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Hi, I was in a similar situation when I returned to model railroading. Although I quickly concluded that about half of my old engines were not worth bothering with from the viewpoint of poor appearance and poorly designed power trains, I had half a dozen or so reasonably nice ones (mostly Rivarossi). <br /> <br />First thing you need to do is REALLY clean the wheels. I found that pencil erasers worked well for this; just make sure you also remove the rubber grit that willcome off the erasers. Then follow up with a bit of rubbing alcohol on a Q-tip. <br /> <br />If that doesn't do the trick, then you are looking at disassembly, removal of the existing lubricating grease, and replacing it with a good-quality hobby lube such as those sold by LaBelle Industries. When locomotives have been in storage for lengthy periods, and especially if it is an area such as an attic or storage shed subject to temperature and humidity extremes, the lubricating grease often hardens. After 20 years you probably should disassemble the locos and replace the lube even if you do get them running OK with a simple wheel cleaning. Good luck.
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