The Mehano Vossloh G2000 looks good. Period. Did I mention it was black?

Mehano 55546 - Vossloh G2000 Mehano 55546 - Vossloh G2000

Why make things easy?

In a recent article, I mentionned why I thought the Next18 interface was the best choice for future N scale model. I have converted many models to DCC, sometimes soldering decoders in the locomotives, sometimes using the outdated NEM651 interface. But because the NEM651 interface is outdated, I always ended up still soldering some wires to the locomotive. For example, the plus pole (useful for lights to avoid flickering in DCC) is not part of the NEM651 interface. So in the end, I always ended up defeating the purpose of a digital interface (enable easy decoder changes).

So for this Mehano Vossloh G2000 locomotive, I decided to do my very first “Next18” conversion. This means I removed the original NEM651 board, and added a Next18 interface for Next18 decoders.

Objectives and supplies

The interface allowed me to “pimp” the locomotive, without soldering a single wire to the decoder:

  • Capacitors (940uF in total) for a smooth ride on dirty tracks
  • Independent light blocks to allow for realistic lighting (see my video here)

For this conversion, I used the following:

Conversion

I totally removed the original board, and replaced it (partially) with a custom board. It holds a switch to temporarily disconnect the capacitors (sometimes necessary for decoder firmware updates), a resistor and a diode (allowing a safe charge/discharge of the capacitors).

As per all recent conversions, I won’t detail all the steps, but feel free to ask questions in the comments!

Original board of the Vossloh G2000

Original board of the Vossloh G2000

Vossloh G2000: NEM651 board removed

Original NEM651 board removed

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Doehler & Haass Next18 adapter fitting perfectly

Doehler & Haass Next18 adapter fitting perfectly

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Original NEM651 board

Original NEM651 board

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Custom board with switch, resistor, diode

Custom board with switch, resistor, diode

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Custom board in place

Custom board in place

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Custom board in place

Custom board in place

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Board and capacitors

Board and capacitors

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion:All elements in place

All elements in place

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Final result with DH18A decoder

Final result with DH18A Next18 decoder

Doehler & Haass - DH18A Next18 decoder

Doehler & Haass – DH18A Next18 decoder

Vossloh G2000 Next 18 DCC conversion: Next18 adapter in place and soldered

Next18 adapter in place and soldered

Result

The Mehano Vossloh G2000 works perfectly (even better now, with the capacitors), and I will be able to change the decoder easily in the future without compromising any function.

This is probably the first of a long series of Next18 interface conversion!