I recently dismantled my old printer and salvaged all the gears and anything else that looked potentially useful for modeling. There are two motors, both are stepper motors. I don’t know much about those. Is there any way they could be used to power a model?
Oh, and while I’m on the subject of strange motors, is there any way to determine the voltage requirements of a “mystery motor”?
Not sure I’d try to power a train with one, but steppers are cool and easy to work and great for animating trackside thingies. If you know any electronics, google “Stepper Motor Driver.”
As far as voltage goes…
They likely don’t have a minimum other than what it takes to make it go. The maximum would be more related to current, I think, and you’d just want to be sure it wasn’t getting too hot. If it’s uncomfortable to touch, it’s not happy and you need to cut back a little. It should work fine at voltages we use, like 6 to 12 or 18 or so. Often there’s a number on the motor you can google. Robotic hobbiests probably know what it is as they get a lot of goodies from that source.
If you’re an electronics tinkerer and know a PNP from an FET, you can have a lot of fun with the guts of an old printer 
I gut out old VCR’s also, fun stuff in them. I check a voltage by hooking up an old transformer and start out slow, once I figure it’s about right I check with my multi-meter to see what voltage it took. Keep in mind, I was an art teacher and know LITTLE about this! 
Thanks. My knowledge of electronics is barely above the “red=positive, black=negative” level.
For the unwashed, what is a stepper motor. I too have seen ads in electronics catalogues for motors at very low prices that are labeled as “stepper.”
Thanks,
Wendell
Instead of the continuous rotation of a conventional motor, a stepper motor can be made to move in steps. With proper control the steps can be very small and precise. Used in machines and robotics where precise positioning control is needed.
You can’t just put power to a stepper and watch it go. To get it to go around, you have to cycle the power between the wires, but that gives you very precise control.