A large new sponge, like that for washing a car is good for making a cradle.  Cut a channel through the length of the sponge to the required size.  This is also good for O Gauge.  Furthermore, when I service my locos I place them on white hand towel as it is rather awkward when a little screw or spring disappears somewhere.

Just to be absolutely clear, IPA is isopropyl alcohol, not India Pale Ale 😂

The blue foam is often referred to as 'foam edge protector' or 'foam edge guard' sometimes with 'u profile' in the title. It tends to be used for shipping furniture and picture frames etc. It's quite cheap (as you would expect) and there are different sizes available to suit different scales. It does tend to come in long lengths, though, which will probably be good for quite a few cradles - either a lifetime's supply for one person, or to share out with other railway modellers.

Hi Sam ,I’ve been playing with model trains just about all my life (nearly 80) but you are never to old to learn something new.Keep up the your good work,people like will keep this wonderful hobby alive for many years to come.Cheers, Derek in Australia

U have one of the highest "engagement rate" of any youtuber I watch, your engagement rate is 8-9% depending on the video, the average for youtube is 2.3%

Took my first loco apart for servicing at the age of ten. That was in 1963. Triang class 08. Still running today.

As a kid, I used to use my mother's Singer sewing machine oil on my kitted model cars to make them roll better. Unfortunately, I found out the oil eventually dissolved the styrene plastic.  Vaseline petroleum jelly will do the same.  Here in the states, many of us use Labelle lubricants, which are plastic safe.  You have to be careful.  Even some PTFE greases can be damaging, depending on the carrier used for the teflon.  Better lubricant companies will publish material compatibility charts that you can check.

Hi Sam. Great to see this sort of video. Please never underestimate the value of such content from someone like yourself. I doff my cap to you.

PS: I tend to clean & lubricate the loco mechanism first, so that the act of cleaning the wheels also helps the new lubrication to spread through the mechanism.

The sponge material is used to protect water pipes from freezing.:penguin-blue-waving-tear:

That blue foam is found by the name: U shaped foam

The foam cradle:

I bought some online, then a few days after it arrived I was in work and immediately realised what it was!

I work in a car dealership and in the workshop we had a new windscreen arrive, and surrounding it on the edges was this exact foam like I (and you) have!  

Safe to say, I was gutted to have paid for something I have access to more than I could ever need for free at work  😂

Next time I'll save you some!

I used to deliver kitchens for manhatten and they used the blue foam stuff over the edges of the worktops to protect them in transit

Sam I just wanted thank you. I am recently retired and have just back into the world of model railways after many years. I acquired a Bachman Hughes Crab 2nd hand off eBay that was not running at all well. However I gave the wheels and pickups a thorough clean following your instructions to the letter and now it runs fine. A pity the seller didn’t think of that which I have fed back to him. Your reviews are my bible for buying and maintaining locos and track.

Keep up the brilliant objective work which is priceless for an inexperienced model rail enthusiasts like me having someone I can always trust.

You forgot two important items: 1.) the Sam's trains little screw holder box - it works GREAT, and 2.) a left-handed underhooked automatic clip remover with eight heads if servicing things like the over-secure Accurascale Deltic.

9:16 "So my screws are all loose"
-Sam Trains, 2025

I've made an oil applicator out of a square toothpick with the pointy ends cut off, into which I inserted a sewing needle.  The eye of the needle will retain a tiny droplet of oil and it won't drip off until you get it where it needs to be.  Needles with larger or smaller eyes could be useful for applying different quantities of oil, I suppose, but I've only ever used one size in HO scale.

I will stress the necessity of making sure all lubricants used on model trains are platic-compatible, even if they'll only be applied directly to metal bearing surfaces.  Even the 'proper' amount of lubricant can still flow around over time, and bearing oil will likely find its way onto plastic gears, axle/wheel insulators, or bogie frames, potentially causing malfunctions or damage in the long term if it softens the material or makes it more brittle.  This will always wait to happen until after spares become hard to find, of course.

4:54 I lowkey thought that was a pool noodle for the longest time

Excellent video. Thank you.

This is a very useful video! Thank you for making this!

Thank you!   Much appreciated