Goo Gone;

[Anonymous]

Just curious to see what kind of luck people have had using Goo Gone to clean track? I've used it in the past and it seemed to cause more problems than it cured. It seemed that no matter how much I cleaned the track, it was always dirty. And it acted like it just attracted more dirt and grime.
I now use a liquid that was recommended to me by Atlas and made by Aero Car Lubricants specifically for track cleaning.
It's part # is ACT-6006 and called "Track & Rail Cleaner.
So far it's worked great.
gtr

[PennsyHoosier]

Haven't used it on track. I use it on most everything else (my wife says I'm a slob). [:D]

[chutton01]

I would not use Goo-Gone for cleaning track - it works well for removing sticker gunk and such (well, it does usually take me two applications to get the job done), but you have to wipe it down afterwards to get a clean finish. If you're gonna do that, why not just use a brightboy or equivalent to sand away the track crud.

[EL PARRo]

This is somewhat off-topic, but do you think goo gone could remove waterspots off of a windshield? I just got a car and it has waterspots on the side and rear windows. I've tried a few different things, but nothing has been able to remove these waterspots very effectively.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by gtirr


It's part # is ACT-6006 and called "Track & Rail Cleaner.
So far it's worked great.
gtr

I also have that in my arsenal of cleaning products. It's a pricey liquid at almost a $1.00
per ounce.
I have since found a cheaper, more effective, longer lasting metal paste cleaner, MAAS
for $3.45 tube at Walmart. Thank you MR, Jan 2003
This paste also put Tony's clean machine on indefinate layoff..

[cmrproducts]

Yes Goo Gone is only good for cleaning anything but track.

Use metal polish (any type) and you will not have to clean your track for a year at a time.

BOB H Clarion, PA

[nslakediv]

I feel for the goo gone and the centerline track cleaning car trick and have since stopped using for the same reasons. I have purchased a CMX clean machine and followed the suggested track cleaning directions and found the best thing to use was fingernail polish remover($.99 at walmart). I was worried about fumes but just plugged a fan in and really was no issue.

[chutton01]

QUOTE: Originally posted by EL PARRo

This is somewhat off-topic, but do you think goo gone could remove waterspots off of a windshield? I just got a car and it has waterspots on the side and rear windows. I've tried a few different things, but nothing has been able to remove these waterspots very effectively.

I'd say be very careful if you try, as Goo Gone can muck up some Paint Finishes, as can it's cousins the Orange (well, citrus)-based cleaners.

[JerryZeman]

The ONLY time I ever had problems with conductivity (I run DCC) was after running the Centerline car around with Goo Gone.

The Goo-Gone deposited on the rails, and cleaned all of my rolling stock wheels, and left the gunk on the track.

I ran around the Centerline car again with the Labelle #108 on the cloth. Cleaned the track right up.

Since oiling my track, I don't even need to use the Centerline car.

regards,
Jerry

[ben10ben]

I've found Goo Gone to be more effective than anything else I've tried at removing crud, but, as others have mentioned, it does leave some residue behind that can cause problems. To remedy this, I wipe the track in rubbing alcohol after cleaning with Goo Gone to remove all the residue and associated problems.

[retsignalmtr]

i've been using a blue liquid track cleaner from lifelike and have had no problems. i used goo gone and had some conductivity problems. i also run some cars with a piece of masonite under the car sliding on the rails that polishes the rails and i find i do not have to use the liqoid as often.

[johnmartin]

I use an Australian made product CRC 2.26 (Electrical formula) to clean and also lubricate. Their Web site http://www.crcind.com.au/crc/index.html has the follwing info in the FAQ section:-
CRC 2.26 is a stable inert organic formula that contains a lubricant that is applied at around 25-micron thickness. CRC 2.26 also contains solvents that offer a cleaning action as a supplementary benefit and will evaporate after 4-6 hours.

I have been using it for over 10 years with no effect on locomotives or the plastic track components (I use Peco track) and have found that I only have to use an eraser type "track cleaner" on a very infrequent basis, in fact some siding are never touched and I can still run trains on them. It leaves a coating on the locomotive wheels that gives excellent eletrical conductivity for smooth running and I have not experienced excessive build up of "crud" on the locomotive or metal wagon wheels.

They do have a USA Web site http://www.crcindustries.com

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by johnmartin

I use an Australian made product CRC 2.26 (Electrical formula) to clean and also lubricate. The

They do have a USA Web site http://www.crcindustries.com

That used to be in my arsenal of products. Next time down to Menards or Home depot I will pick some up.

[cacole]

The CRC Industries USA Web site lists hundreds of products, but nothing with the name or number of Electrical Formula, 2.26, or 2026. Could you be more specific, please, about the product's description? I'm very interested in trying some of it on our club layout.

[Anonymous]

On their web site you see a blue can called"Precision cleaner and then the electrical plug".

That may be it?

[cmrproducts]

How often does everyone clean their track? Everytime they run!

How often then do you run your trains?

BOB H Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

There are enviromental variables as well as personal preferences.

[Anonymous]

Used to use the Goo Gone on the track (N Scale), switched to the metal polish wadding. The wadding is far superior to the goo gone. I was trying to poli***eh wheels of my locomotives, and found my wife had a cloth product that is designed for removing water marks from wood furniture. It also says it cleans brass and copper. So I tried it on the wheels of one loco, and a small piece of track. I couldn't believe how much gunk it took off the wheels and the track. I used to clean track almost every day, now I let the layout sit for a day or so just to test the cleaning, and each loco works flawlessly. Even in the part of the layout I call "oxidation alley". No more Goo Gone, just the polishes for me.

[retsignalmtr]

right now i'm looking at a can of crc3-36. i remember when i had some crc2-26. when i worked as a signal maintainer on the NYCTA . the crc products were issued to use for cleaning and lubricating electrical parts. they were made in USA although they may also be produced elsewhere. when i used this product to clean contacts it had to be removed completly as it is flammable. i remember when we were using it to clean contacts in interlocking machines and had nothing but trouble if you did not get it all off the contact surface. it burned and caused carbon to build up and cause a decrease in conductivity. even with low voltages. it was better to use a clean and dry cloth (real shamy cloth or cheese cloth ). if it gets into rail joiners it may cause a conductivity problem. also it should not be used indoors as there are some serious side effects to it. read the material safety data sheet (MSDS) before using industrial chemicals.

[Dayliner]

Add my name to the list of "metal polish converts." I was using Goo Gone and found it left a residue which probably attracted dirt. I then had to wipe off the Goo Gone very carefully from the rails before anything would run at all. Went out yesterday and bought a tube of Flitz metal polish. The cloth came up black and the trains run beautifully!

[cmrproducts]

Michael (Dayliner)

Welcome to the modelers that have seen the light and have converted from having to clean the rails to just running trains and not having to worry about dirty track.

If you find that it works for you, as well as it has for me, spread the word.

We have to get this idea that you have to run cleaning cars around the layout before you can run your trains out of everyones head!

BOB H Clarion, PA

[Marty on Vancouver Island]

The best way to keep track clean is to run trains. And metal wheel sets on all your rolling stock DEFINITELY help that cause. Periodic cleaning of the locomotive wheels is still necessary, more so if you use DCC. When a unit gets a little sluggish during an ops session, I have the crew fill out a Bad Order form. Before the next session, I clean the wheels on the bad ordered unit (and usually two or three others while I have the materials out). All I use is doubled- over paper towel layed across the track and wetted with 99% Isopropyl Alcohol. If (when) some track cleaning becomes necessary, all I use is the 99% alcohol on a cloth, and a bright boy type cleaner where necessary. As I said; "just run trains." Cheers

[cmrproducts]

Marty

I have a dedicated engine track on my layout that is accessible from the engine house. When the engineer picks up his engine he is instructed to go Sand & Fuel (clean the engine wheels), so he runs the engine over to the wheel cleaner.

This is set up with a cloth held down so the couplers will not catch on the cloth and has spring loaded wires to hold the cloth so it won’t move.

A foot petal allows the operator to raise the wires to allow the cloth to slid to a clean area. We can move the cloth while the engine is running and being slid back and forth across the cleaning cloth. We use Goo Gone on the cloth to clean the engine wheels but we make sure that a clean section of the cloth is used to dry the wheels before the engine is put back in service.

BOB H Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

googone no good for track cleaning. to much gook left behind. i use barasso metal cleaner if track is real bad. brite boy and over the counter track cleaner works well

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BAYOULOCO

googone no good for track cleaning. to much gook left behind. i use barasso metal cleaner if track is real bad. brite boy and over the counter track cleaner works well

This "barasso"....is it similar to "Brasso", or more like "barenakedasso"??[:0]
[:I][:D]
regards;
Mike

[ben10ben]

I would not use Brasso, if that's what you mean. You might as well be dumping 3-in-1 oil on your track, as it leaves behind an oily residue that's very much like that. Great for making metal shine, but bad for metal intended to carry electricity.

[tatans]

Has anyone ever seen a report on just what grime on wheels is actually made from? it would seem where could all this crap come from on a car that is 6 inches long and weighs 6 ounces, it surely can't be all dust, or grime falling off the engine, does corrosion play a part in it? There just seems far too much accumulation of crud to blame a small amount of dust on this problem. So all you guys out there with a chemical lab in the basement get busy and analyse the make-up of this crap, then you will find the source, I have no idea where this much gunk can come from--all you chemists out there-let's hear from you.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by tatans

Has anyone ever seen a report on just what grime on wheels is actually made from? --all you chemists out there-let's hear from you.

Here you go.
http://www.tonystrains.com/technews/cmx_chemist_review.htm
+

[tatans]

YIKES ! WHEW ! ! ! I asked for it and I really got it , A great article on the chemical breakdown of "CRUD" and methds of eliminating it, albeit, a plug for a certain product, Ignoring this (or not) the article is very helpful and factual with a cautious guide to using certain products to clean up the "dirt" I'm printing this and on the wall it goes. Thanks a bunch for the information. I hope this information reaches the other topics on this forum.

[Bikerdad]

Just a note: getting "black stuff" when using metal polish is the order of the day. You would get black stuff if you used metal polish on a gleaming, superreflective metal surface that has just been cleaned in one of Intel's "clean rooms." That black stuff is METAL particles being abraded by the polish, so the presence of black stuff is no indicator at all of how dirty your track (or wheels) were.

One thing I discovered when cleaning my track last week: don't try to use cotton makeup removal pads. On the surface, it seems like a great idea. Sized right, cheap, easy to find (any drug store, discount store, grocery store, etc), will hold a good bit of your cleaning liquid of choice, etc. Downside: sheds cotton fibers, which inevitably will work their way into the truck gearing of your locos. DAMHIKT.