Hi Adrian, welcome along.

It would not surprise me in the slightest if you simply put it on the track, and away it went. We hear that story often. It looks pristine, lucky you.

It will likely need a drop of oil, and possibly may need motor brushes, but only if it had already done a few miles. The wear underneath would indicate how much, (if any) running it has done.

In particular, the state of the pickup slider, and the wheels. Can you add photos of the underside?

Oil both ends of the motor armature, single small drop to start. Ditto for the wheel axles. Again, just a small drop on each.

One thing to watch, make sure the red selector switch (shown in the second photo above the left bogie) remains in the down position as shown. It's easy to bump it up when handling and that will switch the power source from the track, to the overhead.

If you intend to remove the body to oil the motor, be aware that model probably requires the two headlight bulbs to be removed first - remove the single screw between them and the holder and bulbs will fall out.

Then you can remove the screws underneath at each end and lift the body shell off.

But, honestly, I'd just try it.

As for the Super Transformer, the main (and virtually only) problem with those is the mains-cord rubber perishes. This is obviously highly dangerous, but if the cord is replaced with a modern PVC cord, it will give good reliable performance.

They've been discussed here before and for obvious reasons it's best the work is done by a certified professional such as an electrician (if you know one) or an appliance repair technician.

Repair can work out cheaper than a new modern one.

Hope this helps


Cookee
NZ

Hi Adrian, even better. Virtually no wear at all. The slider wear is only a little. The giveaway is the degree of chrome worn off the wheels, and/or noticeable backlash in the wheels/gears.

Yours is also one of the very first models to have traction tyres fitted. Those ones are the original plastic type, they are possibly very hard now and may be prone to slipping, but you would only notice this pulling a heavy consist, and particularly on an incline.

Modern tyres are black rubber. Unless they are causing an issue, I'd leave them be.

By the way, do you have the original box for it? 1953 / 3012 are a mismatch. The 3012 number came from 1957 onward with the numbering system change. From 1953 to 1956 it would likely have been SEF 800 except that model is from 1955 onward.

If you are certain 1953, that indicates maybe an SEW 800

You need to refer to a reference such as Koll's to narrow it down with the help of more detailed photos of the sides & ends. If you have the box and original service booklet, images of those and the date code would quickly help narrow it down.

Clear as mud!!

It's definitely a beauty

Cookie and MarklinPJ, you are legends!

The catalog and Koll pages are spot on and I think I can make the match. Later today I'll take some detailed photos and post them for comparison with the information you've posted.

Cheers, Adrian

That's a nice engine Dan, I'd have it.

An update on my SEF/SEH/SEW/3012/whatever - it goes perfectly! I got my new transformer in the mail yesterday and, thank you Cookee, plugged it in and tried out the loco. Initially, nothing but after adjusting the slider a bit, full motion forward and reverse! 3 out of 4 headlights work.

I'm going to give it a clean and oil before using it too much more. I'll just slip in the comment here that I bought the damn thing to look at and now I'm completely hooked - I've got lots of track on order and am thinking about a layout!!!!

Oh, and regarding what year it is - I've been delayed on going through the information you've kindly provided but will do so in a sec. But at a glance, the couplings are none of the ones from your Koll, MarklinPJ, but look more like the ones in the catalog from Cookee, which shows a 1956 model. I've also made direct contact with the gentleman who bought it in the UK and he is pretty sure he bought it in 1955 or 1956 (His wife initially thought 1953, fair enough). So, we're getting closer, and maybe it's enough to leave it at 1955/6 (to be confirmed, of course). Again, thanks for all your help.

Cheers, Adrian

I got my 2/2022 issue today as well, and while I knew that was the Marklin trademark, I always thought of it as a bicycle, I hadn't realised it actually incorporated the initials of Gebr. Marklin & Cie, or that it is a stylised steam engine. It is actually a very clever logo when looked at like that.

This can be a real trap, and has caught me a number of times. The plastic insulation does indeed become very hard, and almost totally inflexible. When trying to disassemble, no matter how careful you are the rigidity causes greater stress to the exposed wire and you can be sure it will break, and Murphy's Law dictates that will most likely be where the wire comes out of the field magnet, or the reverse unit coil. The copper wire itself remains quite flexible, it's just the outer plastic insulation being the problem.

For this reason, I unsolder before disassembly (taking photos first is always a good idea), and wherever possible I remove the brittle hard insulation and slide on a new pliable section. Sure it's not then absolutely original, but that is still more preferable than a broken wire.