american flyer Archives

The copper piece on a locomotive

Dave Farquhar Toy trains April 5, 2017April 9, 2017american flyer, ives, lionel, marx, toy train, train show

I get a lot of inquiries about “the copper piece on a locomotive.” They mean a toy train locomotive. Depending on the make of the train, there may be one copper piece on the motor, or there may be two.

Here’s what those pieces are called, how to find them, and how to care for them.

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He has written professionally about computers since 1991, so he was writing about retro computers when they were still new. He has been working in IT professionally since 1994 and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He holds Security+ and CISSP certifications. Today he blogs five times a week, mostly about retro computers and retro gaming covering the time period from 1975 to 2000.

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Make a 3/16 scale Marx ore car

Dave Farquhar Toy trains March 28, 2017August 1, 20171940s, american flyer, lionel, marx, NYC, Spare Parts

Marx fans often complain Marx didn’t make quite enough variety in its 3/16 scale line. Fortunately, it’s pretty easy to get a bit more variety out of it by making a 3/16 scale Marx ore car. And you can do it all with original Marx parts.

Dave Farquhar

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American Flyer 1275 circuit breaker instructions

Dave Farquhar Toy trains March 24, 2017April 9, 2017american flyer, lionel, marx

In spite of being older and rarer than the Lionel 92 circuit breaker, the American Flyer 1275 circuit breaker usually sells for less. It performs essentially the same function and is easy to adjust.

Here’s how to hook it up.

Dave Farquhar

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Wiring a Lionel 1033 transformer

Dave Farquhar Toy trains March 16, 2017January 2, 2018american flyer, amps, lionel, marx, red wire

When it comes to wiring a Lionel 1033 transformer or its brothers, the Lionel 1044 and 4090, there’s more to consider than just which posts to use. The size of the wires also matters. If you derail a train 4 amps of power can run through the wire for 10-15 seconds before the circuit breaker kicks in. Although this is less of an issue than with Lionel’s larger transformers, a 1033, 1044 or 4090 still has enough power to melt wire and make it smoke or even catch fire.

Proper wiring for the 1033 transformer is a bit of a safety issue. It’s not just about preventing voltage drop to keep your train running smoothly. A smooth running train is nice, but safety is a must.

Dave Farquhar

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Wire a Lionel ZW transformer

Dave Farquhar Toy trains March 9, 2017August 1, 2017american flyer, amps, KW, lionel, marx, red wire

When it comes time to wire a Lionel ZW transformer, there’s more to think about than just which posts to use. The size of the wires also matters. If you derail a train 12 amps of power can run through the wire for 10-15 seconds before the circuit breaker kicks in. You don’t want the insulation to melt and catch fire.

Proper wiring for the ZW transformer is a bit of a safety issue.

Dave Farquhar

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All about the Lionel RW transformer

Dave Farquhar Toy trains February 13, 2017August 17, 2018american flyer, home depot, KW, lionel, LW, marx, power cord, Standard Gauge, tin, troubleshooting

The Lionel Multi-control Trainmaster RW is a sturdy tin box of a transformer from early in the postwar era. The presence of a whistle controller is the only thing that really distinguishes it from a prewar transformer. Lionel made it from 1948 to 1954. If you want to know all about the Lionel RW transformer, you’ve come to the right place. You probably won’t find a copy of the original instruction manual online but this will tell you all you need to know.

Dave Farquhar

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All about the Lionel KW

Dave Farquhar Toy trains February 6, 2017August 1, 20171950s, 1960s, american flyer, diodes, KW, lionel, LW, marx, postwar lionel

The Lionel KW is the second most powerful, and second most popular Lionel transformer of the 1950s and 1960s. If the Lionel ZW was Lionel’s Cadillac, the KW was Lionel’s Buick. It was a 190-watt transformer and Lionel sold it from 1950 to 1965. It replaced Lionel’s 150-watt ZW lookalike, the VW.

Finding original KW instructions or an original KW manual online is a bit difficult, but there’s plenty the original instructions don’t mention.

Dave Farquhar

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All about the Lionel ZW

Dave Farquhar Toy trains January 30, 2017July 27, 20221950s, 1960s, american flyer, amperage, diodes, KW, lionel, LW, marx, postwar lionel

The Lionel ZW is Lionel’s most iconic transformer of the 1950s and 1960s, and perhaps one of its most iconic products, period. Everyone wanted the two-handled, football-shaped, 275-watt powerhouse that was the ZW. It was one of Lionel’s more venerable postwar products, lasting on the market for 18 years from 1948 to 1966. It replaced Lionel’s former top-of-the-line transformer, the Z.

Finding original ZW instructions or an original ZW manual online is a bit difficult, but there’s plenty the original instructions don’t mention.

Dave Farquhar

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Hipwell Manufacturing Co. of Pittsburgh

Dave Farquhar Toy trains December 28, 2016October 22, 20221940s, 1950s, 1980s, american flyer, electric trains, lionel, lionel train, s scale, tin

The Hipwell Manufacturing Co. of Pittsburgh was the inventor of the single-cell battery and a venerable producer of flashlights. As recently as 2002, Hipwell produced 2 million flashlights in the United States.

Dave Farquhar

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Vintage tin litho buildings

Dave Farquhar Toy trains December 26, 2016September 15, 20221940s, 1950s, american flyer, Hot Wheels, lionel, o gauge, s scale, tin, toy train, train layout, train show, wyandotte

Years ago, I decided I wanted to take a different approach with my trains. I heard about a guy in Springfield who has a traditional toy train layout with no plastic on it. I wanted to see if I could do something similar.

At the time, information about this approach was rare. So I’ve collected here what I know about tin buildings made prior to 1970 (the approximate end of the postwar era). You won’t find everything you want in pre-1970 buildings, so if you need something more modern to fill in the gaps, see my other post tin buildings for train layouts.

Dave Farquhar

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