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Reply to "Marx 3/16" Litho Thread"

Received my little Marx set today!

It's a good news and not-so-good news situation.

First, the good news:

* All the cars are in very good shape. Minimal scratches, nice paint condition, etc. Most have bright side frames on the trucks. No rust issues that a quick look-over spotted.

* Engine and tender are in very good shape. Ditto: No rust that I saw.

* Box is in very good condition, complete with what appears to be the factory separator pieces of cardboard.

The not-so-good-news:

* There isn't a complete oval of track. Missing 5 curves sections needed to complete a circle.

* No "lock on".

* The transformer doesn't regulate current.

* Engine doesn't work.

The transformer:

Hums. There's spark when briefly shorting across the accessory posts. But there's nothing coming through the variable volts on the track power posts. Moving the handle to full results in nothing. I can feel in the handle that it seems to be wiping the resistor board. The unit is held together with metal "twist tabs" and not screws, so there will be a bit of risk (breaking a tab) opening it up to determine the issue.

The engine:

Applying the accessory post power to the slider and wheels results in the E-unit humming and the wheels trying, but I'm not just keeping the full power onto the wheels very long... just enough to see if it will break free. No need to sit there a burn up the brushes. Next stop for it will be the work bench, figure out how to disassemble it, and thorough clean the mechanism, motor, armature, lubricate it, etc.

So, there you have it! Would have been great if all was well from the get-go... but I'm going to have to attend to some things before I can a replica of my old set running around an oval of track.

No biggie!

Andre

OGR Publishing, Inc., 1310 Eastside Centre Ct, Suite 6, Mountain Home, AR 72653
800-980-OGRR (6477)
www.ogaugerr.com

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