15 replies to this topic

[don.siegel]

Martex was a small Midwestern commpany out of Detroit, mainly known for tire traction and other chemical products. The actual name was Scale Model Cars Co., using the brand name Martex (just saw that in a Preview page from Car Model in November 1965). Pete Hagenbuch also talked a lot about their tire traction, which seems to have been popular around Detroit. 

 

But a couple years ago on ebay, I found a car with this Martex 16D motor, based on a later-generation Mabuchi, with an inner magnet shim. Finally tried it out a year ago on the Bordo track and it was a rocket ship! High revs and good torque... finished second in a "vintage" race behind a retro car one of the locals was trying out... (it's kind of a run what ya brung vintage race, with any kind of running gear but older bodies). 

 

So, I ran it again this year - but after five or so segments, running very strong, it didn't start for the next one - all locked up, but didn't seem to have burned out, and couldn't see anything apparent... When I got it home, I took it out and this is what I found: 

 

 

A closer look at the endbell revealed the culprit - the endbell, where the brush holders had melted into the plastic: 

 

 

Fortunately, the arm wasn't harmed; can't quite tell what wire is used, maybe 28, and the balancing holes, tho not the epoxy, are very Dyna-like... 

 

 

Since the endbell was totally stock, I was able to replace it, with a new bagged Mura in this case (original Mabuchi, not a hi-temp version): 

 

 

And it will now be retired - I got lucky! Maybe not such a good idea running this in the first place, but since it surviced eight 3-minute heats last year, I figured what the heck - and it was fun driving that hot a motor! 

 

Anybody else got any Martex products? 

 

Don 

[MSwiss]

Any reasonable market for a pair of milled brass plates for the endbell?

 

IOW, you would slice off the plastic brush holder locators and the plates would have the same thing integrated on them.

[don.siegel]

Maybe in general Mike, but I'm going to keep this one stock - have never seen another Martex motor! 

 

Don 

[proptop]

The magnet shim also looks very Dyna-like... that single, off-set hole...

[don.siegel]

Yep, I thought about that, too... will have to dig out my Dyna from that period and do a comparison - maybe they just subcontracted these motors to Dyna-Rewind down the block... 
 
Hey, Gene, if you're around, do you have any memories of Martex? 
 
Don

[SlotStox#53]

At least you had brush post protectors. 

Only other Martex products I have seen *I think* are grey sponge donuts and a Midwest brass pan.

[tonyp]

Never saw a Martex motor. Maybe the sticker was just stuck on it and it's an old Dyna-Rewind?

[Steve Deiters]

I have to say this is a new name for me. That is awfully beefy motor wire for the era. No surprise that end bell had a meltdown. The controller of that era probably did also!

[don.siegel]

I was using a Professor Motor controller and it was getting pretty hot, which maybe should have given me a clue... if I'm right in my guestimate of 28 wire, that wouldn't have been too unusual for ca 1967 - 27 would have been on the ragged edge! 

 

Tony, if it's something like that, more logical that Martex rebranded a Dyna motor - seems pretty factory, but I don't have a very fine eye for that kind of thing. 

 

Yep, gray spongies ring a bell, think I have a pair! 

 

Don 

 

PS: Just noticed I left my fingerprints all over the can - but I'm not guilty, I tell ya judge, I didn't do it! 

[dc-65x]

"it's like deja vu all over again!"

 

I have some packaged Martex parts... .somewhere! Or I'm dreaming.

 

If I can find them, I'll post them.

[Steve Deiters]

If this motor is from the mid-'60s era which I think it is based on the endbell and the brass post covers the #31,... #32 wire was considered "hot wind." Nothing below #30 as I recall on Mabuchi style motors would work with allied components as evidenced here. The bigger they got the hotter they ran and the technology on many levels just wasn't keeping up, but eventually did.

[don.siegel]

Here's the Martex alongside an almost contemporary Dyna-Rewind, which uses the previous generation Mabuchi can and also has more typical Dyna-style "glassy" epoxy (but no longer white as on the earlier motors). Almost the same inner shim and post protectors. Not quite a smoking gun! 

 

 

[havlicek]

Hi Don,

 

       I've never seen a Martex motor either, but the Martex (as noted) has a later generation can than any of the Dynas I've seen, with the oval holes and the aluminum bushing carrier.  Maybe there were Dynas that also used those cans, but I've never seen one...but I sure am not familiar with the bewildering number of motor brands from back then.  

Another different (*at least from what I remember) detail is the tail spacer on your arm.  I've always only seen the separate press-on brass ring spacer on later generation Mabuchis like those produced in Hong Kong.  

It's hard to tell with the arm being so dirty, but it looks like a typical Mabuchi com by the diameter of the com, but the tabs "seem" to be the hooked type as on the Kirkwoods, so it's all a guess!  

The stack with the familiar fiber-insulators seems to be a Mabuchi by the fiber end insulators.  I think the Johnson stuff used a black plastic insulator on the stack ends, but maybe earlier ones used the fiber-type.  The Johnson and Mabuchi lams were slightly different when you had clean examples to look at side-by-side, but that's impossible to discern from the photo.

Another wild guess is that the wire is at least #28 as you said, but it could be #27 wire too.  I've had some very hot Dynas here, including doublewinds,  and the ones that were still functioning ran really well...very fast and smooth, shockingly so in fact!  

Anyway, it's a very interesting and (I guess) somewhat "mysterious" motor.  Very cool you replaced the end bell and retired it!

 

-john

[NSwanberg]

Martex was a fairly well known name in the Detroit area back in the day. I am not sure they had anything to do with Dyna-Rewind. Rick Davis might know. I was the proud owner of a Martex armature that looked similar to the above. Never knew who manufactured the odd looking commutator. I remember Ron Headland and Tom Kenworthy used a Martex armature to place third in an enduro at Malibu Raceway circa winter 1969?? Raisin and I entered an inline car with a Mura gumball armature. I will let him finish the rest of that story if you can get it out of him.

[Horsepower]

There was also Martex Tire Traction solution.

[Bill from NH]

Martex sponge tires show up occasionally on eBay.