bom dia a todos,
sou principiante no sistema digital,e gostaria de começar a actualizar locomotivas mais antigas,a minha pergunta é posso só substituir o motor ou tenho que o fazer adicionando um decoder,a minha intençao é fazer as coisas aos poucos, alguém me pode ajudar, boa páscoa e obrigado,
António 21

Antonio

The simple beginners version is that you can not substitute a older 3 pole motor with a new 5 pole motor without installing also a decoder.
The 3 pole has a field coil (= AC motor --> analog) while the 5 pole uses a permanent magnet (= DC motor --> digital) and needs a decoder to work.....

.... well .... you could of course switch to analog DC also, but that's another story....

So, with that out of the way, next depends on how technically handy you are and what your budget and goal would be. A good starter kit with a 5 pole conversion motor and a simple decoder is the # 60760 kit, mind you this is only to convert DCM (Drum Collector Motor) type locomotives.

Regards
Jean-Pierre

Hi Antonio,

There are many options for decoders, and preferences vary between users, so you may get different answers from different responders.

One thing to consider is what protocol(s) for communicating with the control unit the decoder should understand: mm, mfx, dcc (descriptions of differences between the systems can be found online).

The number of controllable functions can be a deciding factor too, as is the question of having or not having sound.

A good next step would be to decide for a specific loco what you would want in terms of functions, then describe the loco and your desired options here. I'm sure that will generate valuable advice.

Jeroen

P.S. It would be helpful to make the topic title more specific, e.g., "Needing advice on updating old locos" or the like.

Edited by user 14 April 2023 09:14:12(UTC)  | Reason: Addition