Model Railway Forum

One of my Peco solenoid point motors has stopped working. All the wiring looks ok. It has been in place for about eight years - do they just stop working after a time? I have plenty of replacements - and sods law, it needed a major room upheaval to get to it

I used to have the occasional problem with them on my loft layout. A tiny dab of lubrication usually did the trick. Does it move freely by hand?

It did move fairly easily by hand. However I have already removed it, and will now start soldering wires to the new one. Thanks Brian.

Replacement point motor fitted and working. In clearing the space (a 1000mm B&Q wall cupboard), I have now started replacing everything, and trying to utilise the space more efficiently .

Have you tested the old one off the layout? A bit of oil may see it functional again then you have a spare. Seeps have a tendency to get surface rust on the iron core of the solenoid - a drop of oil each Spring never goes amiss.

Worryingly your comment about clearing some space and rearranging things has got me wondering about an underboard project for me this year. It won’t end well.

Nothing underboard, ends well. While you are down there. you remember, what you meant to do last time, but did not bring the bits down to do it. I leave mine, until i am able to list everything i need to take down with me, then decide, to leave it for the time being. You should see the state of my wires. Decide to solder them, then cant find an extension lead. Because French system is totally different, and my controllers are 3 pin, its always a step too far.

I have no problem remembering all the bits, tools etc that I need but the problem is that I end up sitting on the things I need then can’t manoeuvre by rump enough to reach them and pick them up. And then there is the tiny screw that drops off and falls inside my shirt or bounces across the floor never to be seen again.
I know what I want to do this summer but whether it is practical or achievable is another matter.

Sorry Barry, thread hijacked - back on topic.

Barry won’t be able to reply Steve he’s still stuck under his layout.

steve, you wait till your 79, nothing moves much then.

Everything back in place, and I did not spend the night under the boards. The air did get a little "blue" when trying to hold the point motor in place with the rod through the tie bar, and get the small screws back into the original holes they came out of - and yes Steve, the screws did fall down inside my shirt a couple of times