Track Cleaning Cars: Who makes the best?

[Anonymous]

I m having trouble keeping the rails free of oxidation and oil and am looking at purchasing a track cleaning car. So the question is: What have your experiences been with the different cars available?

[michaelstevens]

I have two MOW trains (cleaning trains) which get dispatched, on my HO layout, before anything else gets to run. They both operate on the dry/abrasive principle alone.
Each is made up of ;
1 Roco (40' van) with the sprung pad changed to a sliver of "bright boy" (attach with CA),
2 Athearn (heavily weighted) locos,
1 Roco (40' van) with the as delivered rubber sprung pad and
1 IHC caboose (originally for liquid cleaning) with fine grit sandpaper in lieu of the fabric, on the gravity pad.
I'll check and clean (sanding block) the pads first, then run these trains for at least 2 laps of each of my continuous running tracks.
Occasionally I'll add a couple of drops of Wahl's clipper oil (on the inside of the outside rail) at one curve in either direction.
That's what works for me.

Enjoy and Happy Xmas !!

[Anonymous]

The best ones out there are:
The Annihilator by www.aztechtrains

Tony's clean machine
http://www.ttx-dcc.com/technews/clean_machine.htm

www.centerlineproducts.com

I found that for a single level, 200 ft, all within reach that MAAS paste will do the trick. www.maasinc.com

I retired my expensive Tony's clean machine in favor of the paste. MR Jan 03

In the absence of MAAS I also used automotive polishing compound

[Anonymous]

Well i have one of those centerline cars with the brass roller in it and to be honest about it it SUCKS!! dont work worth a damn not for me anyway however i have heard that it do work for some people im not one of them so i have gone back to manually cleaning the layout and i also use the MAAS paste good stuff!! Flitzs also works although its a bit messy
I'm with Chuck on this one MAAS paste is simply the best stuff around a bit tedious to apply depending on the size of your layout took me about two hours to do my entire 25x16 layout But , once its done you dont got to touch your layout for a good 6-8 months or so
or at least that is the case with me im goin on nine months without cleanin the rails
and i only run maybe 1-2 times a week or so somtimes up to two months may go by before i run again they start every time and run flawlessly every time

hope this helps ya

Regards
Larry

[nfmisso]

Fergie;

First replace all your plastic wheels with metal ones, clean ALL of the metal ones (especially the new ones) with MAAS, then clean all the rails with MAAS, and you will be set for at least 9 months. Don't let anything on your railroad without cleaning the wheels. And do NOT let plastic wheels on it either. If you follow this, you will not need a track cleaning car.

[Anonymous]

In N Scale, I vote for Aztek. I have two, and while letting the layout set for long periods of time requires a bright boy, the Azteks do the job if you just let it set a week or so. I run them around each main twice, filled with cleaning fluid, and the trains run.

[Wdlgln005]

It's the Goo Gone that makes the Centerline cars work. Run a wet car followed by a dry one. A bright boy boxcar takes care of the dry dust. I'm curious about hte new Atlas zamboni car.

[Anonymous]

I too owned the centerline but did not find it as functional as Tony's clean machine.
With Tony's, you have a reservoir plus a flow control valve which I still own but no
longer run.

The application trick with the paste is use a very small block, identical to that of a brite
boy, or the brike boy it self.

Cut an old cotton t-shirt into 6"/7" narrow strips.
Wrap the t-shirt around the bb/block
Apply the paste to the narrow edge of the t-shirt block and drag across rail head.

This way you avoid messing up everything along the right of way.

After the paste SLIGHTLY dries, wipe with un-treated t-shirt material wrapped
around bb/block. No mess, simple and dirt cheap...

I also used this paste in cleaning the drivers an a Lionel-HO steam loco that was
made in the late 60's. First cleaning in 35 years and WOW!

I continue to use the paste on all loco wheels by flipping the unit over and connecting
with power leads from the track to the loco. Power up, spin the wheels and clean.

[Anonymous]

Thanks Guys

Looks like I'll be going with the tank and MAAS as I have several tracks that will be out of reach (deep cuts and tunnels).

Hope Santa was good to you.

[NevinW]

Are there any chain stores or jewelry stores that carry the MAAS paste? The Lowes here doesn't have it. - Nevin

[Anonymous]

I picked up a MOW track cleaner from a show here near Philly. The darn thing is too heavy for my trains to push around the track, unless it's on a down grade. I bought it because I could not find my Centerline one. But I found it today, so the MOW will be going bye bye.

Forgot to mention, it is the one for N-scale, so it is not adjustable.

[cbq9911a]

I've got the Centerline track cleaning cars in HO and O 3 rail.

They work pretty well on my layout (15' x 25' around the walls); I use Goo Gone to clean my track. With the HO cleaner, don't back up; otherwise the cover will unravel. With the O cleaner, I've had no luck finding replacement rollers - gotta buy them from Centerline at $ 15.00 for 6.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by NevinW

Are there any chain stores or jewelry stores that carry the MAAS paste? The Lowes here doesn't have it. - Nevin

Try an Ace hardware, Target or Wal-Mart, Household Cleaning Section. It's only a two tube so
not all employees can spot it.

As an alternative, a seven ounce paste can of "automotive POLISHING compound" for a few bucks
will also work.

[NevinW]

Thanks - A trip to Walmart is in order! - Nevin

[Anonymous]

The centerline car that i mentioned in earlier post was for my N Scale layout as i said it REALLY SUCKS!! non rolling, derailing, non cleaning, piece of S**T!! i even tried the PAD car same thing there as well then on this forum somone mentioned this MAAS paste what a godsend this stuff is!! i coudnt find here in Flagstaff AZ so i had to go to PHX to get it if you are unable to find this stuff an alternate would be a product called FLITZ it does the same thing only thing it is bit messy to apply i have both and they both work well now we need a car to apply this stuff as doing it by hand takes away the time you could be running trains instead of cleaning rails

hope this helps ya

Regards
LARRY

[Anonymous]

As far as finding MAAS i picked mine up in PHX at an ACE hardware store if you live ina big city you should have no troube finding it or FLITZ if a small town you may have to have them look it up then special order it for you. I found FLITZ here in flagstaff at Hunts True Value Hardware but i wanted this MAAS paste as i heard this is the stuff to have

now i have a question for anyone to answer

As you know all N Scale stock come with plastic wheels i hear that in HO you should change out plastic to metal wheelsets to help keep rails cleaner longer and to also increase the weight of the car what i want to know is should i do the same thing here
if it is possible to do? who make good metal replacment wheels other than those really sucky crappy *** atlas stock sets?

Anyone out there please help me on this

Regards

LARRY

[Anonymous]

Can't help you on the N scale wheel question but HO metal wheels add
to the free rolling abitity of the car.

I would bet that one could increase their train length by 25% over plastic..

One must be careful when upgrading since there are 28-33-36-38" size sets
and axles vary in length and may not be an exact fit into the original truck.

Nigel, in a previous response mentioned these various features.
Page three, Wheel Sets and Trucks.

[bluepuma]

QUOTE: Originally posted by JeffBrauer

In N Scale, I vote for Aztek. I have two, and while letting the layout set for long periods of time requires a bright boy, the Azteks do the job if you just let it set a week or so. I run them around each main twice, filled with cleaning fluid, and the trains run.

After reviewing all, that looked like they would come closest to what I wanted without
having to do it manually. - Thanks, my wife insists on running a fan winter and summer, I had to give up listening to my cd player in the bedroom.

[Anonymous]

I have wasted much money on track cleaning cars, wahl clipper oil, and other new and improved methods to clean track. The best by far is nickel silver track, steel wheels, a briteboy, and just running the trains on the track once a day. If you do this then cleaning the loco wheels ocassionally with alcohol will be all you need to do. Use the briteboy on any problem areas as needed (once every month or two). FRED