Athearn AMD-103

Scale:
HO Scale


This installation uses the following decoder:

T1



This installation of TCS T1A Digital Decoder is for HO Scale Athearn AMD-103 and was performed by A.G.

Shown with the shell on.
Shown with the shell on.
Front of the locomotive.
Front of the locomotive.
Rear of the locomotive.
Rear of the locomotive.
Unscrew the back screw (circled in red) that holds the coupler pocket to the chassis and remove the rear coupler pocket.
Unscrew the back screw (circled in red) that holds the coupler pocket to the chassis and remove the rear coupler pocket.
Unscrew the front screw (circled in red) that holds the coupler pocket to the chassis and remove the front coupler pocket.
Unscrew the front screw (circled in red) that holds the coupler pocket to the chassis and remove the front coupler pocket.
Hold the body in one hand and one of the trucks in your other hand and pull gently, the body should come off. Inside you will see the motor and an electronic circuit board that sit on top of it.
Hold the body in one hand and one of the trucks in your other hand and pull gently, the body should come off. Inside you will see the motor and an electronic circuit board that sit on top of it.
At the front end, there is a DCC “dummy” plug at the end of a harness that you will remove.
At the front end, there is a DCC “dummy” plug at the end of a harness that you will remove.
Here is a close-up picture of the DCC "Dummy Plug."
Here is a close-up picture of the DCC "Dummy Plug."
Remove the DCC "Dummy Plug."
Remove the DCC "Dummy Plug."
Install the TCS T1A decoder in place of the “dummy plug” as shown in the picture above. You are almost done! Just put back the body, the coupler boxes and the screws. The locomotive is now ready to go on the track.
Install the TCS T1A decoder in place of the “dummy plug” as shown in the picture above. You are almost done! Just put back the body, the coupler boxes and the screws. The locomotive is now ready to go on the track.

Important Soldering Tip

Please do not use any flux either liquid or paste on the mother board. Over time, the acidic properties of liquid or paste flux will begin eating away at the fiberglass PCB and will damage it. Use only Rosin-core solder or no-clean flux approved for electronics use.

TCS recommends the use of Kester "44" Sn63 Pb37, .015" diameter Rosin-core solder. Kester part number 24-6337-0007.

You can order this solder from the following retailers:
Digikey - PN:KE1110-ND
Techni-Tool - PN:488SO6775

Other solder tips

When stripping wire, only strip a tiny little bit of the insulation. Strip no more than a 1/32 of an inch. When the wire gets tinned with solder, the insulation will shrink back more. Try to not expose any more wire than half the length of the solder pad at most. In no case should solder or exposed wire wire ever be outside the boundary of the the solder pad you are attaching a wire to.
Click here for important information on properly Stripping and Tinning wire