Watch this Marx Wind-up fly up the Helix

Pretty cool! That's one heck of a wind up mechanism in there!

HIGHLY  entertaining! No pun intended!

so cool!

Love it!!

Great video! Thanks for sharing.

Jim K

Heck yeah! I've got several of those clockwork Seaboard FM's and they do really shine. It's nice to have the wide radius curves too! Don't forget to oil the internals well to reduce friction.

Nice set! Now you need more. 6" tin is an addiction harder to kick than cigarettes.

@boomer0622 posted:

I just got this Marx wind-up a couple weeks ago and noticed how it would fly on the flat straight away.  So this morning I took two trains off the helix and thought I'd give this little Marx a try.  I'm really impressed to say the least.

That's a fantastic clockwork. I love the helix setup too! Does that require specially bent track or are you using a standard radius curve for that?

@SteamWolf posted:

Heck yeah! I've got several of those clockwork Seaboard FM's and they do really shine. It's nice to have the wide radius curves too! Don't forget to oil the internals well to reduce friction.

Nice set! Now you need more. 6" tin is an addiction harder to kick than cigarettes.

Absolutely right! I started out in O Gauge with Marx, it's never been a focus but I've never really stopped collecting it. Clockwork is loads of fun once you've figured out the trick for successful operation (i.e. regular lubrication of all the contact points).

Tom,  I like your video, these things really do fly.  Do you have an extra green and yellow passenger car that you would part with ?   This is my first windup so not sure what all to lube.  Should I oil the spring or just the wheels ?

Doug

@boomer0622 posted:

Tom,  I like your video, these things really do fly.  Do you have an extra green and yellow passenger car that you would part with ?   This is my first windup so not sure what all to lube.  Should I oil the spring or just the wheels ?

Doug

I've got some very light machine oil from electric fan restorations that works great - think 3n1 but more lubricous. And this book from one of our forumites and a master of the clockwork is great to have if things do go sproing in a bad way. As for lubrication, don't do the wheels, but every rotating assembly inside except for the governor (2nd pic, inside the cup is a weight on a spring. Keep oil out of there) can benefit from oil, including the spring. Just a light coating on all the gears and the spring will not only make it run better but will also protect the spring from corrosion.

Lots of guys will tell you not to wind it fully either. YMMV but I don't. I think it's 17 full revolutions to wind it all the way but many of these springs are over 60 years old now and have who knows how many duty cycles, besides it gives you more interaction. TBH, I've often thought of selling off the Lionel I do have and acquiring more tin.

If you watch GarMarx on ebay and/or just generally search for 'Marx Passenger' on there, you'll find one. They're very plentiful. I've only got the two though. I'm not sure if they made a 3 car set same as the red and cream ones, Bogota, Montclair and Observation are the names on the side. (I only have the first and last in either colour though). If you're a Seaboard fan, they made a little gondola in a few different colours. I've got the red one here, I think there was blue and also green. Clockwork freight and passenger cars can be differentiated from electric sets by the sliding tab/slot couplers. They let the locomotive get some momentum before adding more load to the motor.

Thanks for that info Tom.  I'll make sure I keep the oil out of the governor.

What's good way to protect the finish ?   Can you use a past wax ?

Did Marx make a non power A unit to go with it ?  Looks like one on your shelf.

@boomer0622 posted:

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Thanks for that info Tom.  I'll make sure I keep the oil out of the governor.

What's good way to protect the finish ?   Can you use a past wax ?

Did Marx make a non power A unit to go with it ?  Looks like one on your shelf.

I'm pretty sure a good quality automotive wax will work well, just don't get too vigorous.

Marx sure did make an unpowered A unit, good eyes. 😋 Although I've often considered if it was possible to reverse the rotation on a motor, or get a reversing motor to double up the power.

Trainguy Ken,  I just saw your question.  I used regular O-72 Fastrack for the side on the right which is the side for going up hill.  The left side is O-54 Lionel tube track, the down side.

Doug

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