Maiden Run. . . . with my trains

[AlanRail]

Maiden Run

I just completed the last part of the wiring to my two main lines; I set up my Eire L1 #2601 and a Milw Rd GP-7 and around they went; actually I had two Lionel Track Cleaning cars modified a la Mr. Barrett attached to each engine and after a few loops that did a nice job of grinding the center rail clean to make Proto-2 work better. 10's everywhere!!

I modified my turntable area so that each spur track radiating from the table is a test track so I can enter each engine into my handheld one by one just by rotating the pot switch and energizing just the one spur. Now I can enter the rest of my Proto –2 and Lionel steam engines on each of those 24 spur lines where they have been resting until this day.

It feels so good to have arrived at this point; now I need to clean the other by-pass lines and yard lines and wire up the transfer table.

Alan

[railman]

sounds great! Keep us ypdated as the railroad progresses!

[Anonymous]

CONGRATULATIONS ALAN!!

Here at the Little River & Hobart. we're still a few months of work parties away from that greatly anticipated "first run".
I must search the archives and learn what you did to the track cleaning car. Our steel (not stainlesss) Gargraves track will need a TON of cleaning to get reliable operation as some of it has been laid a long time already. We have a Lionel track cleaning car and I'm fairly hand at the bench so whatever it is, I'm up for it.

Again, CONGRATULATIONS and don't get so busy playing trains that you forget to fini***he layout. (Or IS it finished??)

We'll run our lower level (hideout tracks etc.) and our yards awhile before we build the main benchwork...."just in case"..
Joe.

[Anonymous]

Congrats Alan, Maybe you could share some pictures with us all.........Tim

[AlanRail]

Joe

I just love mix and match especially when it come to MTH and Lionel; I think I first suggested and use Lionel's 91 circuit breakers first built in 1960 to protect MTH's TIUs; why keep replacing fuses or worry about the right fuse, when you can adjust the 91s to do the trick.

When Barrett suggesting modifying the old track cleaning car to clean track; I thought some MTHers would go nuts. But it works better than any track cleaner car that rubs slides or moves over the track. I have three types and spend hundreds on these pieces of junk ( wont mention names because the advertise in OGR and CTT) None of them clean better than Barrett’s; Now I did modify his idea a bit to get it to work a bit better so here it is:

Go on ebay and find a working Lionel track cleaning car ( if you can fix them then get a non-working car and fix it)
You will need two items from the car not broken; 1) the metal circle ( also called the sponge plate assembly, but without the circular sponge) and 2) the driving arbor with an unbroken shaft and the two hooks. It would be nice to have the trailing truck with a track-wiping cylinder too.

Ok here is the easy part cut two squares from a green scotch brite pad big enough to cover the metal circle about 2-1/2" squares. In one square, slice a slit in the center about 1 1/4" long big enough to fit the arbor's center shaft and to allow the arbor's two plastic hooks to engage the metal circle;
now placing the arbor shaft thru the slit attach the metal circle over the shaft and pressing hard to lock it onto the arbor two hooks; next using Walther's Goo glue the other square onto its buddy square fully enclosing the arbors disc side. ( not the metal circle).

Try not to get glue on the arbor disc; using 4 small clamps or clothespins clamp the two squares together and let dry. Once dry; using a scissors cut the two squares into a circle following the metal circle but about a 1/8" bigger in diameter. Now you have a scotch brite cleaner to fit into the cleaning car

Finally lock the arbor shaft into the cleaning car; the car runs high so that the full weight of the car is on the pads; Turn off the cleaning car with the top switch then couple the cleaning car to your engine; turn on the DCS or TMCC so that the full 18 v is passing thru the track start the engine moving dragging the cleaning car; and then turn on the cleaning car; the clearing car is rotating at 18V while being dragged across your track cleaning as you go; Two things don’t stop the engine without turning off the clearing car AND that cleaning car will get hot much faster at the full voltage, so don’t run it too long; a few circuits should do a great job. Drag the wiping cylinder to get the residue;

Alan

[daan]

Using scotch brite is a good idea, it takes about everything off the track, even rust. I use it handheld to get prewar maerklin tubular clean and shiny, even if rust coveres the track. It doesn't leave scratches on the track like it happenes when you use sandpaper.

[AlanRail]

Barrett's link to his track cleaning car:

http://ogaugerr.infopop.cc/eve/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=63160042&f=57660482&m=2591078411



Alan

[Anonymous]

WOW!!
EVERY TIME I come to this forum I get way more than I bargained for. I can't wait to get REALLY RETIRED so I can play trains, work on trains and participate in this forum much more than I do now.
(Tried to re-tire and got it wrong. Got re-treaded instead. This dumb Polack could'nt get those two terms straight. Will have that problem fixed by next Spring.)

Thanks Alan (and all). I just printed out several of these messages and went over to OGRR and read Jim Barretts original piece plus a dozen related posts there too.

Going on E-bay to find a hurting track cleaning car but if I don't find one, the nice original we have WILL get modified. Equipment is meant to RUN and do the job for which it was designed. Upgrades are part of life.

Thanks again all,
Joe