Switching the Harbor: Fun with DCC sound decoders

 

     I installed a Tsunami2 Sound Car decoder to the boxcar to give my switching operations more realism with realistic wheel squeal, brake noise and the ever present clitcky clack as the wheels of the boxcar rolled through the village streets and the countryside.  

     Here is picture of the wiring diagram of the sound car decoder:

   Installation was easy with the exception of making my own pickup for the metal wheels.  I made them out of brass (.20 brass from K&S Engineering you can find at local hobby shops and many local hardware stores not the big DIY places).  I drilled holes through the floor for the wires (and the sound holes while I was at it) and then ran the red wire to one side of the car pickups and soldered it.  Then I did the same thing with the black wire but the other side of the box car.  I glued (epoxy) the pickups to some .40 plastic on the underside of the car, positioning in such a way as to not interfere with the rolling of the wheels.  I plugged the Currentkeeper to one end of the decoder and then soldered the purple wirier the instructions to the speaker.  I then used caulk to attach the speaker to the floor of the boxcar (reduce vibration).  Then I used double stick tappet stick the decoder to the roof of the boxcar.  Nothing could be easier.  

    I set the master volume to 75%, increased the brake squeal volume, increased the frequency of the wheel squeals to represent the less than straight track.  I also programmed the decoder to simulate a one truck 2 axle wheel configuration.