I finally got sick of my CC GS-3 cruising around my layout at mach 3. So to fix, I installed a 47 ohm resistor between the motor and the output on the PC board. there was plenty of room in the tender for the install. to be safe, I glued a pice of aluminum foil to the roof of the tender to somewhat protect it from any heat from the resistor. I must say the resistor does get warm during operation. now it has a much more managable speed on the track at higher voltages and is just a bit faster than my Bachmann 4-8-2. Also, the lights are nice and bright before it starts moving. Has anyone else done this with good results, or am I looking at a smoked tender later down the line?
You may be looking at a smoked or melted tender. Here's my thinking. I assume the 47 ohm resistor is your typical 1/4 or 1/2 watt variety. Another assumption, 12 volts for N-scale and say 200 milliamp at full or near full speed of the loco. The 200 mA is just an estimate. Watt = volt x amperage so 2.4 = 12 x 0.200 You need at least a 2.4 watt resistor so round that up to 3 watts. I doubt you are using a 3 watt resistor though.
