Hi Susan,

I have used electronic cleaner spray from various brands.
CRC is surely available at auto spareparts shops.



Cheers
Åke

Hi Susan
The old Märklin solenoid accessories do not need ANY oil except a tiny drop in the rods and levers on semaphores.
The inside of the sonénoid is made of a metallic guide (nickelled "U"-shaped guide) in which a nylon core slides.
So any oil residue may bring friction rather than any good.
Usually, when there are operation issues on these, they are cause by previous overheating of the solenoid which causes the inside guide (the U-shaped one and the last top of the U to become narrower and bring friction.
Alas for these there is little you can do. Avoid overheating

Jean

When cleaning electrical/electronic contacts and parts with plastic, use the plastic safe Deoxit spray-lube. Available from Amazon, etc.

Hi Susan,
I'll second the reference to Martin's video; the solenoids are essentially the same on turnouts and signals so cleaning the inner parts can improve both. Both are somewhat fragile but with care can be disassembled, cleaned and reassembled (take care to not break wires' connections!). I'll also second the use of a residue-free electrical cleaner such as CRC. Avoid any that have a lubricating additive imo because it will eventually dry out and/or attract dirt. I've cleaned many of the 5202 and similar turnouts, and many of the old analog signals with great success as long as they haven't overheated and warped. I never lubricate the sliders with anything after cleaning.

Martin doesn't cover the signals, so assuring the cleanliness of the contacts on the slider for using the block controls of the signals is also critical (they're on the exposed end of the slider). After cleaning with CRC, I give them a gentle rub or scrape to remove oxidation on the contacts. I also (reluctantly) give them a gentle reshape if they don't maintain contact properly. Sometimes it takes some trial and error to get it right; a multimeter to check electrical continuity is a big help before reassembly! I use the signals for analog block control of the center rail and the catenary with great results.

I hope this helps. Good luck!
Brian