Repairs and DCC Installations

We offer a full suite of repair, service and DCC Installation services to our customers with a full-time staff member dedicated to these services. We repair and service both North American brands and European brands such as Marklin.

While most repairs and DCC installations we do are for our local customers in Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley we can accommodate mail-in work.

Our shop rate for repairs, service and DCC installation is currently $60 CAD per hour billed in 1/4 hour increments. Our repair staff works in-store Tuesday through Thursday and can give you a rough estimate on those days. On Fridays and Saturdays we ask you leave your products needing service/installs and our staff will get back to you as soon as possible the following week.

Fall/Winter are our busiest months and extended wait times for repairs and installs are common. Some quick repairs or installs may be moved to the top of the queue as our technicians see fit in order to help with storage..

A Guide to DCC Installations

We try our best to give you an accurate quote when you drop off your locomotive for repair or DCC installation. In some cases, we may need to inspect the locomotive before we can provide a quote. Repairs and DCC installs can take more time than estimated due to unforeseen factors. We will contact you in these cases as soon as possible to make you aware of any extra time required to complete the installation or repair.

Please keep in mind with all installs that the time quoted or billed can include;

  • Testing and inspecting the locomotive to ensure it is running properly and all parts are present.
  • Servicing & cleaning for proper running.
  • More time-consuming disassembly of the shell and couplers.
  • Some locomotives may need significant or complete disassembly to run wires etc.
  • If the frame requires milling, the locomotive must be completely stripped in most cases.
  • Replacing old incandescent bulbs with LEDs.

Additional Parts Required for DCC Installations
Decoder installs can require additional parts & supplies. With most sound decoder installs a speaker ($10 to $25 depending on size & quality) is required. We do not bill for the small amounts of wire we may need, but steam locomotives and some diesels may require new multi-pin connectors ($5-20). In rare cases a decoder motherboard such as a DecoderBuddy is needed. We do need to charge for the LEDs and any other components required when converting lighting from incandescent.

In the case of Marklin locomotives, older models may require Marklin motor upgrade kits to be converted to digital with Marklin decoders.

ESU LokSound Decoder Programming (FREE)
ESU Loksound decoders can be customized with a huge selection of sound files based on North American & European locomotive prototypes. The full selection of ESU sound files can be seen online at https://projects.esu.eu

If you have a specific sound file in mind, please let us know. If no file is specified, our staff will choose the closest file to match your locomotive.
Even if you are only buying decoder we will program your choice of sound file for FREE (1-2 business days are required in most cases).

Should I convert my locomotive to DCC? Decoders & DCC installations can be expensive so it is worth considering if the locomotive is worth the potential cost. Many older locomotives with poor quality (and potentially worn out) motors & drive trains can be expensive installs and will not have their performance improved much by adding a decoder. For older locomotives with sentimental or nostalgic value, consider parking them as a ‘museum’ locomotive on an unpowered track.

SIMPLE INSTALLS(1/4 to 3/4 hour)

“DCC Ready” or “DCC Sound Ready” Locomotives with standard 6, 8 or 21 pin plugs

This category covers locomotives that only need the shell removed and the decoder added to a standard connector (plus testing and programming). For sound installs the speaker is already present in the locomotive.

STANDARD SOUND INSTALLS(1/2 hour to 2 hours +)

“DCC Ready” Locos with standard 6, 8 or 21 pin plugs

This category covers locomotives that have a standard decoder socket but need a speaker installed. In many cases the manufacturer provides space for the speaker however in some cases our technicians may need to mill or modify the frame of the locomotive to make room for the speaker(s). If a keep-alive is also desired, additional milling may be required.

DROP-IN DECODER INSTALLS(1/2 hour to 2 hours +)

DCC Ready locomotives that will accept a “drop-in” board replacement style decoder

In some cases ‘drop-in’ installs can be done fairly quickly however there can also be a number of issues that occur during installation that may require more time to make the locomotive operate flawlessly. For sound installs a speaker needs to be installed and may require wiring or milling of the frame. In some cases LEDs for lighting need to be soldered onto the decoder and adjusted.

SIMPLE HARD WIRED INSTALLS(1 hour to 4 hours+)

Non-DCC ready diesel/electric locomotives that require hard wired installs. It is very rare a steam locomotive will fall into this category.

These installs cover cases where there is enough room inside the locomotive for the decoder and a speaker if required. Installation often requires the motor to be isolated and wired to the decoder as well as wiring the existing front/rear lighting to the decoder.

MODERATE HARD WIRED INSTALLS (2 hours to 5 hours+)

Non-DCC steam/diesel/electric locomotives that require more complex hard-wired installs.

Locomotives that require more extensive wiring modifications or frame milling for the hard-wire install can fall into this category. Extra lighting such as ditch lights and numberboard lights that require isolation as well as well as frame modifications can lead to significant amounts of extra time. Steam locomotives with their trickier wiring and loco to tender connections can also fall into this category.

CHALLENGING HARD WIRED INSTALLS (3 hours to 5 hours+)

Non-DCC steam/diesel/electric locomotives that require very complex hard-wired installs.

Locomotives that require extensive wiring modifications or significant frame milling for the decoder or speaker can fall into this category. Older steam locomotives that may need challenging wire routing can take significant amounts of time to complete.

Please contact us if you have any questions about repairs or DCC Installations.