Little helpers - Refurbishing Märklin pickup shoes (feat. electroplating)

[@uwemanns]

Was man nicht alles lernt, wenn man sich um seine alte Modellbahn kümmert, echt klasse. Und ziemlich gut erklärt, vielen Dank!!

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks! Glad you found it interesting.

[@user-ki6bx6fm3o]

As a person who prefers repair over replacement, I thoroughly enjoyed this video. Got my old pick-up shoes out and got plating: it works excellent! I used a generic USB charger with an old cable I had laying around. Just cut the end off and mount crocodile clips (red is +, black is -, you can ignore the other two). Most older chargers put out 5v/1amp, which worked perfectly. Thank you so much! I now have a strategic pick-up shoe stockpile😂.

[@The3rdRail]

Great! Well done!

[@reconphil]

Excellent, clear & useful demonstration. I loath waste & will reuse or repurpose anything I can. Thank you.

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks!

[@Romin.777]

I am quite the opposite and let my loco's run on and on on end untill they stop working.. Than maintainance is needed lol (bit over exagurated) I restored a few antique firearms which brings out the remaining nickelplating underneath the rust but if there is nothing left this process is boss. :)) Thanks for the video.

[@The3rdRail]

thanks for the visit...

[@krisdesaedeleer4357]

Dear Marklin friend nice video and good job

[@The3rdRail]

Always nice to get compliments 🙏

[@krisdesaedeleer4357]

@@The3rdRail I follow you since a While, you gave me some good ideas, one of yr videos made me buy an cocodrile 3356, so many thks.

[@austernfischer]

That's awesome!!! Many thanks for this video. Best Regards, Andreas

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks!

[@thomasschulte7635]

Very helpful … thanks indeed for the course

[@The3rdRail]

Glad it was helpful!

[@CARANDTRAIN]

As always, great explanation.

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks again!

[@kalbert2]

Thanks much, great idea!

[@The3rdRail]

Glad you found it interesting. 🙏

[@raymondleggs5508]

Interesting little gondola wagons

[@The3rdRail]

you can see them up close here :kzbin.info/www/bejne/a3TLdqZmjd6df8k

[@mountainmanpedro]

Well done!

[@The3rdRail]

Cheers!

[@karlszilagi2766]

So useful and something I hadn’t thought of. I also detest throwing away a part that is still usable. Thank you for this idea that I will definitely be implementing. I’m biased but your channel is my favorite. Keep it up!

[@The3rdRail]

Thank you very much! Enjoy your Sunday!

[@gregsdesigns3923]

Thanks for this seminar, I am definitely going to try this. I've seen the Geofry Corker videos a while ago when he was restoring a socket set, great suggestion, great video.

[@The3rdRail]

You are most welcome, thanks for your time today.

[@modellbahnjp]

Well done! Nice Video. 👍👍

[@The3rdRail]

Danke, Danke und Danke nochmal. 🙏

[@raymondleggs5508]

You can fill the worn in grooves with solder it's soft but at least you can give it a little more life. 😀

[@The3rdRail]

Good advice, thanks for sharing! 🙏

[@chr1sda1sey]

Nice one

[@The3rdRail]

👍

[@johnjeanb]

Merci beaucoup Great tutorial. It took me back to old chemistry courses in highschool "anode fondante". Now the next step is to find the electrolyte and the nickel anode

[@The3rdRail]

De rien. This would have gone over my head in highschool, I was too busy dreaming 😀 Making the electrolyte is easy, see the link in the video. Votre visite m'a fait plaisir, bonne journée.

[@user-oc5vn5kg5m]

i will be using this not to save money but parts supply in uk

[@The3rdRail]

Cool. Thanks for the visit

[@CM-he8ni]

Brings back my not so great chemistry lessons, but nicely explained to be adventurous 😀

[@The3rdRail]

😀 At least you had lessons about this, I can't remember any kind of plating being taught at the schools I went to.

[@YoavSamuelLiberman]

Thanks for yet another fantastic video. I hope to try this methode at some point.

[@The3rdRail]

Glad you found this useful. Thanks for the visit!

[@patrickmurphy6775]

Excellent video! Marklin is too often overlooked.

[@The3rdRail]

Overlooked despite being the world's largest model train manufacturer 😉 There is scope for growth 😀😀 Thanks for the visit, glad you liked the video.

[@marklinologe4685]

little helpers, always great and nice to watch 👍

[@The3rdRail]

🙏 Thanks for spending some of your valuable time here today.

[@jeanricard918]

This is by fare one of the most interesting videos you have made. I am thinking of the older type pantographs that was also nickel plated the get even harder wearing on the overhead wire and cost considerably more than the pickup shoe. So this is really a thing to look into. Thank you so very much for sharing this information.😊

[@The3rdRail]

You are very welcome. Glad this could excite your curiosity.

[@philgardiner8304]

Brilliant. Saw this 2 weeks ago and have just finished my first 2 pickups. Really simple and works well. now searching the collection of locos to see how many other ones need some attention. Keep up the good work inspiring people to do stuff!

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks for sharing your experience 🙏🚂

[@paulcook2888]

An excellent video, thankyou. As you know being based in the UK it's not so much the cost of the spare part but the cost of postage which can be as much or more than the part itself. Also when servicing a locomotive you tend to need the part to finish the job and having to wait a few days is frustrating. Doing these things yourself is all part of the fun of the hobby.

[@The3rdRail]

Yep, and some recent geopolitical stuff that shall not be named hasn't helped... For me, it was less about cost than having to throw away a mechanically sound part.

[@lindaoffenbach]

Brilliant idea! They do cost ~4 Euros + postage here and can pretty much add up to all cost. As soon as the nickel layer has worn, the pukos indeed bite and wear the copper quite harshly. Sanding seem to work for only a short while. Please keep us informed for how long the new nickel layer will withstand the wear. Essentially this is a 'back to school' where we did electroplating in physics class, lol. If it works, this could be the way forward for us. Thank you!

[@The3rdRail]

will do, enjoy the rest of your sunday.

[@Martin.]

Good work man. very helpful 👍👍👍three thumbs up!

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks, thank you and thanks again 👍🙏

[@barnstorm8971]

Thanks for the video. I didn't realise that a worn pickup shoe could cause a problem. I'll definitely need to check the state of my shoes as I'm sure some of them are very worn.

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks for the visit. Good luck!

[@Jeppe-Covid1959]

I have tried it with varying results. I don't get the shiny finish, but they look like sixties pickup shoes. Now I have put my solution on my dinner table, with a warning: "WARNING! NOT HOMEMADE ABSINTH!"

[@The3rdRail]

😀

[@Mr.-Wint]

Excellent, - but why did the new part not need any polishing from the factory ?

[@The3rdRail]

Thanks, I am not sure I get the question.

[@Mr.-Wint]

@@The3rdRail: I mean, - your example needs polishing not to look dull, - I suppose at the factory they came out shiny right away ?

[@The3rdRail]

Ah I understand. I think this might have to do with the plating time and the composition of the solution, I have not seen what happens in the factory so don't know for sure.

[@KPS-en8fz]

Thanks for this very interesting video. I've got more than 130 Märklin locomotives in my collection and some of them would definitely need a new slider. But one thing I missed in the video: You are using a 'Phone Charger' as power source. But you did not mention the kind of power. Is it AC (i suppose not) or DC, which voltage, which current? Perhaps you can add this to video description. BR from Munich

[@The3rdRail]

Glad you found the video interesting. It is an old mobile phone charger -> DC. I also point to a reference video for detailed instructions (see card at the top of the video and link in the desciption), which I think should be watched before atempting anything. Thanks for spending some of your valuable time here today, much appreciated. Gruß nach München, frohe Weihnachten.

[@krisdesaedeleer4357]

Dear UK Marklin friend, I have just one question, how many volts supply the charger ? 12 v ? On the other hand, very interesting video, will try yr. Idea 👌

[@The3rdRail]

5v

[@krisdesaedeleer4357]

Thks. My friend, Best rgds. From Spain

[@The3rdRail]

🙏👍