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Replace missing Lionel brakewheels with sew-on snaps

Dave Farquhar Toy trains May 13, 2016May 10, 2016lionel, marx, Prewar Lionel, train show

I saw an old tip recently regarding using sew-on snaps to replace missing Lionel brakewheels. Reproduction brakewheels generally are available, but sew-on snaps work well, are readily available at any store that sells sewing supplies, and they’re cheap.

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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Cleaning Lionel track in a dishwasher

Dave Farquhar Toy trains May 10, 2016October 22, 2022Cleaning Lionel, lionel

When faced with a big box of dirty old Lionel track, a common question is whether you can just clean it up by putting it in a dishwasher.

With a few caveats, the answer is yes, but I wouldn’t say I recommend it.

Dave Farquhar

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How to disassemble a Lionel 1001, 1060 or 8902 locomotive

Dave Farquhar Toy trains May 4, 2016October 22, 2022christmas, e-unit, HO, lionel, Lionel O27, n scale, o27, philips, red wire, troubleshooting

Disassembling a Lionel 1001, 1060, 8902 or 8302 locomotive isn’t too difficult. The biggest problem is knowing where the three screws are that you have to remove.

These particular locomotives weren’t really designed to be repaired, but there’s some basic work you can do on them with household tools. The 8902 and 8302 locomotives can be cheap sources of a motor for other projects.

Dave Farquhar

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The Aero Monorail Company of St. Louis

Dave Farquhar St. Louis, Toy trains May 3, 2016March 29, 2022CVS, erector, lionel, Popular Mechanics, Standard Gauge

The Aero Monorail was a futuristic monorail train that first hit the market in 1932. Manufactured in St. Louis by the eponymously named Aero Monorail Company, it was designed to suspend over Lionel standard gauge track and run faster than the standard gauge train.

The stands came in two varieties: a pair of free standing towers, and a series of towers that slipped under Standard gauge track and used the same 42-inch diameter. The motor looked like an Erector motor and ran on 6-8 volts, either DC or AC.

Dave Farquhar

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Selling Marx trains

Dave Farquhar Toy trains April 29, 2016January 19, 2023american flyer, collectibles, greenberg, HO, lionel, marx, marx trains, o gauge, o27, old trains, receipt, tin, toy train

Since my advice on selling other makes of trains was popular, I thought I would give similar advice on selling Marx trains. Marx never got the respect that its competitors got, but its trains have built up a following over the years, and in the last decade as I’ve watched prices on competing trains slide, Marx has held its value.

Don’t expect to get rich selling off your Marx trains, but if you keep your expectations realistic, you’ll find an eager buyer, or ideally, at least two interested buyers so you’ll realize a good price at auction.

Dave Farquhar

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What to check when Lionel Magne-Traction doesn’t work

Dave Farquhar Toy trains April 21, 2016April 17, 20161950s, lionel, Lionel Fastrack, o27

In the 1950s, Lionel started putting magnets in the axles of some of its trains to increase their pulling power and help the trains stay on the track as they highballed around tight O27 and O31 curves. They called this feature Magne-Traction.

In time Magne-Traction was replaced with rubber traction tires, but needless to say, if your locomotive has Magne-Traction, you probably want it to work. Here’s how to make sure it works.

Dave Farquhar

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Selling Tyco trains

Dave Farquhar model railroading April 18, 2016October 10, 20171950s, 1960s, 1980s, american flyer, christmas, collectibles, HO, ho scale, lionel, marx, o gauge, old trains, recycling, Spare Parts, Star Wars

I got an inquiry last week about selling Tyco trains. As a child of the 70s and 80s, I certainly remember Tyco, and in recent years Tyco has gained a bit of a following.

If you’re looking to sell some Tyco gear, you certainly can do it, but you have to keep your expectations realistic. You’ll probably be able to sell it, but don’t expect to get rich off it.

Dave Farquhar

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Restoring lithographed train cars

Dave Farquhar Toy trains April 15, 2016January 27, 2022american flyer, Bing, clearcoat, ives, lionel, marx, Pledge Floor Care, tin

If you have vintage tin lithographed train cars made by American Flyer, Bing, Dorfan, Ives, Lionel, Marx, or another make I’m forgetting and some of them are worse for wear, there are a few things you can do to improve their appearance.

Keep in mind these won’t make them new, and they won’t fool anyone. One reason collectors like lithography is because they can easily recognize a touchup. But you can make beat-up cars look better, and that’s what I’m going to talk about today.

Dave Farquhar

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The common post on the Lionel 1025 transformer

Dave Farquhar Toy trains April 11, 2016March 10, 2022american flyer, amperage, amps, lionel

Lionel produced several 35- and 45-watt transformers through the years, including the 1010, 1025, 1015, and 1016. Lionel MPC produced a similar 4045 transformer in the 1970s. They’re small, but they only cost around $10 when you can find them, and can be useful when you string them together with other transformers. The problem is the markings don’t tell you what you need to know in order to do that. But I’ll tell you.

Dave Farquhar

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Train transformer starting voltage

Dave Farquhar Toy trains April 7, 2016November 24, 20161980s, 1990s, lionel, s gauge

Train transformer starting voltage is a harder question than it necessarily needs to be–because it’s varied over the years. Part of that is because intent has changed over the years.

Dave Farquhar

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