Tyco Alco Century 630

Scale:
HO Scale


This installation uses the following decoder:

T1



This installation of TCS T1 Decoder is for HO Scale Tyco Alco Century 630 Locomotive and was performed by Thomas Gosser, Big Lake, Alaska.

Locate on the sides and bottom the tabs of the truck mounts. You will need to gently spread the locomotive shell apart at these spots to pop the tabs out. The trucks themselves can be be removed beforehand to make removal easier. The rear truck mount only needs to be removed if you plan on installing a rear headlight.
Locate on the sides and bottom the tabs of the truck mounts. You will need to gently spread the locomotive shell apart at these spots to pop the tabs out. The trucks themselves can be be removed beforehand to make removal easier. The rear truck mount only needs to be removed if you plan on installing a rear headlight.
The front headlight copper mount and wiring will need to be removed.
The front headlight copper mount and wiring will need to be removed.
Disconnect the rear truck power lead pickup wire. Remove phillips head screw to do this. Set screw aside, we will reuse it later.
Disconnect the rear truck power lead pickup wire. Remove phillips head screw to do this. Set screw aside, we will reuse it later.
You will need to cut the three leads as indicated. Also, remove the screw (circled) that connects the motor brush to the left wheels power pickup. Set screw aside, we will reuse it later.
You will need to cut the three leads as indicated. Also, remove the screw (circled) that connects the motor brush to the left wheels power pickup. Set screw aside, we will reuse it later.
Solder the cut leads to the harness wires as shown. If you plan on adding a rear headlight solder it and any necessary resistor to the lead pointed to by the arrow and to the yellow harness lead. Make sure it is long enough to reach the rear of the locomotive.
Solder the cut leads to the harness wires as shown. If you plan on adding a rear headlight solder it and any necessary resistor to the lead pointed to by the arrow and to the yellow harness lead. Make sure it is long enough to reach the rear of the locomotive.
Solder the Gray and Orange harness leads to the left and right motor brush leads respectively. Carefully bend the copper tab back in on itself toward brush.
Solder the Gray and Orange harness leads to the left and right motor brush leads respectively. Carefully bend the copper tab back in on itself toward brush.
Connect a micro eyelet connector to the Black harness lead and fasten it to the left power pickup point using the screw you removed earlier (circled).
Connect a micro eyelet connector to the Black harness lead and fasten it to the left power pickup point using the screw you removed earlier (circled).
Run the right power pickup lead ( and the rear headlight lead if you are installing one ) back under the locomotive weight/fuel tank and reconnect to rear truck. Reinstall rear truck into truck mount. Reinstall headlight/mount as removed and tuck in wiring harness and decoder as shown. You can use double sided mounting tape to hold the decoder to the inside of the car body. Reinstall front truck mount and truck as removed. Make sure all wiring is out of the way and make sure trucks oscillate freely within their mounts. Test your installation and enjoy!
Run the right power pickup lead ( and the rear headlight lead if you are installing one ) back under the locomotive weight/fuel tank and reconnect to rear truck. Reinstall rear truck into truck mount. Reinstall headlight/mount as removed and tuck in wiring harness and decoder as shown. You can use double sided mounting tape to hold the decoder to the inside of the car body. Reinstall front truck mount and truck as removed. Make sure all wiring is out of the way and make sure trucks oscillate freely within their mounts. Test your installation and enjoy!

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