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The low-effort fix for a Marx motor

Dave Farquhar Toy trains March 15, 2016April 23, 2017marx, Rail Zip

I had a Marx motor that wouldn’t run, and I fixed it with almost no effort. If you need to get a Marx motor running again but can’t put a lot of time and effort into it, I’ve developed a quick fix. It’s only temporary, but if you want to run trains today instead of fixing them, it can get you out of a pinch.

You need a screwdriver and one drop of Rail-Zip.

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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Fixing track that gets hot at the track joints

Dave Farquhar Toy trains February 15, 2012December 27, 2017conductivity, lionel, Lionel Fastrack, marx, Marx O27, o27, oxidation, Rail Zip, tubular track

I saw a question about a Fastrack layout getting hot at a track joint. That’s a conductivity issue causing voltage drop, which in turn causes the heat. While not likely to be dangerous, it’s a sign of inefficiency and can lead to other problems, such as the train slowing down at some parts of the layout. Poor conductivity also causes motors to run hotter than they should, which can eventually damage the armature.

I can think of two fixes, none of them especially expensive or time-consuming. And although this question was about Lionel Fastrack, it can happen with other makes of track too, and even other scales.
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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.
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Dave Farquhar

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Fix or restore Lionel track

Dave Farquhar Toy trains November 13, 2010January 10, 2019american flyer, cardstock, conductivity, lionel, lionel train, locking pliers, marx, Marx O27, needle nose pliers, o27, Rail Zip, tin, tubular track

It’s that time of year again. Time to get that old Lionel (or Marx or American Flyer) electric train running before the holidays sneak up. More often than not, the track isn’t in the best of shape. Fortunately, it’s not all that hard to fix or restore Lionel track.

Believe it or not, you can effectively remove rust from old Lionel track with a ball of aluminum foil. A small ball of aluminum foil plundered from your kitchen and five minutes of your time is likely to be enough to restore a loop of Lionel track from rusty, unusable junk to reliable operation.

Dave Farquhar

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