BLI SW7 Problem resolution

M

moria

New Member
Nov 4, 2004
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Toronto
Greetings all:)

Welp, I finally got an email today with some interesting details.

I pen this post with a little trepidation.. I want you to all understand I am NOT bashing the new switchers, but I am trying to pass on information in good faith from the distributors. Personally I love this loco, and I can live with these problems, but if I can correct them, so much the better.

There are a few things wrong with the new BLI switchers, all of which I have been in contact with BLI and their distibutors over through my LHS.

Today I got a response from the distributors via my LHS.

Heres the problems...

1) Loco runs in wrong direction on DC .. forward = reverse and vice-versa.

2) On some command stations in DCC operation, Loco has a tendancy to trip the overload when changing direction and restarting from zero throttle (More noticable on Lenz than Digitrax for some reason)

3) Lack of lubrication on gear trains

4) Capacitor on circuit board can get hot (probably linked to 1 since its an electrolytic)

Heres the response from the distributors..

Ermmm yes, theres a wiring fault, something got mirrored on the assembly instructions...

Please follow this procedure to correct..

1) Remove the shell as follows..

Carefully remove the two handrails at the base of the cab that are attatched to the frame.

Gently squeeze tabs (4 of them, 2 front, 2 back) just over the trucks and gently ease up shell.

2) Unplug red plug that connects shell to circuit board and lay shell to one side.

3) Unscrew the 4 board mounting screws... (phillips head)

4) Under the circuit board, along one edge, you will see three plugs adjacent to each other.. 2 black and 1 blue between them.

5) Pull both black plugs only (male) leave blue attatched.

6) On one side of the plugs, you will find two "tabs"
Lift these tabs with an exacto type knife blabe and the wires will slide out.. mentally make a note of which wire goes into which side of the plug.
Reverse both wires on both plugs.. thats 4 wires total and then plug them back into the sockets.

7) Screw 4 board mounting screws back in place

8) Plug red plug into circuit board

9) Re-install the shell and handrails.

In addition to this, setting both CV3 and CV4 (momentum) to a non-zero value (assuming you are using DCC) should help stop the current overload when changing direction and hopefully stop trying to trip the booster as the sequence of events on the chip is marginally different when any momentum value is set.

The re-wiring above should return the loco to correct direction running on DC and stop the capacitor on the circuit board getting hot, (I am told) and help with the overload.


OKaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyy... there you have it folks... personally I haven't tried this yet, but i am planning to get in there tomorrow if I can find a spare 30 minutes or so to take it in easy steps, so I cannot vouch for the effectiveness of any of the above. I also have no idea whether doing this procedure voids any warranty on the product.. silly me forgot to ask that question.

PS.. I think that while the circuit board is off, that would be the time to get in there with the labelle 108 oil on the front truck for lubing it.

Now, you may decide, this whole procedure is something you don't want to do and go for a return... if so, and the dealer queries it, then you can get him to confirm all the above from the distributor, who are.. shall we say.. fully aware of these problems.

Personally, I will.. after having done the above then do a full reset of the decoder and program it again.. probably not needed but I think its a good practice belt and braces procedure :)

Shame really, as I think that otherwise this is a great model, and .. as I say, I love mine and would actually be prepared to live with it as it stands, but perhaps this may make it even better.. I will let you know tomorrow.. all being well :)

As of this time, I take no responsability for any of the above information, but it was sent in good faith, and that is how I will approach it:)

Regards
 
Graham,
When you have completed the recommended fix, please post the results here, and let the lhs know how things went. BLI, and QSI both have been really good at answering tech problems from the field,(at least for me) so I suspect things will go well.
Thanks for the heads up, and the matter of fact presentation.
Pete
 
Morning all :)


OK here is my follow up report on last nights post..

This is a two stage operation.. part done by me, part done by my LHS.

I only operate on DCC.. for me, the primary problem was the cut out on direction change.

I did a full reset on the decoder and then changed CV3 and CV4 to non-zero values.. in my case 10 each.

I am happy to report that this has completely eliminated the trip out of the command station on changing direction.. so good news there.

Since I don't have DC control.. the modifications to the wiring plugs on the board, as outlined in the Distributers note were done by the LHS, as they had the ability to test the result.

They report that this does correct the problem of the loco going in the wrong direction on DC and also appears to reduce the temp in the capacitor.

Since I don't have DC control, I have personally not bothered with the re-wiring as the DCC fix to the momentum CV's has cured my primary problem and the others would only surface if I took my loco to a DC layout.

I would say therefore, that if you are a DCC user and sometimes get a trip in direction change, you only need add values to CV3 and 4, but if you are a DC user, then the rewiring option would be needed.

The LHS will be communicating these results to the distributors.

Regards
 
Hi people.. interesting follow up no 2 :)


I just had a call from the LHS.. it would appear that the sound cutting out may be a QSI decoder problem/feature. There was a modeller in this morning with his P2K GP9 with QSI sound, and he started saying.. its excellent.. but every now and then when changing direction, the sound seems to trip out and the command station drops. This was on a Zephyr.

LHS owner said try setting CV3 and 4 to greater than 0 values like 10 or 15...

Instant success, no more sound trips, while in shop testing anyway.

Seems this may be a universal feature on the diesel sound decoders from QSI.

Info passed on for sake of completeness.

Regards
 
Hi Chris.

I am using Railview in Markham.. 10 mins drive away from me.

Georges' and Credit valley both take me over an hour to get to an a good day:)

Regards
 
Hey Chris:)


Will do:)

What other LHS has a coke machine on-site so you can get a can and have a browse :)

I have to remember to take my camera each time.. when I was up there Saturday, the barriers came down on the crossing so we all went to the window... a main line freight came through with 7 CN prime movers on the front all working hard... well, its 2 miles from the shop to the yard that the train was obviously destined for, and it was obviously going into the yard.. as it slowly rumbled by, it was getting slower and slower and eventually it was obviously stopped at the entrance to the yard.. it JUST cleared the crossing, so therefore, one train, just on 2 miles long:)

Its nice to have the drivers wave and hit the horn as they go past the shop as well:)

If your planning a trip up there one Saturday morning, give me a yell.. I am sure theres something I need for the layout :thumb:

Regards
 
Hi Chris:)

I would love to.. the thing is where I work is currently working on a project which is due to launch 1st March.. now, between you me and the gatepost, I honestly believe that in a week or two, that will become first week April, which means that I will be working every hour there is that week and weekend of the doubleheader :cry:

I wil;l know in a week or two, but it is already bookmarked in case I can get the time:)

Still, it funds the addiction... errrrr I mean hobby :)

Regards
 
I have to get to this place one of these days!

Although, I have to say that the guys at CVR are fantastic as well, and they totally stand behind their products. They handled all my hassles with BLI over the Hudson with non-working decoder and its subsequent loss by the US mail, even though I didn't have the bill anymore. They also exchanged some turnouts for me (again with no bill) and they are fixing for free another decoder they put in 2 years ago.

They don't have a yard in their backyard though. Now that must have been pretty cool!!!

Val
 
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