With the ever increasing rise of prices of newer locomotives and rolling stock (regardless of manufacturer), I've honestly been becoming more and more of a postwar and early modern era (1970-1995) operator. Most of these trains (especially the MPC and LTI products) can be found for absolute bargain prices and are pretty much bulletproof inside and out.
All that being said, I do have a few questions that I'm sure the experts will have at the ready.
1) Replacement brushes: I love DC motors, no question. But there are many engines I have that I won't swap out the Pullmor motor for. When it comes to brushes, though, I see this part - 622-121 - all the time online for replacements in locomotives like small Hudsons, Berks, and almost all the diesels. I have a lot of scale Hudsons from the 90's and 00's, however. Are these suitable for those locomotives?
2) E-units: I know a lot of early modern locomotives came with E-units with clear drums, which I am aware these tend to break easily during operation. I see red, black, and green ones online, but which ones are the overall best?
3) Armatures: I've seen many argue that postwar armatures are better than MPC armatures, but there are armatures from the LTI/LLC era that last a lot longer without having to change brushes. Would it be wise to obtain those for longer run time of locomotives?