Something Old; Something New.

What do the toys in this picture have in common?

Principle of motion. You see, those Lionel guys 60 years ago had some pretty clever ideas for translating a vibrating motion (easy to generate with AC voltage in a solenoid) into lateral or rotary motion. Like the modern-day Hex Bugs, the secret is where the rubber meets the metal.

The Hex Bug's 12 rubber legs spring forward every time it vibrates. The banjo crossing signal and searchlight car both have a rubber washer with slanted nubs that cause the metal cover that sits on them to rotate a few degrees each time they vibrate. The banjo crossing has an additional offset pin that converts the vibromotor rotary motion into the stop sign arm's back and forth motion.

A quick internet search found Lionel still sells replacement washers for a little over a dollar each, so I ordered a few and got these fun accessories back in action for Alexander's new old train.