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I use DCC and have 5 old Athearn GP7s with shells painted, decaled, weathered etc. I would like to replace the Athearn motor & frame for a new frame,motor etc that would allow the easier mounting of decoder thus getting rid of wire etc and headache of adding DCC to old Athearn meachanisms. Hopefully this would eliminate typical Athearn growl as well. Does anyone know whether any maunfacturer has frame etc that will accept old Athearn shell of GP7/9?
Thanks
Bob
Russ Bellinis Member # 2377
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Trains unlimited out of the Denver Colorado area bought the old "Front Range" tooling. They have the Front Range frame available. Actually it isn't difficult to wire in a decoder to the old Athearn locomotives. Just remove the motor, carefully remove the two clips that hold the motor together while being careful not to loose brushes or springs. Put the brass clip with the two little "fingers" on the top, and the top clip on the bottom. Throw away the steel clip that goes to the trucks and the light assembly. Now solder the + & - wires from your decoder to the trucks. Then solder the motor control wires from your decoder to the two clips on the motor. the stock Athearn motor mount will keep the motor insulated from the frame. I think Loys Toys has detailed instructions on their web site www.loystoys.com
CVSSDragonslayer Member # 3332
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I realize that this topic may be closed, but I have a slightly different problem with the Athern GP7/9. The shell is also painted and decaled. My unit has the old rubber band drive and any new bands I install slowly become gummy and fall apart. I tried to switch to O-rings as I did on my old Revell F-7 (which did work) but they were either too loose or tight. Any suggestions on how I can re-motor from rubber band to direct drive ?
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