Clean your track with your tongue!

[Anonymous]

I'm not kidding. I went to my LHS and asked Ole Bob for a BriteBoy to clean my track with. He apologized for not having one in stock, and suggested a zero cost alternative. Cut the tongue out of an "old" (make sure it's old or your wife will kill you!) leather shoe (must be actual leather). Attach it to a small block smooth side out. The block should be roughly the width of the full tie.

IT ACTUALLY WORKS![:D]

Ole Bob is always telling me "old school" tips & tricks like this. These are the things he used to do before all of the modern new fangled gadets came along. Suffice it to say the store manager virtually growls when he does this because there's no sale in it. Short term thinking IMHO. But I think Old Bob has the right of it. I'll go back and buy things that there's no substitute for at that store because of the goodwill Ole Bob's built up. And there's no substitute for that.

Trevor[:)]

[Fergmiester]

And here I thought you were going to tell us you were into "Shock Therapy"! 110 or 220?

No an old piece of shoe leather has a lot of uses some well forgotten, especially the one to put a good edge on a knife. Also used for chafing gear on mooring lines as it will out wear any synthetic material.

Thanks for sharing this with us.

Fergie

[ragnar]

Shopping at a LHS that has people with this kind of knowledge is so very invaluable,To often many shops are only interested in selling their products or their sales people are young part timers that have not the knowledge to help and when you ask some even basic questions you get a Gee,I don't know check with one of the local clubs!
Great to know you don't have that problem!

Makes me think back years ago when having a problem with the starter on an old Pontiac (solanoid wouldn't work) talked with a old mechanic,instead of replacing the part he took it apart , said see this brass washer? yep sure did,bout the size of a quarter.
He took it off ,turned it upside down ,reinstalled the starter and it was still working 3 years later when i finally sold the old heap....!!

[cheese3]

I am going to have to try this.

[selector]

If Trevor would not mind too much, and since we're on the subject of seemingly 'goofy' ideas about uses for this and that, and track cleaning keeps coming up as a thorn, may I suggest that pieces of discarded extruded foam are also quite good at getting the gunk off track. It takes a bit of elbow grease, but a few swipes left my track in much better shape than it was before.

Thanks for the tip, Trevor.

[Seamonster]

Merchants like Ole Bob are rare, few and far between. The hobbyshop manager shouldn't worry about a lost sale. That kind of attitude on the part of an employee will bring the customer back, and will result in more sales, not fewer. Stores that treat me like that get my repeat business. Stores that treat me like I'm wearing a $ sign on my forehead don't see me again. I've got an auto mechanic like ragnar's--he gets all my business.

Back to the original topic, I'm wondering if one of those blue ink erasers would work as well as a Brite Boy? Would be a lot cheaper.

[Jetrock]

I might have to give that a try--one of my other hobbies was leatherworking, and I'm sure I have a hatful of old leather scraps knocking around.

[ericsp]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Fergmiester

And here I thought you were going to tell us you were into "Shock Therapy"! 110 or 220?

I thought that he had been hanging out with a cat too long.

[brothaslide]

QUOTE: Originally posted by ericsp

QUOTE: Originally posted by Fergmiester

And here I thought you were going to tell us you were into "Shock Therapy"! 110 or 220?

I thought that he had been hanging out with a cat too long.

Be careful, you might cough-up a "flex track ball"![xx(]

[Anonymous]

Ok, since we are on a "track cleaning" topic. I try to keep my track clean but it is driving me nuts!

I have used Isopropyl Alcohol and a rag, a bright boy, different types of erasers per other model railroaders, even tried MAAS metal polish, to no avail. My track still gets dirty and the wheels (all metal) get full of gunk constantly.

I run my trains a lot and none have "smoke" or leak any oil or grease. What the heck am I doing wrong? It is really driving me crazy!

[pcarrell]

I had heard that the metal polish was good. I've always used a bright boy but was thinking of switching to the metal polish.

Guess I'll keep using the bright boy.

[willy6]

I've been using a wine cork soaked with alcohol with no problems.

[Anonymous]

up_santafe; A product called "Goo Gone" on a tightly woven piece of cotton cloth works well. Old T shirts are good for this. Terry cloth snags on too many things. Do one rail at a time. Somebody makes a rather expensive track cleaning car that is little more than a very heavy metal slab on trucks. There is a square hole in the middle of the car which supports a large metal roller wrapped in cloth. It uses the Goo Gone too. People that own them say they are the best thing they've ever seen.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by selector

If Trevor would not mind too much, and since we're on the subject of seemingly 'goofy' ideas about uses for this and that, and track cleaning keeps coming up as a thorn, may I suggest that pieces of discarded extruded foam are also quite good at getting the gunk off track. It takes a bit of elbow grease, but a few swipes left my track in much better shape than it was before.

Thanks for the tip, Trevor.

No worries crandell. I'm gonna try your handy tip. I have bags of pink extruded foam bits in the basement. I also like the wine cork idea from willy6. We enjoy a bottle of wine now and then.

Hmmm, I flextrack ball huh? Sounds dangerous! I would think you more likely to cough up a ballast ball...but that's because of my ballasting woes and definitely fodder for another thred...lol.[:D]

Trevor[:)]

[Anonymous]

Go to a shoe repair shop and ask for some scraps of soling leather (or skives). Rough enough to clean well without scratching and as it absorbs oil and dirt it can be sanded to clean it again. For over 10 years I have been using Labelle 108 and the leather scraps on a small N layout in the window of my dusty shoe repair shop.

[Roadtrp]

QUOTE: Originally posted by willy6

I've been using a wine cork soaked with alcohol with no problems.

I do my best to assure that I always have a good supply...

[;)]

[JohnT14808]

I need my tongue for talking and French kissing with my wife. I'll keep using the Brite Boy and elbow grease.....

[Anonymous]

At a DCC camp hosted by Loy Spurlock, he advocated the use of the grey ink eraser for track cleaning. Said it was the best of anything he had ever tried when he had a track cleaning session with his operating group.[:D]

[Roadtrp]

<<I need my tongue for talking and French kissing with my wife.>>

Eeeww...

My wife and I do that every once in a while, but it is really an under 50 kind of thing. Personally, I'd rather have a really good track cleaner.

[:P] [;)] [:P]

[iamthebigski]

I built one with an old box car and a piece of masonite. Should be a piece just a little wider than track width to clear switches. Use two 6d nails secured with CA to the masonite. Rounded the front and back edges of the masonite to prevent snags. Drill two holes in the box car at the nail locations. When you need to clean the track, grab the box car and insert the pad. Place it back on the track and drag it around the layout for a while. After cleaning, run a piece of sandpaper over the masonite. You'll be surprised how much dirt has come off. I have been using the same pad for 10 years. Seems like it never wears out.

[Anonymous]

With all the methods of track cleaning that have been recommended isn't it about time that Model Railroader ran a well designed comparison of methods and resolve the issue once and for all? I have used BriteBoy, alcohol, break cleaning fluid, GooGone, several cleaning cars. All have advantages as well as disadvantages. I would love to see the results of a well designed and run test.

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[Tilden]

I haven't tried leather, but pretty much everything else, including color TV tuner cleaner, which works quite well and that old Roundhouse Boxcab track cleaner with the rotating pads in front. I even made my own by suspending a track cleaning eraser beneath a weighted gondola (not bad and at least your running trains). I'm running DCC now which tends to be very sensitive to dirt. If there is a problem with a loco, it's usually dirty wheels. I keep various track cleaning erasers laying around so one is always within reach. Some brands are too hard but the blue one is too soft, for my likes. I've always wondered about the grey ink erasers I'll give them a try.

[pomilian]

I've replaced ALL my rolling stock plastic wheels with metal wheels. Have not had to clean the track for months!

[roadrat]

Up_santafe it sounds like you have a dust and dirt problem in your train room if you have to clean that often, do you have a ceiling over your track ?
You would be amazed with the amount of dust that sifts down from a basement or garage ceiling, Solving the dust problem is half the battle.

also woodworking close to the train room can cause problems or a basement mounted central vac etc.etc.etc.

[nobullchitbids]

The principal problem with any abrasive method is that it inevitably puts microscopic scratches in the railhead. These then serve as traps for any oil which happens to be handy (such as the valve-gear lubricant UP-SantaFe should be using). The oil collects dust and other dirt, which then transfers onto the wheels, requiring more cleaning and progressive deterioration of the situation.

I suspect that lesser abrasives like the leather promoted here cause less of a problem than a Brite-Boy, so that is a plus. UP-SantaFe might consider changing his wheel sets from delrin to all metal (this will help, since metal gets dirty slower and is easier to clean).

Surprisingly, mixing a little light oil with a contact cleaner -- this can be applied via a "track-cleaning car" such as the one formerly made by Ulrich -- can cut through the goo fairly well (nothing dissolves oil quite like oil). I learned this trick when I was running wire-stranding machines and, at the end of the day, had hands turned almost black -- motor oil was our detergent of choice, followed by some real soap and water!

As for the shoe leather, were I disposed to use it, I would consider applying it primarily to grades -- nickle-silver rail is pretty slick to begin with and can use a roughening of its surface on hills.

[Anonymous]

Definitely agree with bigski!!

The utilization of a masonite strip modified to ride along the rails underneath a boxcar works wonders. And as bigski outlined in the post...extremely easy to fabricate. I built mine using a 40' Burlington Boxcar and ran it around my layout regularly and found it kept the track exceptional and the wheels on locos and rolling stock were also in fine shape.

First post here...so Hello all!

Good Luck and remember...Have fun!

[daverailrd]

I completely agree! We need a well researched study into the causes and remidies. And I mean in depth. MR has a tendancy to gloss over things from time to time. As for me I have found that Tony's Train Exchange track cleaning car and denatured alcohol works the best with the least amount of work. Let's face it, a Bright Boy works great but with a large layout it's too much like work. I'd rather run trains!

[jfrank138]

QUOTE: Originally posted by wbryden

With all the methods of track cleaning that have been recommended isn't it about time that Model Railroader ran a well designed comparison of methods and resolve the issue once and for all?

Amen to that. Abrasive methods clean the track aggressively but apparently leave the surface rough and "dirt friendly." Metal polish apparently leaves the surface less prone to attract and retain dirt. But let's have a scientific test!

[Anonymous]

BTW - you can get a bag of leather scraps at craft stores and places like "Hobby Lobby" for just a few bucks. Different colors, different sizes, etc.

Not everybody has a leather jacket to cut up for a track cleaner. ;)

Rob

[selector]

I don't think the track surfaceis that well finished to begin with (look at it with a magnifying glass), so gritty cleaners are not necessarily going to be deleterious. I agree that grooved and generally non-smoooth surfaces will be more difficult to clean once they are dirty, but I find that using gritty cleansers does not marr the surface or otherwise degrade it unless they are used aggressively and often. I would adopt the 'eclectic' approach and use a gritty cleaner once ever tenth cleaning or so, and use a solvent like varsol, acetone, Goof Off, and others (always sparingly and being careful not to rub other things with it) in between.

I only have two or three plastic wheeled cars at the moment, and have converted my rather small train set to metal wheels. They run better, are more often in guage, and I believe that they are cleaner.