BLI 4-8-4 NYC S-1B Steam

Scale:
HO Scale


WOWKit used in this installation

Kit Coming Soon

Which includes the following items:



Installation

This installation is for a HO Scale Broadway Limited 4-8-4 NYC Steam S-1B using a TCS WOW121 Steam Decoder, AS-MB2-NC Motherboard, KA4 Keep Alive® and 28mm High Bass WOWSpeaker and was performed by our friends at DCC Xpress.

The Broadway Limited 4-8-4 NYC Steam S-1B locomotive and tender shown prior to installation.
The Broadway Limited 4-8-4 NYC Steam S-1B locomotive and tender shown prior to installation.
To begin this install, loosen the screw highlighted above in red and then remove the two screws highlighted in blue. The shell will lift off the chassis.
To begin this install, loosen the screw highlighted above in red and then remove the two screws highlighted in blue. The shell will lift off the chassis.
Shown with the locomotive shell off. Separate the track, motor, and LED wiring from the lighting board inside and splice it directly into the harness wire leads. This will bypass the resistor on the board and provide direct connections to the motherboard. With this wiring done, the locomotive is complete.
Shown with the locomotive shell off. Separate the track, motor, and LED wiring from the lighting board inside and splice it directly into the harness wire leads. This will bypass the resistor on the board and provide direct connections to the motherboard. With this wiring done, the locomotive is complete.
Next, to address the tender, remove the four screws highlighted above in red on each corner of the tender bottom. The tender shell will lift off.
Next, to address the tender, remove the four screws highlighted above in red on each corner of the tender bottom. The tender shell will lift off.
The tender shown with the shell off. Trim or lengthen, then tin the wire leads as needed.
The tender shown with the shell off. Trim or lengthen, then tin the wire leads as needed.
In this installation, use this original connection board to transfer the harness connections into the tender and on to the AS-MB2-NC motherboard.
In this installation, use this original connection board to transfer the harness connections into the tender and on to the AS-MB2-NC motherboard.
Solder the motherboard wire leads to this board according to the order the connections come from the locomotive harness. Shown with the new wire leads soldered properly.
Solder the motherboard wire leads to this board according to the order the connections come from the locomotive harness. Shown with the new wire leads soldered properly.
Using foam, double sided tape, mount the AS-MB2-NC motherboard to the top of the tender weight. Here it is shown with the rear LED leads directly soldered in place, again, bypassing the original lighting board as well as the tender track pickups.
Using foam, double sided tape, mount the AS-MB2-NC motherboard to the top of the tender weight. Here it is shown with the rear LED leads directly soldered in place, again, bypassing the original lighting board as well as the tender track pickups.
Next, solder the wire leads from the connection board/ harness to the motherboard as shown.
Next, solder the wire leads from the connection board/ harness to the motherboard as shown.
Using the same tape, mount the KA4 Keep Alive® inside the tender as shown and solder the wire leads to the motherboard.
Using the same tape, mount the KA4 Keep Alive® inside the tender as shown and solder the wire leads to the motherboard.
Using the same foam, double sided tape, secure the 28mm HI Bass WOWSound speaker to the roof of the tender shell and solder the wire leads to the motherboard.
Using the same foam, double sided tape, secure the 28mm HI Bass WOWSound speaker to the roof of the tender shell and solder the wire leads to the motherboard.
You can now plug in your WOW121 steam decoder. Lastly, in order to keep the wires neat and prevent possible shorts, lace the wires into a bundle using lacing cord, which is a wax impregnated string used for wire bundling and making harnesses. There are many choices of lacing cord available from Digikey www.digikey.com. We use part number 802534B BK032-ND Now you can close up the locomotive and tender. Be sure to be mindful of wire routing and reassembly of the shell as to not damage or foul the installation. Your Broadway Limited 4-8-4 NYC S-1B steam locomotive is now WOWSound equipped and ready to roll!
You can now plug in your WOW121 steam decoder. Lastly, in order to keep the wires neat and prevent possible shorts, lace the wires into a bundle using lacing cord, which is a wax impregnated string used for wire bundling and making harnesses. There are many choices of lacing cord available from Digikey www.digikey.com. We use part number 802534B BK032-ND Now you can close up the locomotive and tender. Be sure to be mindful of wire routing and reassembly of the shell as to not damage or foul the installation. Your Broadway Limited 4-8-4 NYC S-1B steam locomotive is now WOWSound equipped and ready to roll!

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