The next step in the installation process is the mounting of the battery and DCB-97 sound board. For mounting these types of components I use and recommend the use of indoor/outdoor carpet tape.
The indoor/outdoor carpet tape I use looks like black -sticky, woven burlap and is about 2" wide by about a 1/16" thick, and both water and cold resistant. I stopped using the foam mounting tape because it's holding power does not stand up over time under outdoor use. And when examining some older installations that were brought to me for repair, I noticed that the foam tape was also holding moisture. I also noticed greater tarnish and corrosion on the circuit board components just next to and under the foam tape than in other places. So, I looked for something else to use and found this type of carpet tape was the best at holding and did not retain moisture.
I use this carpet tape to retain components as well as to insulate objects from each other. An example is the mounting of the DCB-97 board. The tape not only holds the board firmly in place, but also insulates the board from making contact with the tender's metal, lower pan section. Contact could cause a short-circuit condition or worse - a no-sound board!
The picture above shows the battery and sound board set in place using the carpet tape mentioned above. With all the sound system's components installed, the next step is to wire together all the components following the wiring diagram shown earlier in this article. The major consideration here is where to get track power for the sound system.
The photo above shows the lower section wired and finished. The track power for the sound board comes from "Y" connections made in the front truck's power leads (the set of black and white wires pictured above). At this stage the following connections are completed: speaker, chuff trigger reed switch, bell trigger reed switch, whistle trigger reed switch, and track power. The connections to the devices mounted in the upper tender section are next. The picture below shows a little closer shot of the lower pan, and the wiring completed up to this point. Always make it a point to secure the wiring and do not let it run wild.
The picture below shows the bottom-inside view of the upper tender section. From this angle you can see the bottom of the operation switches that were installed and the switch wiring. The wiring is attached in this view, note that enough length was given to the switch wires to allow the upper and lower section of the tender to be separated easily for maintenance and inspection. As a next step, strips of indoor/outdoor carpet were placed on the inner top and sides of the tender's upper section. The tape will hold some sound insulation in place.
Note in the photo below the addition of fiberglass insulation to the upper tender section. The insulation will enhance the output tone by reducing the "hard-surface" area inside the sound chamber (inside of tender). The insulation used here was normal "wall insulation". But, if possible to get, I recommend using fiberglass "duct insulation" as used by heating and cooling companies for some commercial applications. Duct insulation is virtually the same thing as that expensive speaker insulation used in building custom speaker systems, but cheaper - especially if you go up and ask for if. The truth is that most generally 1 or 2 square feet of this material is more than you could use for a project and probably just a scrap to them. My brother Ed is a HVAC contractor and is kind enough to save me a piece or two when he uses the stuff on a job.
Below is the finished loco, assembled and ready for testing. Please review the section of this article covering the disassembly to understand how the tender is re-assembled. (GO THERE NOW)