My career was in electronics - pro audio specifically. I imagine many of you have encountered a volume control on a stereo or a radio where you turn the control and hear a graak graak sound as you adjust it. Maybe you'd call it static. We use chemicals to clean these controls. A popular one from Caig Labs is DeOxit. It comes in a 5% solution aerosol or a vial of 100% solution you dab on. It is used for any moving electrical contact surface. SO connectors, controls like volume controls, switches, and so on. It doesn;t turn gummy, and works almost like magic.
I wonder if anyone has tried this or similar products on model track. I used to abrade my track clean, and decades ago I had a little track cleaner car and some purple (I think) cleaning fluid that soaked into a pad under it. I no longer have any track, but I sure would try DeOxit in a heartbeat. But I can;t be the first guy to think of this.
I have no stock in Caig nor do I sell it, there are other brands, just they are the best known.
Maybe you can give us some chemical insight on CRC 2-26?
DeOxit is said to be sticky in this thread
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/744/t/182846.aspx
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
I have some DeOxit but have been reluctant to try it. One member of my club swears by it. Right now everything is running fine, but we shall see what the future brings.
Bear "It's all about having fun."
No experience with Deoxit. However, many narrowgaugers swear by CRC 2-26.
Start with clean track to the extent possible, unless the track is new (and not have any deposits already on it). If you don't, then treating it with 2-26 will mobilize all the grunge and make a mess that will require lots of hand cleaning anyway.
Spray/decant some CRC into a small jar or other container, then dip the end of a cork in it and wipe your rails with it. Let it sit overnight, then run it. It not only helps adhesion, but leaves the track with a more realistic steely look to it. You don't need much, just a very thin film, and it doesn't need to go absolutely everywhere, as the wheels will spread it.
A full application to your track should last for a long time. I haven't gone back to re-do mine except for some spot application here and there in the almost 10 years I've been using it.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
Y'all do recall that one of the reasons to use nickel-silver rail was because the "oxides" of nickel-silver were conductive. As opposed to that nasty brass stuff.
So why do we need DeOxit?
To get the oxen off the track?
Ed
We need either an abrasive (not ideal by any means) or an organic solvent to keep our rails clean. The oxides do conduct, although less well than the metallurgy from which they are derived. I believe it is mostly organic films that build up on the bearing surfaces, whether rail head or metal/plastic tire. If they become substantial enough and hard enough to provide their own bearing capacity, they lift the metal around them and below them up off the rail head, oxidized or not.
selector If they become substantial enough and hard enough to provide their own bearing capacity, they lift the metal around them and below them up off the rail head, oxidized or not.
If they become substantial enough and hard enough to provide their own bearing capacity, they lift the metal around them and below them up off the rail head, oxidized or not.
I'm not following that. Could you please rephrase?
Ed, I mean that if the organic crud we see developing on tires firms up over time and can't be displaced along the surface due to the weight of the rolling stock item, it will eventually replace the metal or plastic tire as the bearing surface. If on an engine, those affected wheels which also happen to pick up power lose their metal-to-metal contact with the rails.
I have been using DeOxit 5% spray for a year or so now on my N scale, all metal wheel layout. The layout gathers dust due to it's location. I use the DeOxit when i want to run trains but don't want to take the time to meticulously clean track, as i would for an operating session. It works great. I spray a little bit on the track(1 second shot) just in front of the power and away it goes. Spray every 6-10 feet and the layout runs pretty well. If there are dead spots, an abrasive or a second squirt usually handles it. I have used CRC-26 as well, but that is for a more complete cleaning (and it makes wheels slip, if too much is used. DeOxit evaporates quickly, so doesn't have the slip issue). It isn't cheap, but i use it sparingly. Joel
selector Ed, I mean that if the organic crud we see developing on tires firms up over time and can't be displaced along the surface due to the weight of the rolling stock item, it will eventually replace the metal or plastic tire as the bearing surface. If on an engine, those affected wheels which also happen to pick up power lose their metal-to-metal contact with the rails.
I see. Yes, wheel cleaning time.
Hello all,
Welcome to the forums!
I was a touring master electrician for 20-years. My specialty was dimming control, both analog and digital.
We used many different solutions to clean dirty faders and pots.
After getting back into this hobby after more than 40-years...man did thing change!
But electrons remain constant!
I tried the afore mentioned CRC 2-26 to remove the black residue on the railheads.
Yes, it worked but it wasn't a permanent solution (forgive the pun). I would clean the rails only to have them blackened after a few running sessions.
I then tried Aero-Car Hobby Lubricants, Track & Rail Cleaner; ACT-6006.
This stuff works, for me at least!
I first applied it to the rails using a soft cloth designed for cleaning glasses. Then I ran it through a track cleaning car.
Both applications worked!
Hope this helps.
"Uhh...I didn’t know it was 'impossible' I just made it work...sorry"
owen w in californiaI have used CRC-26 as well, but that is for a more complete cleaning (and it makes wheels slip, if too much is used.
Yeah, if you're slipping, you used too much CRC 2-26. It's really hard to convince folks to use it very sparingly, as more has got to be better, right?
Actually, not in this case, unless you're trying to get things clean and intend to wipe up afterwards.
jjdamnitI tried the afore mentioned CRC 2-26 to remove the black residue on the railheads. Yes, it worked but it wasn't a permanent solution (forgive the pun). I would clean the rails only to have them blackened after a few running sessions. I then tried Aero-Car Hobby Lubricants, Track & Rail Cleaner; ACT-6006.
It may be that your track and/or rolling stock had some crud on it when the CRC was applied. That will definitely spread the offending stuff around and leave residue.
On the other hand, I tend to doubt that there is ANY permanent solution to track cleaning. You can try to manage it and do some good, but thinking you can make grunge disappear entirely is just setting your self up for frustration. The trick is to keep it under control.
I love your suggestion for the ACT-6006, though, because it's the other half of the equation on my track. That's what I use when the track needs cleaning, which is rare, but I do have a lot of hidden track, some on a pretty good grade (3%) and narrowgauge to boot. Yeah, too much CRC and you're not going anywhere, but mostly it seems to be the usual dark crud.
But I get what I consider to be minimal pickup of it on my Centerlines. I suspect much of my grunge is from blackened wheels. Haven't bought much rolling stock lately, so the level of this seems to be dropping steadily. The ACT-6006 helps pick up the grunge in connection with whatever means you're doing that.
The way I think of this is CRC 2-26 is a contact enhancer, while the ACT-6006 is a cleaner. In my experience, they complement each other, as the CRC has great residual persistence and the ACT-6006 can be used on CRC-treated track without removing the effectiveness of the 2-26.
mlehmanIt may be that your track and/or rolling stock had some crud on it when the CRC was applied.
To clarify, I also cleaned all the wheels on the locos and rolling stock using the Woodland Scenics unit and CRC 2-26.
Replacing the cleaning pad when it got dirty from all the wheels. As a last check I ran them over paper towels to make sure the buildup on the wheels was gone.
Some folks have also suggested that the residue could be due to plastic wheels on some of the rolling stock.
After using the ACT-6006 this residue did not appear even with the few sets of plastic wheels on rolling stock.
I've now replaced all the plastic wheels with metal ones and enjoy a clean track.
jjdamnitTo clarify, I also cleaned all the wheels on the locos and rolling stock using the Woodland Scenics unit and CRC 2-26.
OK, think of this a little differently for a moment. If CRC 2-26 is a persistent contact enhancer, getting all the parts thoroughly soaked in it means it will persist even once it seems to be gone when your cleaning is through. The stuff tends to hang around because it was designed to do that.
ACT-6006 won't cause these issues for two reasons. It's much less persistent than the CRC. It is also less aggressive in its action in lifting grunge. It does, but it doesn't become the mess that would occur if you dumped a bunch of CRC on grungy track, as the CRC would tend to dissolve that. With -6006, I tend to get two streaks of grunge pickup on my Handi-Wipe pads.
I'll throw a 3rd option in for cleaning for those who don't mind dealing with it, acetone. It really cuts through the grunge. I typically use q-tips to apply and scrub the grunge buildup out. Typically this occurs on the side of wheels on. a truck that ride a little high, so the grunge both helps locate wheels that do ride incorrectly, to then be edjusted and that need cleaning anyway. Acetone has great cleaning properties, but also quickly evaporates, lacking the persistence of the ACT-6006
The plastic wheel issue does spark disagreement, but I agree that eliminating them helps with getting people's track in better shape. Depending on the quality of the plastic, all sorts of things will migrate onto your track, plus they are more suspecptible to picking up and holding onto grunge than metal in my experience.
Keep in mind this is based on my experience and situation. But there seems to be something to it. Narrowgauge locos and cars are light, have limited traction, and generally requires some precision. Despite that, my operators generally concur that the layout operates like a standard gauge one and I spend very little time cleaning track, the only things that really count in these discussions.
Anyway those are my experiences and thoughts.