"Routine" Maintenance

FWIW, I guess I fall firmly in your friend's camp, since I can't think of *any* instance where I performed maintenance that wasn't in direct response to a perceived problem with the rolling stock. On the other hand, all my equipment is postwar, mostly Marx, which is known for its durability and ease of repair, so perhaps I'm just fortunate to have created a low-maintenance environment for myself.

I think your observation on model train maintenance is very similar to an analogous divide in the automotive world -- some insist upon regular maintenance and oil changes every three thousand miles, OEM requirements be ****ed, and often even do it themselves. I've never seen any stats that really support this, but many build such a maintenance schedule into their (and their cars') lives, and swear by it!

Getting back to your question, FWIW I doubt any such (IMHO over-enthusiastic) maintenance would do anything worse than waste your time, so if you find enjoyment (or at least some reduction in your stress levels!) by following your maintenance routines, and can't envision anything better/more enjoyable to do instead, I'd say go for it! If there's one lesson I've picked up participating in the forums, it's that there are many, *many* ways to enjoy our hobby, so if it's worth it to you, IMHO it's worth it, period, regardless of what others may do!

I clean the wheels and rollers on my engines before I run them.  I also grease the gears and oil the bearings.  This seems to improve the running.  Maintenance can't hurt and may prevent future issues.  

I don't maintain freight or passenger cars unless there is an issue.  NH Joe

I'm in the camp of maintaining and going over my engines annually. I find it therapeutic and relaxing. So, is it necessary? Probably not, but it's one of the few things I can control in a great, but busy life my wife and I have. Plus , it's nice to teach the kiddos! Although, full confession: if I never have to pull my 1-700e apart again it'll be too soon. That guy was stressful to take apart. I think because I got in my own head about how nice and detailed it is. So if you enjoy doing routine maintenance on them, I say go for it!

Train hobbyists know what happened to the locomotives of REAL RAILROADS when maintenance was "deferred" - usually because of its cost; i.e., huge costs later on.  Unfortunately, my favorite railroad (Rock Island) learned this lesson the hard way.

I occasionally use a track cleaning car on the rails my 15x19 feet L-shaped layout. I clean the wheels and rollers of locos in a foam cradle with the motor running with alligator clips attached to a 1033 transformer. Then I add a drop of oil where needed.  Those tasks Keep things running!

Mike M.

I only maintain what I hope to keep running. 😉

Curt

1. Do you enjoy doing the maintenance? ….it is indeed part of the hobby, some enjoy it, some don’t ….but if you enjoy the maintenance aspect of it as well, then it can’t be overdone……

2. I’m in your camp, what’s on the layout gets serviced routinely, as they get rotated out of service, they’re serviced again, so they’re ready for their next rotation…..

3. Question back at you: Are you having fun? …..cause that’s all that matters,…..😉

Pat

Denatured alcohol is not favored for cleaning. Several threads on this site discuss polar and non polar solvents. DNA is a polar solvent. Nonpolar solvents, such as contact cleaner or mineral spits, are preferred because they reduce the arcing that leads to gunk buildup.

Regarding maintenance, the pre-war trains that go around the Christmas tree get lubed before every season they are used, though they sat in the box for one or two years and didn't run many hours while they were up.

For the trains on the layout, I keep a spreadsheet with the dates of last maintenance. I recently cleaned and lubed all my passenger fleet except baggage and express cars. Last maintenance was 2018. I haven't rushed to do the rest of the fleet.

I seem to remember 50 hours as a recommended time for loco lubrication. No idea where that memory comes from. I don't track running hours. I will say that locos are expensive, and lube is cheap. I sometimes feel I should lube them more often, but there are so many other things I want to get done on the layout, I don't focus on it.

If I do any work on a loco, such as adding new pickups or a TVS diode, I clean and lube at the same time.

When I first started doing rolling stock maintenance, I had some freight cars with a 1/16" gunk on the wheels plus a fillet of gunk where tread met flange. These cars ran much better with clean wheels and lubrication. Performing maintenance on them felt very satisfying, almost like restoration.

So I guess my conclusion is, 3-rail is very forgiving. You don't need to perform frequent maintenance. On the other hand, my pre-war trains are now 83 years old and still run well. With regular maintenance, I suspect they will outlast me. The newer stuff that I don't baby may not achieve the same lifespan.

While maintenance of rolling stock isn't not super critical, it can't hurt, and stuff that doesn't have needle-point axles riding in plastic does require oil from time to time.  Maintenance of locomotives, OTOH, is essential if you want them to enjoy a long life!  I get a lot of stuff in that's been run a lot and lubed not nearly enough, and I've seen a lot of chewed up gears.  Brass (bronze) gears are the worst, don't lube them at your peril!   You should NOT be waiting to hear your locomotive scream for oil to lube it!

I agree, good maintenance is essential to the longevity of any mechanical device. 

Take good care of it and it can last forever.