Louis Marx Train Set 999 repair.

If you still have access to the transformer you had borrowed, I would try out the 999 again, assuming it was working when it was packed up. But before you do, clean up the wheels and the slider shoe with a scotchbrite pad. By cleaning the wheels, I mean the edge of them that would make contact with the rails. The slider shoe is the copper piece that is under the engine between the wheels. It should be reasonably shiny to work well.

Also, you'll want to make sure that you can turn the wheels by hand before trying to put electricity to them. If the motor and gears are so gummed up with old grease and oil that they won't turn by hand, there's no way that little motor is going to be able to do it. If that's the case, you may need to take the body off the frame to gain access to the motor, and start cleaning the gunk out of it. I generally start with a plastic safe contact cleaner and spray the whole works liberally. Then I scrub the gears and axles down with an old toothbrush, and spray again to rinse off what just got worked loose. Let dry for a while and try it out.

Sometimes these engines may need a bit of a push to get them going after being idle for so long. If you try that out, you want to push down on the engine as you're pushing down the track. You'll want to see the drive wheels (the ones with the rod attached to them) spin while you're pushing it. After a few runs with some help, it may start running without assistance.

A lot of hobby shops that sell Lionel trains will have a repair guy that will likely be able to get your items up and running again. Not knowing where you are located, it would be hard to recommend a dealer. Perhaps there's one locally listed in the dealer index in the back of Classic Toy Trains? While these items sound to have a great sentimental value, they likely don't have a lot of monetary value, and could very well cost more to repair than to replace.

One more thing to consider should you wind up at a hobby shop to get your train repaired is that while your Marx engine will run on Lionel track, it most likely will nit run on Lionel switches or crossings. The drive wheels on your 999 probably have a gear on one side that extends all the way to the edge of the wheel, which makes the wheel too fat to pass through Lionel switches. I point that out to prevent you from buying items to expand your empire that won't work.

I hope some of this is helpful to you, and Merry Christmas!

J White