Author: Dave Farquhar

Marx trains and the “fat wheel”

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , ,
Marx trains and the “fat wheel”

On many Marx trains, the driving gear extends to the full width of the drive wheel, making that wheel effectively wider than the other one. This causes interoperability issues with other manufacturers, especially on switches and crossings.

A very common question, therefore, is which Marx trains lack the dreaded fat wheel.

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Why to never use steel wool to clean electric train track

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , , , , ,

You may have heard to never use steel wool to clean electric train track, especially Lionel, but you may have never heard the reason why.

There is a good reason.

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How to attach wires to the posts of a Lionel train transformer

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , ,

It took me 20 years to find out I was connecting the wires to my train transformer wrong–and this applies to American Flyer and Marx just as much as to Lionel–and I don’t want the same thing to happen to you. I was making it far, far too difficult to attach wires to the posts of a Lionel train transformer.

Modern transformers have a groove in the post to accept a wire, but vintage transformers don’t. If you’re having problems with the wires coming off your transformer while you try to cinch them down, here’s how to connect to a vintage transformer in three simple steps.

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How to disassemble a Marx 490 locomotive

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , ,
How to disassemble a Marx 490 locomotive

Disassembling a Marx 490 locomotive isn’t too difficult, but it’s very different from other Marx locomotives.

Once you take one apart, though, you’ll see why it was designed how it was. It was Marx’s lowest-cost locomotive, and it could be assembled without tools, so the labor costs were minimal.

For that matter you only need one tool to take it apart, and since there’s so little in it that can break–not even a headlight–you can find anything you would need to service it at the nearest hardware store or auto parts store.

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How to replace an AC power cord

Dave Farquhar DIY , , ,
How to replace an AC power cord

A damaged power cord doesn’t have to mean the end of life for a tool or appliance. Power cords are usually replaceable with simple tools and minimal expense. Here’s how to replace an AC power cord.

If you can open up the device, do this. Open it up, snip the bad cord off, tie a knot in the replacement cord and splice it onto the remainder of the old cord.

If you can’t open the device, do this instead. Snip the cord off above the defect, splice the replacement cord onto what’s left and insulate it well with heat-shrink tubing.

Here’s how.

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Testing electric train track

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , , ,
Testing electric train track

I have a method of testing electric train track from Lionel, American Flyer, Marx or any other brand. The key is to test it one piece at a time, so you know any problem you found is isolated to a single piece of track.

Here are a couple of different ways to test, depending on what tools you have available.

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I replaced an outlet with a GFCI and my light switch quit working

Dave Farquhar Landlording ,

I once had an electrical outlet with a light switch next to it, in a bathroom. When I replaced the outlet with a GFCI, the light switch quit working.

When you have a GFCI and a light switch is involved, you have to wire things a bit differently so it all works.

Here’s how I fixed it, using a length of wire (use black, or if you only have white wire, put some electrical tape on it) and a wire nut.

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Department 56 scale: The definitive guide

Dave Farquhar Model Building, model railroading, Toy trains
Department 56 scale: The definitive guide

The breadth of Department 56 product lines, such as Department 56 Snow Village, is rather extensive, but there are items they don’t produce and likely never will. If you want to complete your village with other items, or use Department 56 in other settings, such as a train layout, then scale might matter to you—and Department 56 scale is undefined. Here’s how to make sure the things you want to use together will go together, size-wise.

The answer, by Department 56’s own admission, is that it varies. But since I see the question come up again and again, I’m going to tackle it. It varies, but there’s a method to it the madness.

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How to disassemble a Marx 999 locomotive

Dave Farquhar Toy trains , , , , , , , , , , , ,
How to disassemble a Marx 999 locomotive

Disassembling a Marx 999 locomotive isn’t too difficult, and it’s easier than the Marx 666, but it helps to have some instructions.

The nice thing about the 999 is that if you can disassemble it, there’s a long, long list of Marx locomotives that disassemble in pretty much the same way: the Commodore Vanderbilt, the Mercury, the tin Canadian Pacific 391, and the tin steamers 592, 593, 594, 833, 897, 898, and 994.

Marx designed its trains so that a father or older brother could service them, so it comes apart with simple household tools, and you can get most of what you’ll need to service it at the nearest hardware store, with the probable exception of the bulb for the headlight.

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Specs for the Lionel 6-12053 accessory wire–and how to make your own

Dave Farquhar Toy trains ,

A question the other day caught me off guard–how long is the Lionel 6-12053 accessory wire for Fastrack? I know a lot of random stuff off the top of my head, but I had to do some digging to find out it was 26 inches long–approximately.

Intended to clip onto leads on the underside of a Fastrack section, you can use it to power an accessory, as an additional power drop, or as an extension if the stock wires on your terminal section are too short.

If you need a different length, or need several and just don’t want to pay Lionel’s price, you can also make your own.

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