The owner of Aristo-Craft has posted a good reply on the Aristo-Craft Forum, it explains a lot. www.aristocraft.com (Forum / General Forum)
I don't have that problem, I use Aristo-Craft Brass Track. It darkens to a nice, realistic brown rust color.
Don U. TCA 73-5735
Without hijacking the thread......I recently had dealings with Aristocraft. I was WAAAAAAAY underwhelmed.
Then they went on to say if I was not happy with their products to use somebody's elses track.- If thats the quality of their customer service I would definitely not purchase their products.
Thanks for the warning.
Looks like they have had it too good for too long and forgotten that they need you to sell their products to.!
Tony
www.gscaletrains.net.nz
Stan,
That was pretty much what I was alluding to. Although stainless can, and in most cases, does not show rust, it will oxidize just like any thing else. It just takes LLLOOOONNNNGGGEEERRR. I mentioned contamination in manufacturing above, the most common cause of 'rust' in stainless steel. I worked for about 15 years in the water treatment industry using most of the major grades of stainless steel at one time or another, and under certain specific conditions I have seen Type 316L and Carpenter 20 stainless steel with the most beautiful burnt umber color you have ever seen. Not what one expects to see when looking at stainless steel.
Ron,
That was pretty much the response I expected from Aristo as well. It seems here lately Aristo has an attitude that they don't need customers. Their loss. I am sure USA Trains will be happy to pick up the slack.
Bob C.
Bob,
I did receive a reply from Aristo Craft. They said they have been making ss track for over 10 years and have never had a complaint. Then they went on to say if I was not happy with their products to use somebody's elses track. What a total crock!
We have several thousand ft of Stainless outdoors for many years. It is under several ft of snow at the present time.
The stainless does not rust but you will get some rust stains from the rollers used to form the rail.
These stains do not cause any problems and I just leave them as they are.
Stan Ames
I agree that the environment is not that harsh, unless you live right on the coast. Then the salt air may have an effect. Contrary to what others think, the chloride in the sodium chloride (salt) is a definite enemy of stainless.
As for any definitive answer from Aristo, I wouldn't hold my breath. I truly don't believe there is anyone there with the knowledge of metals to provide that kind of answer. And I am sure the importer is going to swear that the QA is up to snuff. Not to mention this is hobby material, not metals with certifications requirements.
Frustrating as I might be, I don't think it will be a big issue over the long term.
Hi Bob,
I live in Southern California which is pretty dry most of the year. What is interesting is only a few sections have rusted. It is mainly on the top of the rails but there are some sections with side rail rusting.
it is my opinion that the manufacturer in China is doing some cost cutting by mixing in some carbon steel. I sent Aristo Craft another e-mail so I will see what they have to say now.
Ron
I do not have experience with Aristo-Craft track specifically, but stainless steel in general.
First, there are many grades (alloys of different base metals) of stainless steel. The lower grades, depending on environment, can show oxidation (rust) if acted on by aggressive (acidic) chemistry. The higher grades (more expensive), in the use we are talking about, will not rust. Considering the cost of stainless steel, I seriously doubt that Aristo-Craft is using high grade stainless steel.
The second condition that will 'show' rust is, the tooling that was used to manufacture the rail was contaminated (had been used) with carbon steel. During the rolling process that forms the rails, there will be very small slivers of material deposited on the forming rollers. If the rollers were not properly cared for, they may have deposited this contaminant on and pressed into the surface of the rails, allowing them to 'rust'.
Being as all of Aristo rail is imported from China, I would not even hazard a guess as to the real reason. As for the track being under water, that is an answer from a person who has no answer and does not know his product. Henceforth I stick to brass track. I like the patina over time, it is for the most part impervious to most environments, is a better conductor than stainless and is far easier to work with as a whole. There are many who swear by stainless steel, but I personally see no reason to spend the additional funds.
As for track rusting in a couple of weeks, with out additional information relative to location and weather conditions overall (ie high humidity), it is hard to tell.
Good luck and happy railroading.
If it truly is stainless steel, it should never rust. If it is rusting, it is not stainless but has been alloyed.
There's a former Santa Fe Super Chief dome car on display outdoors in Maricopa, Arizona that was one of the Budd Company's stainless steel products. There are a few rust spots on the car where other metals were used, but the true stainless parts are still spotless.
I use brass track on my railroad but stainless steel be it G gauge track or any other type of item should not rust under any circumstances at least thats my experience working in the trades most of my life. By any chance is the rust just on the joiners maybe? It might be that the track is stainless but some of the little components are not.
scvngman Has anybody experienced Aristo Craft SS track rusting? I have track that has been outdoors for a year now, and it is starting to rust. Not all of it but some sections. I contacted Arist Craft and they said it will rust if it is underwater. I thought, OK the track may have been underwater briefly after some recent heavy rains. But I just layed out some future sections about 3 weeks ago. No rain and no flooding. The track has started to rust! Any comments?
Has anybody experienced Aristo Craft SS track rusting? I have track that has been outdoors for a year now, and it is starting to rust. Not all of it but some sections. I contacted Arist Craft and they said it will rust if it is underwater. I thought, OK the track may have been underwater briefly after some recent heavy rains. But I just layed out some future sections about 3 weeks ago. No rain and no flooding. The track has started to rust! Any comments?
RUDY JAGER, CEO OF THE LONE WOLF RAILROAD
TRUST ME--I USED TO WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT!
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