At least you aren't at the hospital as often with the home units. So far, I have low sugar , and an occasional spike. Genetics say I could be next though.
I love the how as well. Lionel's engineers were pretty clever out of the box thinkers imo. The thermo station stops; I can't believe the feature wasn't used far more than they did. One unit should have come with every engine and transformer sold, lol.
the inner dia. of the coil; it's surface is usually the first casualty of high rep solenoids. Other applications use a liner that can be replaced. The slugs dig and hang before speed builds momentum. (pinball flippers and some small appliances, industrials etc, use replaceable sleeves often)
No oil, no graphite on non-train stuff either as graphite can find cracks in the windings and help a short to start. It is very conductive. The only lube I suggest would be a teflon dry lube. Dries to a super thin waxy film and is slick as ****. It doesn't collect dust is part of the secret. (also no surface tension like oil). It looks like water mineral stains on a glass from a dishwasher without a rinse or rinse agent.
Coil vs conical... the conical shape is to lay flatter.when compressed. Replace with a coil spring? Or add a stretch & return, like a carbs throttle return spring ? (I forget the other name) A new conical might do it. Coils get hot and light springs don't like heat much. They go soft.
Those roll pins that hold these types of assemblies together are easier to drive than one might expect. It's easy to overstretch light springs.
I'm not sure of the 11ohms (does seem a little high maybe)
The DIFFERENCE when hot is more important. You might also look for a voltage difference with a meter on the coil wires. As heat expands a coil, breaks/cracks/nicks can stretch apart, thinning before breaking creates more heat and reskstance. Eventually it may expand enough that a gap forms when hot, then reconnects when cooled, then disconnects, etcetc.
You implied the issue cleared up with the ZW on the test track. That is a clue that pointed at supply regulation type more than anything. (unless I have thermo mixed up. hard to tell with lionel what is NC or NO at times)
Capacitors, diodes, resistors, and maybe a relay or transistor or opto isolator.... like adding a cap. discharge to a turnout.
A resistor placed before the cap controls charge time on the cap.
J&C studios, look at Dale H's timers for his trolley lines, same base idea.
