I know I've seen some posts before on track cleaning, but I can't find them. What recommendations do you have? I've used a pencil eraser and that picks up a lot of dirt but it's very labor-intensive. Do the cleaning fluids work? Any specific recommendations? Has anybody tried the "track cleaner cars" - cabooses or freight cars that have a cleaning pad underneath? Thanks, Dan.
Well know I'm going to open my mouth and probably stick my foot in so far that it comes out the back door. I use 2 forms of cleaning equipment. The first is an old dried up school eraser, and the second, whelp every one grit your teeth here it comes " SAND PAPER ". Yup that's right I like to use fine sand paper to get them rails shining and then I use the eraser to wipe up the dust. I have herd a lot of people who cringe at this idea. But it has served me well for many years. Some say the sand paper will in time ware away the height of the rail. Have you ever cut rail with a dermal ? Takes a few seeks aaaa? Well I'll bet you could sand for many years before you did that kind of damage.
Any of the track cleaning cars I believe will work well enough for maintenance but not by themselves. For really dirty track and even general maintenance 91% IPA and a paper towel work great. Then after all is clean use CRC 2-26 everywhere -- track, wheels, pick-up points etc. The suede side of a piece of leather is a great non-abrasive tool as well. Sand paper does clean great but scratches the rail and allows dirt and oil a place to settle. Track will get dirtier after awhile. Scott
I've used Wahl hair clipper oil for years with no ill effects on my rail or rolling stock. Just put a drop on each rail and back a train over it to evenly distribute it over the track. I have my layout in a basement, which is fairly dusty. But even if I do not run a train over the rails for a couple of months, they still run smoothly. I understand there's a new similar product out now that alot of clubs are going to, but I don't know the name of it. (It's probably Wahl oil that has been repackaged under another name by some enterprising model railroader)
<font color="336633">Well dependsing on how bad the track is, if its really bad i use 1200 grit wet and dry paper, i know everyone says you shouldnt but it works for me, then just a normal track cleaning block (bright boy for you americans ,) </font>
I just saw a unique track cleaning system over the weekend. A guy took one of the roller cleaning cars, removed the roller and inserted a weight to hold down one of those green dish cleaning pads to the track. The unique part was that this was G scale and the weight was a BRICK!
Dan, here are 2 sites to visit. www.centerline-products.com also go to www.trains.com then click on model trains, scroll down to back to basics-wheel cleaning .
I suggest looking at www.ttx-dcc.com They have a track cleaning car they call the clean machine. I have one and find it much better than the centerline car, which I also have. In fact, it the centerline car worked better, I wouldn't have had to buy something else. since I have both, I run them together, letting the centerline car dry the rails behind the tank car. A rather expensive train tho! Gary
I've used pencil erasers, Bright Boys, and wet-dry sandpaper. I've also used a tiny dab of gun oil applied sparingly on the rails (with Q-Tips)AND on the wheels of locomotives (to clean off the gunk so it doesn't get on the rails). I'm gonna try the gun-oil trick on the N scale rails & see if it works.
Like Gary, I use the TTX track cleaning cars. They are brass, tank holds cleaner and is adjusted to drip onto pad. They are also heavy. I use two older diesels, an idler car which is a ballast hopper, two TTX Tony cars, one dropping cleaner, the other asorbing the residue, two cars behind, to make a worktrain. I have used googone with good results, because it is wiped off the rails almost immediately, have recently started using a cleaner by aerolube, or some such name, which seems better. I have also used Wahl clipper oil for spot problems for years. My layout is a large one, three decks, and this train runs about once a month before an operating session. Bob Miller
I have a small curvey, hilly, HO layout with about half of the tracks covered with a hill. So I have been looking for an "automatic" way of cleaning -- Brite-boy does work great, but it is a lot of work. And I have been convinced that tiny scratches are to be avoided, as places for dirt to hide and also creating sharp edges for micro-electric arc's. I also tried Wahl Clipper oil, and it is really good at keeping the track from oxidizing, however, it makes the track too slippery (for my 2 1/2% grades and 18" radius curves). I got a Centerline car and started with Goo Gone -- it really picked up the grime. But then I noticed that there was a film on the rails. And then I finally had to use the ole' Brite Boy again. I then tried various other solvents on the roller and had the best luck with acetone. However, that was slowly dissolving my plastic (Insul-frog) switches. Alcohol wasn't too bad, but it wasn't as good at taking the guck off. Then I got some of the Aerocar track cleaner. It is, by far, the best guck getter offer of all of them (I have used it to "re-new" some hi-rail S track from the 50's). It also seems to slightly improve traction. It has a drawback (besides costing much more than hardware store solvents) -- it wants to be applied and then wiped off (according to the bottle instructions). This is a little harder to do with track cleaning cars. However, by this time I had acquired a second Centerline car (since the first was an older, wider one that had tracking problems when the track was dirty (read: derails on dirty track, not that good for a track cleaner car)), so I now push a newer Centerline car with track cleaner and pull the older one with a dry roller and that does the trick. I should add that I live only a few houses from the ocean, so I'm dealing with a very corrosive atmosphere (and I should run the trains more, as that is the best "cleaner")
I tried Scott's advice of using the suede side of a piece of leather (cut a piece from an old belt), and put some nail polish remover (acetone) on it. Wow!! Trains run great! So much easier, and much more effective than the Bright Boy. Thanks Scott!
Something that works well and can be run almost inconspicusly (sp?) is a small masonite pad mounted on the bottom of a box car. Take a small peice of masonite ( about 1.5 inches long and 3/4 or so wide) and insert 2 1" nails close to either end. Then drill 2 holes in the bottom of the car for the nails to slide in . It should be a loose fit and able to slide in and out of the holes. A few of these cars on the layout will keep the track clean enough to never need any other cleaning......HTH..............Mike
Mike C: Interesting idea! My ROCO cleaning box car with cratex-type eraser is run always but has a lot of drag. Will try the masonite as it should be low-drag and can be mounted with the OEM screw sliders. Will put a small-angle taper on each end though, as my layout is not smooth. Herb
Tell ya something else that works real good for handcleaning track.Plain ol ordinary cork roadbed.If you don't believe take a small piece and run it by hand along the tops of the rails. Now turn it over and look at the black crud on it.
Everyone, I have used good ole masonite for years! Since the days that I had a simple point to point layout to the present date I still USE masonite! And its a very very good cleaner. I had mounted a piece of it to a track cleaning caboose and a old TYCO track cleaning car that was a flat car with a caboose cab and a tank for alcohol and mounted it to the piece of lead that held the original track cleaning pad and they both work like a million! I have yet to use any solvents or any liquids period on my rails! I do however use a solvent on the wheel treads of the loco's.... Nothing harsh though just methenol alcohol. Very pure and strong.. If anyone decides to use it do me a favor and NOT have any cuts or scratches on your hands when you do.. Believe me I learned from experience of using it... It burns worse then rubbing alcohol or isophophal alcohol will at any given time! But sure takes any and all "gunk" off loco wheels and is a anti corrodent to wheels and rail even if you would use it on the rail head... On older loco's say I buy one from ebay and its in a mess. And the wheels are in really, really bad shape almost to the point of scraping them.. Soak them in the methenol alcohol.... I'll bet money in a day or less they almost look new! And no need to scrap them.. Or buying new wheels to replace them. You just saved the money to buy new ones buy soaking them... I can't say if the methenol alcohol would be harsh on plastic being i remove plastic from wheels and such when I soak them so. be very causious when using it.
