The DCC Re-Animator

The Re-Animator is a campy old school horror movie series.  The DCC Re-Animator is my attempt to bring old-school operating accessories back to relevance by installing DCC and other simple upgrades.  I am hoping that this series will inspire all of us push the boundaries of DCC.  The premise is simple – take an old school “Operating” or “Action” car or accessory and make it work with DCC.  The first edition looks at the Bachmann Action Caboose.

Episode 1: The Bachmann Action Caboose

The Bachmann Action Caboose was produced from 1977 to 1981 and did not require any electricity to operate.  Just opening the door to set the conductor in the doorway prepared the caboose for action.  When the car passed the mail platform, the conductor would grab the train orders and the door would close.  The biggest problem was that this was a one shot operation.  The train would have to stop and the door manually opened to grab the next train order hoop.  More information on the Bachmann Action Caboose.

The DCC Re-Animator envisioned a DCC makeover for the Bachmann Action Caboose.  The idea was to make the conductor open and close the door remotely.  I chose the Zimo MX685 Function Decoder since it has provision to control two servos.  The servo I used was a 3.7g version which is smaller than the 9g versions and it fit nicely in the cupola roof.  The servo was chatty whenever track power was lost; the addition of a TCS KA1 Capacitor Pack stopped the chatter when the caboose was in motion.  Tomar Marker Lights and a 5v Voltage Regulator to power the servo complete the electronics inventory.

I also used a six conductor micro connector to join the electronics on the frame with the electronic mounted in the body.  The servo is mounted in the copula and the KA1 is mounted in the roof.  The Zimo and the voltage regulator are mounted on the frame.  The voltage regulator is  mounted on the weight, which doubles as a heat sink.

After the servo was mounted in place, I created the linkage from the extra servo horns and tested the movement of the conductor and door.  Other upgrades include changing the Ronald McDonald paint scheme to boxcar red.  The molded grab irons on the copula were replaced with metal wire.  The windows on the solid sliding door were cleaned out and body mounted knuckle couplers were added.  

I am searching for some prototype photos of this caboose.  Most side door caboose appear to have offset cupolas.  I looked at the Bath and Hammondsport caboose has a center cupola, but the side door is in the wrong place – The B&H caboose came from the Erie.  Possibly the Union Pacific or other Harriman road is the answer.

In the next episode, we will look at the Re-Animation of Lionel’s 0805, an Atomic Age car that the youngsters may never have seen before.