at least it will work with the 2-10-2.

The service was good once I got to talk with someone "knowledgeable", but the quality of the product still remains a big question mark... If you get a good one, hang on to it. If you don't keep shipping it back till you do.

Happy Modeling, and may all your luck be good luck,
HO-Ron