I’ll have some recommendations for connections to specific
decoders later in this column.
A decoder with an internal heat sink will have a very flat side
as shown in figure 3. Removing the heat shrink from these
decoders will dislodge the heat sink. Once the heat sink is
loose, it is beyond the scope of most modelers to get it back
well enough to prevent damage to the decoder. I recommend
against opening decoders like this. Fortunately, many decod-
ers of this ilk already have the negative lead brought out.
Kinds of energy storage
Since most modern models have just about maxed out on fly-
wheel storage, there is probably little to gain here. However,
if your model doesn’t have a flywheel or two, I’d recommend
adding one or two, if possible. Test the resulting loco before
looking at electronic energy storage.
3
3: Decoder with internal heat sink - SoundTraxx Micro
Tsunami TSU-750.
