Track cleaning...

[Tracklayer]

I recently invested in a track cleaning car, but I have to say that I'm not real impressed with the results. I think I'd be better off cleaning it with rubbing alcohol and an eraser like I've been doing all along, but it's such a pain to have to do it that way ([:(])...

Anybody got a better method ?.

Tracklayer

[mustanggt]

I just use a brite boy abrasive block on a stick, and sometimes alcohol. But I've heard of people mounting rectangles of masonite under boxcars with nails- and they say it works well. Also, for around 70$-100$ you can get one of those all brass cleaning cars, which I've also heard work very well. I think they're sold by Tony's train exchange. The only thing keeping me from buying one is the price......

Good luck[8D]

[nbrodar]

I use a block of masonite, or rubbing alcohol and a shop towel.

Nick

[selector]

Mother's Mag Wheel Cleaner, MAAS, any metal polish for mag wheels will do a fine job if you don't slop it all over the place. A single dab on a clean cloth wrapped around your forefinger, and wipe on, wait5 seconds, and wipe off. You won't have to clean for a long time unless your location is quite polluted.

Alcohol is cheap and works well, too, but if you are having to do it more than once a month or so, try the metal wheel polishes..there are several.

[Anonymous]

I use MAAS. My layout is in my bedroom, so theres little pollution, but I havent cleaned any track in a little over a year. Pretty impressive in my opinion[:D]

[cacole]

If you want to avoid the mess from metal polish, try Nevr-Dull Magic Wadding Polish -- the same results as MAAS and others without any mess. Nevr-Dull is cotton wadding soaked in some kind of metal polish for mag wheels and other metals, and just requires that it be rubbed on. You do not have to go back with a second wiping because nothing is left on the rail to clean off.

Even on a 20 x 40 foot HO scale club layout, cleaning is required only twice a year with Nevr-Dull.

You didn't say what type of track cleaning car you bought, but the only one I have ever found to actually do any good is the CMX Clean Machine filled with Lacquer Thinner.

[joeyegarner]

This is what I do, now some may not agree but I have had excellent results. I own two Roco track cleaning cars that I run on a regular basis; they have a pad on the bottom that is basicaly a Brightboy (an abrasive eraser availble at your local hobby shop) with a little spring pressure to hold it down. They work very well for preventive maintenance. For more serious cleaning I Have a Brightboy that I use on the track while I'm watching the trains run. These very simple methods keep my trains running very well. The important thing is to stay on top of your maintenance, it you don't you will have trouble, Do what I have done and problems will be few and very far between.

[cmrproducts]

I think I will stick with the Blue magic or Mothers Mag Wheel Polish as I don’t have to reclean/polish my layout at all. And I think that my 2700ft of track gets used as much as any club if not more. I am also continuing to do scenery and adding track all the time so the layout is far from being super clean!

I have found that using an old piece of HO cork roadbed and spreading a little polish on it that it keeps the excess polish from getting on the sides of the rail.

I have not had to reclean/polish my track going on 3 years so using the Mothers or Blue Magic polish is what works for me.

Cleaning track is NOT one of my favorite jobs and running a dumb cleaning car just to have an excuse to run trains is not what I built the layout for!

BOB H – Clarion, PA

[Soo Line fan]

I also use the Roco track cleaning car. It works real well for continuous running. This car has been sold by Roco in the past and is currently sold under the Walthers Trainline brand. Here is a link: http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/931-751 or http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/931-752 Here is the replacement pad: http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/933-1066 Hope this helps.

Jim

[cmrproducts]

Maybe I just don't understand the obsession with these cleaning cars thing. I always felt it was a chore to clean the rails.

With the many posters on this forum and other forums I am on, it seems that they (and just who is this they?) love to run the track cleaning cars and they look forward to doing this PITA project.

This is why, it seems, that they are willing to stand in line to purchase the latest cleaning car and/or vacuum or what ever to run around the layout. And they do this cleaning thing over and over again.

Well personally I Despise, Dislike, Abhor, Detest, Loathe cleaning track. Sorry to get so violent!

So when the metal poli***hing worked out so well, I assumed (which I am beginning to believe I was in error) that everyone else also did not like to do this chore!

Now I do not have to waste my time cleaning the track to get ready for my bi-weekly Ops sessions. I can finally enjoy my OPs nights instead of having to continually push an engine through a switch or have the sound drop out. And I felt that I should pass this new way of doing (or lack of doing) track cleaning on to those that also hated it.

BTW the polish seems to keep the dust off my rails but then again I do not have forced air heat in my basement where the layout is. So this may be a problem for others. But I still get some dust but never pay any attention to it as the layout just keeps on operating so smooth. Maybe some day (and I will report it when I have to clean the track again), I may have to break down and do my favorite job (cleaning track)!!!

BOB H – Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

MAAS & Mother's Mag wheel cleaner/polisher are excellent & inexpensive products. The sucess is in the
application, both rails at the same time without overlaping & messing up your ballast or scenery.

Thank you MR January 2003.

[MisterBeasley]

So, you guys who have had good success with Mother's or MAAS, do you have any plastic-wheel rolling stock? It's been widely reported on this forum that plastic wheels are a big contributer to dirty track. I don't have enough run-time on my layout yet to make that call for myself, but I did just buy a big bag-o-wheelsets and I'm in the process of converting my rolling stock now.

When comparing track cleaning success, it would help if we know whether or not you've got a lot of plastic wheels.

[jecorbett]

Flix does a great job of cleaning the top of the rails but it is very difficult to apply neatly to the tops without getting it on the ties and the side of the rail. If not cleaned completely off, it creates an unrealistic green tarnish on the sides of the rail.

After trying that approach, I've gone back to using the Brightboy. It does an excellent job I did my whole layout in about the time it took me to do 6 feet of my double track mainline with the flix. For hard to reach areas where I'm not able to rub hard without risking damage to structures and scenery, I use Rail Zip. It cleans well with a gentle wipe and doesn't leave the tarnish like Flix does.

[Pruitt]

QUOTE: Originally posted by mustanggt

...I've heard of people mounting rectangles of masonite under boxcars with nails- and they say it works well.

That's the "John Allen" approach. I've used it for years, and it does work well. I only clean with a brite boy if the trains have not been run in several months or if too much construction debris (sawdust, etc.) gets onto the track - then I vacuum it before using the brite boy.

The Allen car just runs around with trains in the regular consists.

[rrgrassi]

Why not use plain jane nail polish remover? I remember that stuff because the Bachmann and Tyco maintenance instructed that. This was in the '70's. I use it on a q-tip to clean the wheels and a little swipe on the rails after a bright boy.

[cmrproducts]

MisterBeasley

Yes I have plastic wheels on most of my rolling stock, yet!

I have over 800 cars and maybe 25% have been changed or came with them stock. As I put the cars through maintenance I usually change the wheels over to metal ones. I really do not see any difference with the metal wheels over the plastic ones. The plastic ones do not seem to be picking up much dirt; although certain brands of plastic wheels do seem to get dirtier than others. I am now 3 years into the NO track cleaning thing since I first used the metal polish!



jecorbet



And as for the application of the polish using cork or a piece of Homasote and putting a little of the polish on that and then rubbing it on the railheads makes the process go much faster. I can clean 6 to 8 feet of track in less than 15 seconds. And cleaning 2700 feet of track is not something I look forward to!

The main thing to remember is that you only need to do this ONCE. I am going on my third year now with out having to reclean the track. So taking a little more care in the application of the poli***ime one time, instead of having to keep doing the track cleaning over and over. Unless you like to clean track as I certainly don’t !

BOB H – Clarion, PA

[MisterBeasley]

My understanding of plastic wheels is that they create and deposit dirt, not that they pick it up. In fact, if they pick it up it would be great, because they're not going to conduct any current anyway.

But, you've certainly answered my question. I think I'll hit the auto supply store for some Mother's, because I can't find MAAS at my local Wal-Mart. (I'm lucky to find someone there who can take me to someone who speaks a language I understand.)

Another wheel question, though. I've got a Bowser PCC Trolley that has bright brass wheels. It seems to pick up dirt very quickly. I usually can't run it for more than 10 minutes without cleaning it again. The other train on that track is a metal-wheeled Life-Like subway, so I know it's not picking up crud from plastic wheels, and the subway has no problems at all. Is this a problem with these bright-brass wheels?

[cmrproducts]

MisterBeasley

Everyone claims that the plastic wheels cause problems but I had not seen this. Now back before I began using the metal poli***he plastic wheels did get much dirtier and I would have to scrape them off.

Now as for the copper or brass wheels, Yes they are a problem. I have several of the early Walthers Trainline GP9M and GP15 with the copper wheels. Before using the metal poli***hey would have to have the wheels cleaned 3 and 4 times a night of Ops. I was just about ready to stop using them.

Now that I have used the metal poli***he copper wheels stay much cleaner. We are thing that the polish/wax is getting deposited on the copper wheels and keeping them from picking up any dirt.

It seems what the polish is doing is filling in the minute scratches and pits in both the rails and the engine wheels. This also would then lead one to believe that the wax is also being transferred to the plastic car wheels and keeping them from picking up the dirt as it may be filling in the imperfections in the plastic!

Just some thoughts but what ever is happening it works for me and I am happy!

BOB H – Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

I have no objection to alcohol if you follow it with a coating of oil (wiped off until coating is VERY thin). Using alcohol by itself, by the time you get to the other side of the layout the part you cleaned has already started to oxidize. The "too clean" syndrome.

If you have no grades or complicated switchwork, Flitz is fine. On a 1.5% grade it cut the
pulling capacity of my brass steamers by 50%! And it is a bear to apply without "picking" points. Works well on the flats though. In general I prefer a few drops of Tuner Cleaner (Railzip looks suspiciously similar). Works especially well sprayed into switch points. Tuner cleaner cleans and leaves a thin moisture-displacement coating of oil to protect against oxidation.

I abhor the more abrasive Bright Boys because to me they symbolize failure. If your track is that bad, unless you just weathered it with paint, you are really doing something wrong. On the other hand, club I recently joined uses fine-grain softer bright boys on yard tracks lightly and it works well. They only have to do this a couple times a year, though. It is a preferred alternative to running a wet or roller type track cleaner back and forth---that is used on the mains.

[icmr]

I use a Bright Boy on the end of a metal yard stick.



ICMR

Happy Railroading.[swg][swg]

[Relentless]

A question. I have used Mother's and nail polish remover and a lot of other stuff including Bright Boy. Mother's seems to be the best for me. But. The black never seems to stop coming off. No matter what I use, I can rub the same place over and over, ( I've counted a dozen times), and still get black on the cloth. The trains run fine but the rail still gives off a black residue. My question, finally, is: Is this normal?

Thanks;

John

[Anonymous]

Rather than paying the premium price for the nail polish remover, I would suggest getting some acetone at your local HD or Loews. Careful, though, too much of either will distort or even melt plastic ties.

[cmrproducts]

bobspf

If you have lost pulling ability as you have stated on your system, I am wondering if the Flitz is leaving an oily coating on the track?

On my layout I am using Blue Magic liquid metal polish (bought at Wal-Mart). And I have a lot of 3% plus grades (actually closer to 4%) and have seen no loss of pulling power since I went with the polish! Or if there has been any loss it is so slight that I and any of my operators have not noticed. We still seem to have the trains stall on the hills in the same places if the operators do not put the helpers on to assist the trains up the grades.

I have purposely put steeper grades on my layout to make the crews actually have to use the helper service during heavy Ops!



Now to address the black crud thing!

Yes it is there and NO it does not hurt anything. You can keep wiping the rails after using the polish until there is nothing left and the black will still be there, as I know! My operators keep telling me that the track is dirty as they check it by rubbing their fingers on the rail heads! I then ask are the trains still running? If they are then it must be OK!

With my layout now into its third year and not having had to clean the track I really don’t care what color the stuff on the rails is, as long as the trains keep on running and the sound engines do not have the sound drop outs!

If others want to continue cleaning their track week after week then keep on doing what you have done in the past. BUT I will not be doing anything but running my trains and THEY won’t have any dumb Masonite block dragging around under and car. We have moved into a new age and the old ways are being replaced better materials or better ways of doing things. I am just glad I finally saw the light and went with the metal polish as my layout probably would not be operated as much as it is now if I had to spend hours cleaning the track each week to get ready for Ops.

Observations from my layout.

BOB H – Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

Tracklayer, I don't know which track cleaning car you are using. I have a track cleaning car from Tony's Train Exchange for about 2 years now. Very easy and effective. Fill it with acetone, run it aroud the layout twice, track's clean . It's about $100.00 but well worth the money.

[CRNFLKS]

I clean my track periodically with an extremely fine abrasive block, such as a Bright Boy, and then place a small drop of Clipper oil (for lubricating hair clippers) on the top of each rail - but not too much - at a couple of random spots on my layout. I then clean my loco wheels by holding and powering the loco, one set of wheels at a time, on a paper towel sprayed with GooGone and layed across the rails. I then run trains, and the loco / rolling stock wheels pick up the Clipper oil and spread it around the rest of the layout. This helps keep the rails clean with good electrical contact. Since going to this method, my track cleaning time has been reduced to almost zero. Just make sure you periodically clean your loco wheels - and run lots of trains! Frequent running is really the best way to keep those rails shiny!

[cmrproducts]

On this track cleaning car thing, does everyone run the track cleaning car into every siding or do you just do the mainline and hope the stalling in the sidings won't be so noticeable.

With 1000ft of mainline the cleaning cars I USED to use did an OK job. But the sidings and industry spurs were still dirty and with 1700 feet of track in those areas I still had to hand clean them. So what was the real savings in time?

No one ever talks about cleaning the sidings and Industry tracks so I have to ASSume then you never do any real switching!

The mainline is run a lot more than the industry tracks and this is where the dirt seemed to be all the time and I know it is a real pain to run the cleaning car into every spur, so they never get cleaned do they?

Inquiring minds want to know!

BOB H – Clarion, PA

[Anonymous]

Running the trucks of your cars over a piece of cloth soaked with goo gone, over a section of track will clean the plastic wheels of the crud on them.
Cleaning the track once like bob suggests and running trains frequiently does keep the rails clean for years. I try to run at least 2 times a week. Mostly more. Will set a train moving and do other jobs while it is running.
After I have done scenery or ballasting work, I use a sanding pad that is made to hold a piece of sandpaper like a "mouse pad". You can get 220 grit for pad and if you cut pad into four pieces they are just the right size for rail cleaning.
After the use of pad I go over that area with the poli***o take away any little scratches.
Remember cleanliness is next to good running>>>>> Barry

[moparman48]

I have the same problem as relentless, it seems the black never stops coming off.

[cmrproducts]

Don't worrk about the black crud on the rails! I have had it on my rails now for 2 plus years and it causes no problems. This is the wax/polish doing the job!

Just keep on running your trains and when they quit just clean the engine wheels and keep on running!

BOB H - Clarion, PA

[Soo Line fan]

Does anyone have a source for either the large Peco PL-41 or the Roco 10002 track cleaning blocks? Mine is beginning to wear out.

Jim