BLI Paragon 4 / AC6000 pinouts

[bbunge]

I have a BLI AC6000 locomotive that has been "separated" from it's Paragon 4 decoder.  The decoder has very few markings as what goes where.  Can any provide photos of what wires go where?  Note, there is one socket on what I believe is the "bottom" of the decoder.  Photos I've seen of other Paragons suggest that not all sockets are used.  I'm open to any ideas.  My "customer" (my son) wants to use the Paragon, so using another decoder is a last resort.  See photos below.

Thanks,

Bob

[peteski]

I'm not sure I understsnd the scenario. So this model came with factory installed Paragon 4 decoder which was detached from the model, and now needs to be reattached?

If so then looking at https://spookshow.net/loco/bliac6000cw.html only the front and rear connectors are used.

 

The length of the existing wire harness should dictate to which connector on the decoder the harness should be plugged in. In the photo above it appears that the rear connector has more wires than the front one.  Can't answer about the bottom connector, but if the locomotive's wiring harness has a 3rd connector, then it likely plugs into the bottom. Check the number of pins to see if it is different than the top pconnectors. If not, only the 2 top connectors would be in use.

[bbunge]

I'm not sure I understsnd the scenario. So this model came with factory installed Paragon 4 decoder which was detached from the model, and now needs to be reattached?

It never occurred to check spookshow (!).  The scenario:  My son pulled out the box of parts I had ordered from BLI.  Remember those?  Sorting through the box, he pieced together the locomotive sans electronics and a couple of detail parts.  Now, he is a BLI fan and likes the paragon decoders.  He emailed BLI and long and behold, they sent the missing detail parts and the decoder.   

Peteski, thanks for the lead.  If anyone has any more detailed photos they can send I would most appreciated! 

Bob

[peteski]

You're welcome.  But I suspect that as I mentioned, the length of the wire harness will determine where to plug them in.  The connectors are polarized, so they only connect one way. So is there a 3rd connector under the decoder?  If yes, does it have the same number of pins as the front and rear connectors? If not, then you know it will only plug into a specific socket.

Or maybe I should ask: do you even have the model's original wire harness or are you gong to make one yourself?

I also just noticed that the decoder as shown in your photo is installed backwards compared to spookshow's photo. You need to rotate it 180 degrees.

[bbunge]

I don't have the original harness(s) or the end plugs - you can see in most cases, the wires were cut pretty short, so another challenge is sourcing the plugs, or coming up with another solution.  I had just laid the decoder on the top of the unit (you will notice there are no screws in my photo), mostly to check fit, but yes, I have it on there backwards!  A close look at Mark's photos on the webpage suggest the orange and grey wires from the motor go into the plug on the bottom which I believe only has two connectors. 

Bob

[peteski]

Hmm . . . if BLI came through with a free sound decoder, maybe they could also provide replacement wire harness?    Worth asking.

If BLI uses JST connectors, they are very fine and the wires are attached using insulation displacement method.  Trying to insert the wires manually will be quite challenging and might result in unreliable connections. I know Digikey sells some of those connectors with pigtails (wires) installed.  That might be the best way to handle this.