Kit: Zimo MX645 with Zimo LS40X22X09-2W dual Dumbo speaker, 1000uF stay-alive

The Bachmann WD 2-8-0 model so far have little provision for DCC, so it is a case of hard-wiring. The loco has precious little space, so we use a 4pin mini-connector to take the pickups and motor wires back to the tender.

All the kit will go into the tender, which has a fair enough of space, but we want to use a massive dual Dumbo Zimo speaker (LS40X22X09-2W) so we have to create a bit more room by removing the sloping plastic from underneath the coal load.

Check the speaker for fit and clear a little more until it goes in comfortably. The coal load with hide the hole we just made.

Next we work out the route for the 4 wires from the loco. We join 2 to the pickup strips internally and the motor wires can be threaded up through an existing hole. We drill a hole in the curved back of the pickup assembly so that the wires flow underneath and largely out of sight.

Inside the loco, there shouldn't be much need to surplus wire length, so trim as appropriate to make it as neat and tidy as possible.

The wires look quite long here, but it is just about spot on to reach the centre of the tender, threaded through so they do not snag.

For the tender, we simply stick a piece of Black Tack underneath and squash the socket end of the connector to it. We've reused some existing hole to thread the wires back up through, but in retrospect it might have been better to go around the centre one, as it interfers a bit with the retaining screw that holds the tender body on.

It is then just a case of wiring up the decoder, speaker and 1000uF capacitor and mounting it all into the tender.

The decoder needs to sit at an angle, but will just go in. Hold this and the capacitor in with some Black Tack.

Back together, and with some similarly done friends...

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