How do you get rust off track

[Anonymous]

What is the best wat to get light rust off track if at all. Its the old tube track not fast track. And should I use some sort of oil on track when i store it?  Thanks Jared

[magicman710]

Use sandpaper.

[Anonymous]

Do use a oil to help prevent rust at all?

[Buckeye Riveter]

Try a Scotch Brite type of pad with a little WD40.  Clean and then wipe off the track. If the track is in place on a layout, sandpaper particles may end up in the gears of a locomotive.   

I have Scotch Brite wheels for a Dremel tool.  I have used them to clean wheels of cars and they do a great job.  I think they would also work well to clean crude and rust off of track.  I bought the Scotch Brite wheels at a train show from one of those guys that sells all sorts of hobby tools.

[DMUinCT]

Buckeye has got it right!

Remember, if it rusted, the tin plating is gone and it will re-rust if not maintained. 

[eZAK]

If it is only lightly rusted I would Not use any abrasives!

Try brake fluid on a rag instead!

[Dave Farquhar]

I've cleaned a lot of rusty track. My favorite is a scotch-brite pad (the finer the better) with white vinegar. Rust dissolves in vinegar pretty readily. Light rust goes away with vinegar on a rag. I used sandpaper on one batch but it re-rusted and got dirty a lot more easily. Spray a little WD-40 on if you're going to store for a long time, then wipe it off with a degreaser before use.

[Anonymous]

Dave as you know I have been a fan of your writings for some time. You were able to place into words something that I have been thinking of for a few weeks. In a strange way that was closure on that whole twisted event. Great job dave.

Now for cleaning the track please don't use steel wool. Since the track is cheap I try to weight the effort against replacement if it is badly rusted. I find once the coating is badly worn the track will build up with dirst fast and rust even faster.

[USNRol]

Some of you may think this is a hell of a lot of effort for some old tubular but anyway...

I've been using this:

It's a cheapo old B&D grinder with a burnishing wheel.  The wheel is a gummy feeling rubber of some sort, but at high RPM on this grinder it makes really short work of some pretty nasty looking track.  I've been buying used lots of 027 tubular off ebay and you wouldn't believe some of the track you'll get.   Anyway I was doing this by hand using 600 grit sandpaper folded up into a 1 inch square.  It was doing almost as good a job, even getting a good burnish by rubbing quickly and allowing the paper to gall up a bit, but my fingers were hurting after about 2 sections of track!

Here's a before and after of the same piece of track.  BTW I pull the pins out and clean them up on the wheel too, then reinsert them.

Before:

After:

Since I've figured this method out I'm actually looking forward to cleaning all my track.  The finish this wheel leaves on the rail head is very shiney and smooth and therefore resists corrosion and dirt/grime build-up very well.  Also maintenance cleaning is easy as pie with a good rag soaked in goo gone or your favorite vinegar!

Good Luck!
Roland

[chuck]

You can try to use RailZip to try and protect the track.  If it's rusting repeatedly,  replace it.  Tubular is pretty cheap compared to your time. 

Tin oxide is conductive, but slippery.  The microfiber cleaning cloths are pretty good at removing the oxide without damaging the track, they are even less abbrasive than Scothbrite.  As others have noted, do not use sandpaper or steel wool.  These will remove the protective plating AND leave debris that can cause even more trouble.

[laz 57]

Some of you may think this is a hell of a lot of effort for some old tubular but anyway...

I've been using this:

It's a cheapo old B&D grinder with a burnishing wheel.  The wheel is a gummy feeling rubber of some sort, but at high RPM on this grinder it makes really short work of some pretty nasty looking track.  I've been buying used lots of 027 tubular off ebay and you wouldn't believe some of the track you'll get.   Anyway I was doing this by hand using 600 grit sandpaper folded up into a 1 inch square.  It was doing almost as good a job, even getting a good burnish by rubbing quickly and allowing the paper to gall up a bit, but my fingers were hurting after about 2 sections of track!

Here's a before and after of the same piece of track.  BTW I pull the pins out and clean them up on the wheel too, then reinsert them.

Before:

After:

Since I've figured this method out I'm actually looking forward to cleaning all my track.  The finish this wheel leaves on the rail head is very shiney and smooth and therefore resists corrosion and dirt/grime build-up very well.  Also maintenance cleaning is easy as pie with a good rag soaked in goo gone or your favorite vinegar!

Good Luck!
Roland

 

Great fix, EXCELLENT IDEAR,  thanks got a few old motors lying around here going to give that a try.

laz57

[lionel2986]

Remember, if it rusted, the tin plating is gone and it will re-rust if not maintained. 

Is there anything that can be done to recoat the track with tin plating? Is it worth it? If not, are there alternative solutions besides replacing the track?

Will Scotch Brite remove the tin plating (assuming its still on the track)? If a track is heavily rusted, will a wire wheel be a better option?

Finally, will all these wheels and bits that are designed for dremels work with hand drills?

[cnw1995]

I spent an entire Saturday this past winter using a dremel with a wire wheel to go over (really) rusty track. Instead of trying to get the rust off every bit, I concentrated on the top and side where a train wheel would make contact. My basement is pretty dry so far the rust hasn't come back and the track conducts electricity well.

I figure 'rail grinding' works well for the prototype as well.

[Dave Farquhar]

Re-plating the track will cost more than replacing it would. The starting price for plating kits is $40 or $50 and you're likely to need at least one or two more bottles of plating solution. Pretty soon you're up against the $100 mark, and $100 buys a lot of tubular track.

If track is rusted heavily enough that a Scotch-Brite type pad can't do the job, I would replace the track. I used a wire wheel in a drill to clean some track, the first time I tried, but I wasn't very happy with how it ended up. The track ended up with a lot of pits and grooves in it, so it was a lot harder to keep clean.

The less aggressive you have to be with the rust, the better. You also don't want to spend too terribly much in the way of tools and time to do it. Used tubular track in usable condition is extremely cheap. I can usually find all the O27 tubular I want at train shows for 25 cents a section. O31 tubular costs more, but probably around 50 cents a section. I've also bought used O27 wide curves and long straights for $1 apiece.

[LS1Heli]

Rusted track is more of a hassle. You want good conductivity and you want trains running on a smooth, clean, original finish.

The best method of cleaning rusted track is to throw it in the garbage and buy new track.

 

[rustycoupler]

 throw it out and get real trax.

[RR Redneck]

Forget that! Just break out the sandpaper.

[LS1Heli]

Forget that! Just break out the sandpaper.

Thats what I could never understand. There is so much tubular track out there that it is almost worthless yet year after year people sill spend hours and hours cleaning, money on grinding wheels, etc.

Throw it out! Buy new track! Is it that expensive??

[Blueberryhill RR]

Well.......I guess we are all entitled to our opinions....But, personally, I would rather keep my PW Lionel track, stamped " Lionel NY ", if it is rusty. Clean it up and use it. Just my opinion.

Chuck

[Anonymous]

Yep, I also like the fack its the same track my dad ran his, now my trains on as i kid!