I am trying to convert my first LGB product to simple battery power. It is an older 2030 Steeple Cab (blue). Can anyone confirm that the white and brown wires (as shown) are where I break in with the feed from my new (battery) power source?
set it on rollers and power it up and probe with a voltmeter or test light to see if those are the wires you need. If you do not have rollers prop the loco up so the wheels will turn, but it will not run off the bench, dont ask why I relate this.
I always take the two transformer leads (+ & -) that go to the track and touch then to the motor contacts and this should tell you right quick which wires are the power wires to the motor. Also you will have to take the track sliders off the power block and the brass pickups that slide on the wheels, ie. you are removing the power from the rails that would feed into the motor. There are ways to have both track and battery power thru switches, but since you did not tell what you are going to do it’s hard to give a total description on what you are trying to accomplish. You should tell us what system you plan to go with.
trainman
Thanks folks. Got it working. Using a Crest Revolution 2 battery system. I will have to go back into the loco and remove the sliders and pickups. Would love to add a switch to be able to alternate to track power but for the number of times I’d use it I’m not sure its worth the effort. Am I correct in assuming I have to completely remove the wheels to get the pickups out?
Here is the LGB diagram for the #2030, I would say that you probably only have to remove the bottom plate of the motor block and the sliders are just loose when you remove it. No need to remove the wheels from what I see. On some motor blocks there is a brass strip that goes between the two wheel sets on each side that would need to be removed, but I do not see them in the exploded view of this engine. They are usually on the top side under the top plate, they just lay in place. https://www.onlytrains.com/manuals/2030-1.pdf
trainman
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Thanks John that was helpful. Below are a couple of pictures of the battery car I’m building that generated these questions.
Here are some pics of a LGB Rio Grande #50 switcher with Rail Pro and battery all installed in one unit. After looking at your pics you could be more limited for space then I was. I did go with a smaller battery that has about 1 hour run time, but since my switcher is used very little battery life has not been a problem. I could have put the battery under the hood with all the other components, but decided in the cab would work better and it’s hard to be seen through the cab glass. Your work looks very well done and should work fine, What system are you using in your loco to control the engine.
trainman
Nice work. Thanks for posting the pictures. I’m using Train Engineer Revolution system.
Nice clean install John! I like how the switch and charge jack are hidden.