Graham Farish 3MT Tank with MS Sound and Stay-Alive

Kit: MS490; SugarTwist6; 2x 470uF Tall/Narrow Tantalums

Revisiting the Farish 3MT, let's discover how much simpler a sound and stay-alive installation is using MS rather than MX. The MS490/MS491 is smaller than the old MX649, so it should be much simpler...

First we strip the model down and remove all wiring and electronics.

Fresh wires for motor and pick-ups added, using standard DCC wiring colour (black and red for track, orange and grey for motor).

Our MS490 is 'simplified' by removing all unwanted lighting wires, as well as track and motor wires, as we'll attach our fresh wires from the model direct to the decoder. This is essential in this model, as wiring joins take up precious space. Just wires for stay-alive and speakers remain - our stay-alive will be a pair of 470uF Tall Tantalums, joined in parallel. Since this is below the 1000uF/16V maximum that the MS490 allows, we can go direct to the decoder (no connection circuit required).

Track and motor wires are soldered to the decoder, and the speaker is wired up - just long enough to be able to handle the kit, but not so long as to have excessive wiring.

The speaker is a special custom 3D speaker with a curved top, but the curve goes the opposite way to our standard SugarCurve - this is a better fit for the roof of the cab. The Tantalums are also connected and positioned vertically toward the back of the cab - they will go up into the coal bunker, so this needs to be hollowed out first to allow them to go up inside. Decoder is covered in Kapton tape for protection.

We rebuild the coal load - first some black electrical tape, then some BlackTack - carefully sculpted to seal the shape. A little UHU glue and a sprinkling of crushed coal to complete the effect.

All back together and looking glorious! Runs nicely, especially with the little stay-alive.

Please note that these guides are provided as useful resources for you, as-is. YouChoos cannot be held responsible for errors in the information, or for any damage caused to your models or equipment if you choose to follow any of the steps detailed here.