Questions in the title. Please tell me what you think. Why do some go bad? Are they just bad from the factory and limited to the batch runs for a specific engine?
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My experience has been almost in every case there was some environmental issue that kills them. Shorted or pinched wires, defective motors, defective smoke resistor, etc. I've only had one out of many that I actually really could never understand why it croaked. That doesn't mean there wasn't some transient condition that took it out, just that I couldn't find a reason.
@Lionelzwl2012 posted:Questions in the title. Please tell me what you think. Why do some go bad? Are they just bad from the factory and limited to the batch runs for a specific engine?
As John has said it’s usually an outside influence. I have found many times it a short/derailment that kills the board. That’s why I install TVS in all my controlled equipment.
Agree with the others. Although it has some internal protection against over current for a stalled motor, or a stalled smoke motor, it can’t protect itself from a hard short. Either short to ground, or short to power. They need lightning fast tripping breakers on the power supply to achieve that, ….problem is, a pinched wire, or environmental issue doesn’t necessarily mean it’s an immediate dead short. It that case, unbeknownst to the user, the breaker doesn’t trip immediately, and it’s too late, the damage is done ….I always meter out the locomotive after final assembly before ever applying power,…..A LOT of times I’ve caught would have been a costly mistake beforehand and was able to track down issue long before it ever hits the rails and goes poof….
Pat
