Dirty Wheels

[Anonymous]

I have a small N scale railroad under a dust cover on display in a museum, have to clean wheels and rails every 2-3 days since the locomotives (2-8-0 Consolidations) are so light and intolerant of the least bit of crud. Since this runs unattended a few hours a day it needs to be kept reliable and clean, if they stall nobody there to know what to do about it.

At some point I will get some Aztec track cleaning cars for it and then will only need to clean the roller periodically, but for now i find a quick and comfortable way is to wear a mateless old sock like a glove and soak the end in 91% rubbing alcohol. Then i can rub this along the rails without damage to scenery close to the tracks since i have better control of my fingers on the rails than if i used some sort of tool.

For the wheels i turn the locos and cars upside down in a stryfoam cradle, spin the car and tender wheels with a finger while holding the wet sock against the tread with a fingernail from inside the sock for extra scraping power. Same thing for the locos, but with a 9V battery held against the tender pickup wheels to spin the drivers while cleaning them.

[Anonymous]

I have a small N scale railroad under a dust cover on display in a museum, have to clean wheels and rails every 2-3 days since the locomotives (2-8-0 Consolidations) are so light and intolerant of the least bit of crud. Since this runs unattended a few hours a day it needs to be kept reliable and clean, if they stall nobody there to know what to do about it.

At some point I will get some Aztec track cleaning cars for it and then will only need to clean the roller periodically, but for now i find a quick and comfortable way is to wear a mateless old sock like a glove and soak the end in 91% rubbing alcohol. Then i can rub this along the rails without damage to scenery close to the tracks since i have better control of my fingers on the rails than if i used some sort of tool.

For the wheels i turn the locos and cars upside down in a stryfoam cradle, spin the car and tender wheels with a finger while holding the wet sock against the tread with a fingernail from inside the sock for extra scraping power. Same thing for the locos, but with a 9V battery held against the tender pickup wheels to spin the drivers while cleaning them.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the great tips on wheels guys! I am now convinced that I will be doing the right thing by changing to metal wheels. The cleaning tips are great as well. All of my rolling stock is Athearn, and sure enough the Delrin wheels make a mess real quick and the wobble is distracting too.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the great tips on wheels guys! I am now convinced that I will be doing the right thing by changing to metal wheels. The cleaning tips are great as well. All of my rolling stock is Athearn, and sure enough the Delrin wheels make a mess real quick and the wobble is distracting too.

[Anonymous]

It also helps if you clean the room so the dust on the rails is minimized. I beg to differ with the metal wheel advocates. Since the build up is on the plastic wheels, how can they wear. I rarely clean the non-conducting wheels on cars or locomotives. The carbonized dust mixed with the parafins of the lubrication and results in a plastic like formation. Just focusing on the wheel material is myoptic in solving the problem. I do not care for the plastic axles because they can not be cleaned and polished. The tarnish on the rail and active (conducting) wheels is another source of latent resistance and the metal polishers or abrasion is significant in removing this problem. Each in his own way to enjoy the hobby! Lindsay

[Anonymous]

It also helps if you clean the room so the dust on the rails is minimized. I beg to differ with the metal wheel advocates. Since the build up is on the plastic wheels, how can they wear. I rarely clean the non-conducting wheels on cars or locomotives. The carbonized dust mixed with the parafins of the lubrication and results in a plastic like formation. Just focusing on the wheel material is myoptic in solving the problem. I do not care for the plastic axles because they can not be cleaned and polished. The tarnish on the rail and active (conducting) wheels is another source of latent resistance and the metal polishers or abrasion is significant in removing this problem. Each in his own way to enjoy the hobby! Lindsay

[BR60103]

I've found that even metal wheels pick up enough gunk to stop locos working. They do this during a 2-hour operating session!
We use track cleaning cars, track cleaning blocks, j-cloth soaked with track cleaner, paper towels...
I don't think anyone's suggested that you give up smoking yet. And no cooking in the layout room!

[BR60103]

I've found that even metal wheels pick up enough gunk to stop locos working. They do this during a 2-hour operating session!
We use track cleaning cars, track cleaning blocks, j-cloth soaked with track cleaner, paper towels...
I don't think anyone's suggested that you give up smoking yet. And no cooking in the layout room!