LGB's conductive paste

[Anonymous]

I was about to expand my layout and I was thinking of using conductive paste at the rail joints. Does anyone have any opinions of the product, ie in attracting dirt, water resistance, et cetera? I would like to know the pros and cons of the product before attempting to use it. Thanks, Mark[:)]

[Anonymous]

Hi Mark,
Used it on a RR in the late 80's and had no problem with it. I have to say that most of the track was taken up now and then and the paste was applied again before the next time out. I think climatic conditions do affect it, baking hot days, freezing nights etc.
Cheers,
Kim
[tup]

[vsmith]

I would use it, it helps keep water, grit or dirt out of the joints and it helps maintain the contact between the rails. If your using only LGB joiners (no railclamps) then the joiner will have a tendency to "wiggle" loose as the trains roll over it or heat/cold push-pulls it apart. This is also true but to a much lesser degree with A/C track with set screws. Best is to use railclamps with the grease clamped tight at each joint, if you can afford it. If not, use A/C-USA track with the set screws & a dab of conductive grease. I really helps.

[Anonymous]

I am a firm believer in LGB graphite lubricant conductive paste (part # 51010) and have used it outdoors in weather ranging from 0 to 100 degrees F since 1998. I put it in the rail joiners with a toothpick, pu***he track ends together, and then clean the excess off the railhead with a rag. My local LGB dealer once showed me a scholarly article explaining how effective this product is, and my own experience supports this.

If at any time you have to take your track apart for repairs or changes, be sure to keep the can of conductive paste handy so you can use it as needed.

To also insure good operation and electrical continuity into the locomotive I use the LGB track cleaning block (part #50040) mounted on an old sponge mop handle with zip ties that you get at a hardware store.



Using these two items will give you reliable operation.

Yours truly,
Bill C.

[Karl Reichenbach]

Dielectric conductive silicone grease, sold at auto parts stores, comes in tubes and is much easier to apply. It is also cheaper, and does the same thing as LGB conductive paste. It may even be the same product packaged for LGB. I would not lay track without one or the other.

Karl Reichenbach

[vsmith]

Hey, that old mop idea is great, beats paying $ for a drywall sander and I'm sure most of us have an old mop learking around in the garage or basement . For my indoor layout I use a cleaning pad that was intended to be used for cleaning the grill of a BBQ without scratching up the chrome, even has a handle.

[Anonymous]

Bill I am a great admirer of your feet, they look a lot like mine I even have asimilar pair of shoes.

I do not know what a dry wall sander is, although I have seen many references to them, Jack Verducci uses one, so they must be ok. We don;'t even have dry walls here in Queensland, let alone sanders for them. What is a dry wall anyway?

In the words of Pauline Hanson " please explain".

Now on to LGB conductive paste, this is a waste of time in my opinion, I am not saying a word about the quality of the product at all. It may or may not help conductivity, I do not know but one thing I am pretty sure of, it does not improve mechanical strength of a join.

Over a period of time joins do come apart, particularly on a curve after a straight, and particularly if you have a heavy peice of equipment or a fast train and this to me is a more likely problem, at least it was when I had my RAGS (Rough AS Guts) layout in Sydney.

If you listen to Jack verdsucci and i do he advocates soldering all joints except those at points (switches) then use Hillamdn clamps and that is what i do and i have not had a single joint problemof any kind in my Kawana Island layout. Why not use Aristo track , it screws together, a simple but ok answer; not the answer but pretty good all the same.
Soldering is easy and the bugbear of expansion doesn't ring true, it can be compensated for but for me it is not a problem; as it is too small to make any difference.

Soldering is easy; you use a jewelers blow torch but if you are unsure, spend the extra and put Hillman Clamps right round. A bit more exxy but you can forget anny probelems ever, just about.

Regards

ian.

[Anonymous]

Thank you for everybody's imput, I appreciate the effort. Once again thank you all [:D]
Mark

[Anonymous]

Using these two items will give you reliable operation.

Yours truly,
Bill C.