Hi (a first name would be great)
A warm welcome to this great forum.
Here a Mäklin fan since a long time (1961).
Historic post-war Märklin is fantastic and almost indestructible.

How to get loco to work?
Light touch: if the wheel are turning, I suggest you add a little Märklin oil (winter grade car oil is fine on old Märklin)
Then you install the loco upside down and let it run at medium speed while using a cotton bud with Isopropylic Alcool , clean the wheel. AVOID touching paint and body with alcool.
Clean the residue with a dry cotton bud.

The heavy touch


Locos TM800, RM800 and RSM800 share the same chassis
To open:
- remove the lamp holder (small screw between both lamps
- remove the screws circled in red


ATTENTION Unlike what is shown on the video, you must be very careful when opening the motor as there are 2 thin wires between the brush holder and the inductor. They are very easy to break!
Cheers
Jean

Oh, I thought that the company had been sold again. So Simba-Dickie is still the owner then??? ;-)

I don't know if there is a current 120 volt transformer for the US market, but the 6646 is listed as a 120 volt version.

Checking the Marklin website, I see 6646 is still current and in stock at the Marklin factory, so you should be able to find them on ebay or at a US dealer.

The blue metal case transformers especially the old 280A transformers may be dangerous so best to have them checked by an electrician first before using them. See the following thread:

https://www.marklin-users.net/forum/posts/t32687-

In the first thread above that I referred you to there are links to some of the Marklin catalogs up to 2010. These may be useful to you in answering some of your questions.

Look at the wheels. 3 rail wheels are not insulated from the axle on one side. Two rail wheels are. You'll see a plastic sleeve on the inside of one wheel. Some older cars couple to new ones. The relex couplers are metal and larger than the close couplers. They may stay together on level track, but not on grades. The distance from buffer to buffer is different too.

On M track, which was discontinued in the year 2000, signals get power from the center positive rail studs with a slide on spade type connector and wire. Ground contact was by the metal signal base and a clip that slid onto the track bed. Control boxes connect with either old or new style color keyed male and female plugs. Turnouts only had wires to the control boxes, not sockets like the 🚦 signals. A paper third rail insulator was used for M track to isolate signal block sections.
Have you searched online for the Marklin handbook? It describes basic wiring and connection for the system.
C track uses spade connectors for both positive and ground track terminals.
Very old M track feeder tracks and signals had sockets on the roadbed for plugs and wires to connect. Later M feeder track from the transformer had permanently connected wires attached.
K track connections are similar to C track. Plastic sleeper ties, no roadbed.
With the newer digital system, minimal wiring is required to connect accessories as they can get power from the track, and the digital signals which are fed from either an MS 2 or CS 3 controller. Turnout decoders can be mounted inside the turnout base, or use an M 83 accessory decoder which does then require wires from it to the turnouts. 76Xxxx series signals have their own decoders which lie under the track bed, or can be mounted below the layout base. Non mfx color light signals can use M 83 decoders.

btw--can anyone recommend a book that explains early m track and accessories wiring--thank you

hi--my layout is using 3 rail m track--are the cars and later tracks compatible with early m? i 'm talking about 3 rail where it's just segments instead of an actual rail--thanks to everyone for your help!!

Some pages from the 1980 catalog re M-Track
Screenshot 2024-09-18 at 14.18.12.png (1,733kb) downloaded 17 time(s).

Standard wiring

I've been using CRC QD (Quick Dry) Electronics Cleaner for a few years (blue can); it doesn't leave any residue and dries quickly. Use lint free towels and lots of Q-tips. It's also safe on paints.

If you have rust or oxidation which doesn't come off with the CRC QD, then very light use of a blue scotch-brite should work. The green is more aggressive than the blue.

Home Depot used to carry the CRC QD (and may still show it on their website) but they've substituted it with something else which isn't residue-free imo. I've bought it on eBay and Amazon recently in the aerosol cans. Spray some into the can's cap and then dip the q-tips, or spray directly on the track or bridge and then wipe with until clean. Great for wheels, sliders, axles and motor rebuilds also!

is all m-track compatible--3 rail or studs?

While 3-rail and stud M-track are compatible with each other, some of the old pickup shoes on loks and wagons with lighting may not like the studs. The older shoes which look like spoons tend to get caught on some studs, so replacing those with the newer, longer sliders can eliminate the problem.