PRR Q-2 4-4-6-4 decoder install.
The T-1 4-4-4-4 is having trouble pulling the 14 car passenger cars up grade so I'm hoping the extra driver will 'do the job'. If not, I can double head them. A pretty old engine: made by Westside in 1970.
LED and wire hole prep.
This engine was already painted when I bought it so care must be done using new or near new drill bits to insure clean holes without snagging the metal.
The engine runs fine with the open frame motor so that is staying. The two brushes are already independent of ground so the motor is 'good to go'.
I normally drill out the back of the headlight but this head light is at an unusual spot. When the headlight is on the front of the boiler I like to run the wires in the front of the boiler for ease of maintenance. In this case I drill the hole for the wires at about a 45 degree angle downward.
With the angle hole, it came out on the boiler front plate.
The hole is at the bottom of the headlight recess.
This was fun. Wasn't sure if these marker lights were large enough to house some 0402 LED's. I used about a #64 drill bit and the LED's just fit. I use scalecoat engine black to touch up surfaces as it dries dull.
A hole drilled into the boiler behind the marker light to route the wires.
Dry fit: tons of room!
Holes needed to be drilled in the tender bottom for the speaker.
Had to make a hole under the tender deck plate to route the decoder wires. Very tight area so multiple holes drilled and then cleaned up with a file.
Headlight and marker lights drilled out. The marker lights were convex so a file was used to create a flat spot so the drill bit would not wonder off center.
NOTE: if anyone knows what color these three marker lights are suppose to be, please post.
I checked out BLI's Q-2 and they have the center white and the two outer lights as red. Their engine doesn't have the headlight mounted on top so that will also be white.
With a wide base, a hole was drilled at an angle for the tender headlight so the wire will not be exposed. I usually have to drill a hole through the back of the headlight and then another into the tender deck to route the wires: Not that this is bad as it just looks like electrical cable (which it is).