lionel train Archives

Lionel in the non-hobby media

Dave Farquhar Toy trains July 17, 2013November 25, 20181990s, Korea, lionel, lionel train, Louis Marx, marx, New Jersey, Quaker Oats, Richard Kughn, Spare Parts

Cnet took a field trip to the official Lionel repair facility and wrote a feature story about it. It’s nice to see the attention outside of the hobby press, since it’s frequently news to people that Lionel is still around in any form. Read more

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.

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Non-derailing Marx switches

Dave Farquhar Toy trains February 1, 2013April 23, 2017american flyer, lionel, Lionel O27, lionel train, marx, Marx O34, marx trains, o27, RADIUS, train layout

The Marx 1590 is the best O27 switch ever made. It’s durable, works well with all makes of trains (just put a track pin in the center rail where the switch pivots so that Lionel trains can pass), and can run off accessory power without modification.

The only downside is that it (allegedly) can’t be set to automatically switch to a position to accommodate an approaching train like a Lionel 1122, which makes it unusable in a reverse loop. That’s true if you wire them the way Marx said to wire them.

Here’s how I wire them to get that coveted feature.

Dave Farquhar

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Questions from the logs

Dave Farquhar Uncategorized January 6, 2013November 27, 2016cissp, lionel, Lionel Fastrack, lionel train, malicious code, SSCP

If one person uses a password, another will. That’s a popular hacking theory. If that’s true, then chances are if one person asks a question, another will. So here are three short questions (one completely unrelated to the others) I found in my logs over the weekend, and their answers.

Dave Farquhar

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What to do when a Lionel train suddenly can’t pull as many cars as it could before

Dave Farquhar Toy trains December 14, 2012May 18, 2022christmas, hardware store, lionel, lionel train, Quantum Hot Sauce, WD, wd 40

Last night, the Lionel train under our Christmas tree–a low-budget special, of course–started struggling. It had been able to pull five cars before, but suddenly could only pull four. Here’s how I fixed it.

Dave Farquhar

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An easy DIY Lionel-compatible high-side gondola

Dave Farquhar Toy trains December 11, 2012July 23, 2023decal, DIY, hardware store, home improvement, lionel, lionel train, o scale, o27, train show

My preschool-aged boys and I made train cars this weekend. Yes, I introduced my boys to the idea of making train cars from scratch–scratchbuilding.

They aren’t finescale models by any stretch. But the project was cheap–no more than $30 for the pair of cars, total–and it was fun.

Here’s how we made these simple train cars, so you can too. Read more

Dave Farquhar

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How to attach trucks to Lionel train cars with screws

Dave Farquhar Toy trains December 10, 2012December 20, 20151980s, american flyer, hardware store, lionel, lionel train, locking pliers, marx, Marx O27, o27, PTFE, s scale, Tacky Wax

Frequently the trucks (the wheel/coupler assembly that sits under train cars) come unattached. Lionel trains from the 1970s and first half of the 1980s are especially prone to this, though other makes of trains aren’t immune either. And sometimes you just want to change the trucks–some Lionel and Marx O27 cars are just the right size for American Flyer S scale, for example, only the trucks are the wrong gauge.

It’s tempting to try to just re-attach them with a nut and bolt, but as the train runs in circles around the track, the nut loosens and eventually works its way out.

The key is all in the type of nut you use.

Dave Farquhar

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Dvorak: The future of retail is search

Dave Farquhar Uncategorized November 29, 2012November 29, 2012best buy, caulk, cyanogenmod, home improvement, john c dvorak, lionel, lionel train, matchbox, Nook Color, pc magazine, Plumbing

This week in PC Magazine, John C Dvorak said the future of retail is search. He’s right.

Dave Farquhar

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How to make a Lionel train whistle

Dave Farquhar Toy trains November 20, 2011April 18, 2017diodes, lionel, Lionel Fastrack, Lionel Postwar, lionel train, lockon, train show

How do you make a Lionel train whistle? Well, you need a whistling tender and a transformer with a whistle button or handle. If it’s all wired correctly, pushing the button or handle while the electric train is moving will make it whistle.

And if it doesn’t, let’s try to figure out why.

Dave Farquhar

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Fixing Lionel locomotives that run erratically and have flickering lights

Dave Farquhar Toy trains November 19, 2011August 30, 2017american flyer, conductivity, KCS, lionel, lionel train, Rail Zip

If you have a Lionel electric train whose lights flicker and (possibly) runs erratically, I have an easy fix.
Read more

Dave Farquhar

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On content farms

Dave Farquhar Journalism, net.culture March 2, 2011e-unit, extra money, home improvement, lionel, lionel train, New York, new york times, NYT

It looks like Google has taken action against content farms, low-quality sites that publish articles about anything and everything quickly, and try to make money from the ads.

I can’t tell yet if this has really affected my traffic any–my traffic can drop or jump 20 percent on a daily basis for no apparent reason. But I support the change.
Read more

Dave Farquhar

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