bachmann 3 truck shay g scale

[nymark]

I'm looking to buy a Bachmann 3 truck shay in G scale. If it comes with sound in DC can I just purchase a Digitrax DG583S install it and have the sound still work? Also, there are some dealers that have some of these units at a variety of prices for what seem to be the same product. Could the cheaper ones be older and have more problems? I have read about gears being stripped and the need to buy steel gears from NSWS.

[Kevin Strong]

The 3-truck Shay came from the factory either "DCC Ready" (runs on traditional analog DC track power) with no sound, or "DCC-Equipped," which has a DCC decoder attached to the main board in the "tender" over the 3rd truck. This will run either on DCC or traditional DC, and will have sound in both environments. The bell and whistle would be programmed to ring and blow at specific voltages or changes in voltage.

If the Shay you're looking at has sound, but no DCC, then it's an aftermarket sound system likely designed to work with analog DC track power, and the Shay may or may not be "new," but is not factory fresh. (Some dealers install sound in locos to make them more appealing to buyers.)

If the loco has analog DC sound, then you could simply install a Digitrax motor-only decoder and use the analog DC sound board that's installed already. You'd simply parallel the output of the Digitrax decoder to the motors as well as to the input of the sound board. If the sound board is a Phoenix board, that's a DCC-compatible sound board, and you can hook it up directly to the rail inputs along with the Digitrax decoder, then parallel the motor outputs of the Digitrax decoder to the Phoenix board. (Phoenix's web site has wiring diagrams for all of their sound boards.) Having said that, I think the better solution would be to go with either a TCS or Econami 4-amp decoder that combines the motor and sound. These are currently selling for around $125 - $150, and you can sell the Phoenix board (if that's what it is) for between $100 - $150 and pretty much break even.

In terms of the varying prices of these, who knows what the reason is. The 3-truck Shay has the latest die-cast metal trucks which have proven to be very reliable, so there's really nothing to worry about in that regard. The 3-truck Shay is an absolute stump-puller.

Later,

K

[Hunt]

Kevin,
Latest production - 1:20.3 Large Scale 55 Ton Three-Truck Shay

Click Here for exploded view diagrams

Refer to sheet 12 (location of circuit board), 13, and 14

[nymark]

Hi Kevin, Thanks for that information. Based on what you told me I bought the 3 tuck shay with sound and DCC installed. Hopefully this choice will make things less complicated now that I'm working with three different scales. Though I've been in the hobby for about 14 really active years, this is the first time I've used this forum. Also, thanks to Hunt for the exploded diagrams. Thanks for your expertise! Phil Nymark.

[Kevin Strong]

One thing to keep in mind with the factory DCC board in the Shay, but I don't think will be an issue with your set-up... The factory board doesn't like track voltages above 21 volts, and will go into over-voltage shutdown if that happens. That's not going to be an issue with the NCE 5-amp boosters, as they're less than 18 volts to the track. (Still more than ample for the Shay, so no worries.) However, if you were to use NCE's 10-amp system, they're adjustable up to 22 volts according to the literature. You'd want to make sure your output voltage was under 20 just to be safe.

Later,

K

[nymark]

 More great info! I just want to get all this new stuff started for now. Knowing what you mentioned I'll be looking into that 10 amp NCE system. Thanks-Phil Nymark