J Daddy posted:Norton posted:J Daddy posted:Norton posted:All the radio boards used in RCMC have a two wire connector for the antenna. Its used on steam engines which have a wire for each handrail eliminating the wire nut. Not sure its needed on plastic engines but it can't hurt.
Pete
Correct. However my point was does the two wire connection need to have a closed circuit so the locomotive will "see" the TMCC signal. On previous board designs it is not needed and this was usually one wire in previous command diesels.
One wire could break and the antenna would still be functional. The two contacts on the board are wired together. One wire to either or both contacts is sufficient. I am assuming the factory has wired all the antenna connectors with two wires so they can be used for either steam or diesel and then just tie them together on the diesels.
I just opened my RS11 which also has Alzheimers. It too has two wires soldered to the antenna plate.
Pete
Thanks Pete. Than I think what happened to mine was the antenna plate lost its adhesive to the shell and grounded the signal out on the frame . When it was sitting loose inside the unit .
I just realized from your post that all my stalling problems could be from signal loss due to antenna issue. You mentioned yours was loose inside the frame. Did things improve after the fix?
The stalling started with one A unit, then started in the other. Definitely looks like signal loss. All my other engines run fine on same track. Could it be my plates also came loose? Of course I would have to take off the shell to know, and I’m probably not going to (not a good mechanic at all!), but just for fun could you show me which screws hold the shell on?
