So I have my fathers old Marx trains from the late 30’s early 40’s. They were stored in boxes loosely. I am setting them up to enjoy, but notice the way they were stored has caused undue scratches etc on the engines, cars. cross arms etc. From a collectors view, is it best to take the items apart and repaint. or should I just enjoy them the way they look? How about the track. Clean it or just use it? The trains work as is. Any help for a novice would be appreciated.
Leave them as is. Try to learn to like the scatches. Give the track a spit and a polish and run your trains. Marx trains are real toy trains. Run 'um, crash 'um, have fun with 'um.
I’ve thought of this whilst eyeballing my 70 year old 248 - I vote for Not to Paint - I like the scratches - they kind of tell a story of the other boys who played with this.
Don’t paint them. They are more valuable in original condition. But more importantly, the scratches are a history of that particular toy. A patina that is unique to your father’s set. Leave them as is and enjoy them. Do clean up the track though.
Jim
It’s a personal thing. If you want to put them on a shelf so they “look good”, paint and detail. But, if you are like me, you’ll want to run them and retain some of the value, don’t paint, just enjoy. Another point is that they are your father’s, so you would want to keep the sentimental value. You can buy some cheap Marx trains on EBAY and use them as a project to restore, if you are looking for something to display.
I agree with the others. I definitely would not paint them. For sentimental reasons, value and, most importantly, keeping them in original condition, it would be best to leave them as is. Scratches are just something that happens to tin trains over time.
Scratches add to the character of the piece, leave it alone.
laz57
I just wanted to say [#ditto] !![:)]
I think a lot has to do with what your own expectations are. Are you a collector - operator - investor or combination? How bad does a piece look? I’ve repainted several of my accesories and engins as I am first and foremost an operator. Most important is to have fun.
A quick Thank you to all who replied. After reading your responses the answer is now obvious, set up Dad’s trains and enjoy them as he must have. Thanks…
I agree with the not to repaint. I have my old General from 1962 tha tshows the abuse to include some green paint on a car and a broken roof piece but by god I still love them. Had I been nicer to them (not run them so hard and so much)would I have come back to this hobby? Mind you it does not hurt that my 2nd wife loves toy trains. She is eyeballing the MTH Chessie Standard gauge set.
I guess repainting is only an option when the item is not that scarce or if it really is getting rusty. I’ve repainted 2 train engines, but those where in not too good state and not a rare collectors piece. If it’s rusted just add a whash of light oil to prevent further damage, or sandpaper it to the bare metal and repaint it.