Hello everyone, new member here looking to take his initial steps into the gauge 1 world. I have been, and sort of still am, a scale modeler primarily, but I had found myself repeatedly drawn to gauge 1 as a possible "expansion" of that hobby into something larger and actually functional (not just static). About a decade ago I acquired a Marklin 5747 DB BR 38 Loco and and tender of of eBay. It has been a static display piece a number of times since then, but has primarily sat in a box in my basement. Over the last 10 years I have also been slowly acquiring the track and various cars, and I am now at a point where I am ready, in earnest, to get a layout set up.

So, here is where I currently stand.

After reviewing various online resources and the manual that came in the box with the 5747, I am relatively sure of the following:

-Marklin 5747 is a DC locomotive

-I need > 1000mm radius track for my turns (anyone selling 5932 or 5935?)

-I will need to do a good "once over" on the Loco before running it. There were some maintenance steps in the manual that I intend to follow regarding lubrication, carbon brush replacement, light bulb replacement, etc. I have purchased pretty much all the raw materials based on marklin part numbers when able, or what I researched to be acceptable alternatives based on topics from forums like this one. I plan on conducting this maintenance when all the parts/lubricants arrive.

-I would like my layout to have about 40-50 linear ft of track (12 to 15m). I want to first get a simple loop going, once I figure that out, then I'll come back here for help with turnout and switches later :-)

Now we get to the stuff I am not so sure about, which primarily pertains to how to power the thing. It is a DC Loco, so as I understand it, there is a powerpack/transformer that I plug into my home's 110V 15A outlet, and then it turns that into a DC current that the is attached to the rails using the 5654 feeder clip set (one rail positive, one negative). My problem is finding one that I know will get this train moving.

I would like to get a pretty large train up and running, with around 10 cars. Half of these cars are planned as schweretransportwagens with vehicles on them. Again, based on what I could find on the internet, a train like that could need upwards of 1.2 Amps. Most power packs/transformers I am finding are in the 18 VA range, and if my Loco needs 10 to 14 Volts, then I am not sure if that would do it.

So that is where I am primarily looking for assistance: getting a transformer/powerpack that will get this layout working. I have tried to look into what Marklin stuff existed back in the late 80s/early 90s that would have ran this Loco, but so far haven't found too much.

Can anyone recommend the correct components to get this locomotive moving (after scheduled maintenance of course)? Also, is there anything else I missed that you would recommend doing before I attempt to power this locomotive up? Thanks in advance.


-Kevin