Hello! I recently inherited one of these old RDC-1 which is goodlooking and seems to be worth to awake for a new life on my layout. Unfortunately I don't have any further informations or papers with this model except the infos about it on Marks great encyclopedia site I was not even able to find some more here or in other forums so my question to you is: Is it really worth to keep an eye on this nice looking engine and are there any hints for maintaining it? Well, I own some other RDCs made by Kato and don't want to compare them to this 25 years older veteran, bur why not keeping it in business again and later on fitting it with a decoder? Best regards Mathi
Ages ago, before Kato's RDC's came out, someone online explained how to modify the old ConCor RDC's to improve their appearance including converting them to body mounted couplers. I can't remember if it was on a website or a mailing list considering how long ago it was. Ultimately though, I feel that they are good enough that with a little work and if you hide it between two Katos, no one will notice their shortcomings. Edit: Of course, converting them to body mounted couplers is much easier nowadays.
I have three Con-Cor RDCs, one powered and two dummy. I've kept the truck-mounted couplers because that doesn't bother me. However, I'll be glad to examine one of them to see what might be involved in replacing the truck-mounts with body-mounts. BTW, they still run very well after more than 20 years with only a few drops of oil every couple of years. OK, so ~180 mph at 12 volts may be a little fast, but at 4-6 volts (50-60 mph) they and I are happy. LOL
I've never had a problem removing the shells. I just slip my thumbnails under each side of the body between the body bottom and the frame in the center of the car. Then very carefully ease the body off the frame with my fingers pulling on each truck a little at a time. That way I can feel any binding before the body breaks.
When I managed to get a couple of the "new" Kato RDC's, a friend suggested I get rid of my old ConCor/Roco models, for a number of reasons. I had more reasons to keep them, and to this day, do not regret my decision. These mechanisms are somewhat fragile due to the long driveshafts from motor to gear towers, but if kept lubricated and clean, they run beautifully and look even better. Although they look millions of light years different than their Kato counterpart, they still look great and run smoothly, like most of the Roco stuff from the eighties. Ken "FloridaBoy" Willaman
Hello and thank you all, this sound very good to me! Has anybody fitted a decoder in it and can provide me with some instructions? Regards Mathi
It looks like all you'd need to do is disconnect the truck wires from the motor and re-solder them to the track power wires on the decoder. Then, solder the motor control wires from the decoder to the motor. No lighting, so you're done. Cheers, -Mark
Thank you Mark! That makes the Roco-construction good for coversions, wires from left and right rail, motor is free, so no need for cutting connections between body and motor. has anybody added lighting to this engine? It seems to me it will be an easy job, much space for wiring. Regards Mathi
