1) I have a basic question, that I really should know the answer to. Why type of oil should I use lubricate my Kato Locos? I have a couple that have started to tell me the need oil. Wuld this also work for other brands? I would guess so 2) What are some ways to clean my wheels. I read somewhere about using 91% alcohol and paper towels, but for the life of me I can't remember the technque. Thanks in advance.
Lubricating truck gears: 1) I use "Clipper Oil". The stuff you would use to lube the cutting blades on hair clippers. I found a 4 oz. bottle at walmart for $4.00. Enough to last a lifetime...as you only use a small drop on the gears of each truck. Cleaning wheels on a Diesel locomotive: 2) I use coffee filters as opposed to paper towels. The coffee filters dont have any loose fibers to get pulled up into the gears and/or wheels like paper towel does. Take the coffee filter (or paper towel) ...lay it accross the track...carefully pour a small amount of alcohol on the edge of the paper towel near the track. Turn full power on to the track. Hold the loco with one hand and the hold the towel down tight to the track with your thumb and index finger of your other hand straddling the track (your hand should almost look like a tunnel entrance...lol). Hold the loco just tight enough it dont shoot out of your hand when you set it on the powered track...lol. As the wheels spin...slowly move the front truck up and onto the (alcohol) wet towel/filter. The rear truck will still provide power as you set the front truck into the wet towel/filter. Move the loco back and forth about an inch or so. The alcohol will clean the wheels as they spin. You can move the paper towel (or filter) over a little to get a new clean wet area as you manuveur the loco back and forth with the other hand. Once you no longer see 2 black lines (the gunk that was on the wheels !) remove the loco from the track. Move the paper towel or coffee filter over a few inches to get a clean area and re wet it with alcohol. Turn the loco around and repeat the same procedure to clean the rear truck wheels. Cleaning wheels on a steam locomotive: I have no idea...I dont run steam...:tb-tongue: ** With tender trucks picking up power and/or main wheels picking up power and the tender just hanging around back...I am not sure. I am sure you could experiment...but I would think that the basic procedure with the alcohol wet paper towel would be the same. .
Kato Repair/Clean Howto I documented the process I used to disassemble and clean an older Kato SD40 over at NScale.net. I took plenty of pictures along the way as well. Mine was making a pretty nasty squeaking sound as it rolled around the tracks. After cleaning the inside, it runs as good as new. As for oil, I used LaBelle's 108 oil. It was recommended to me by a fellow modeler and works wonders. Just remember: A little bit goes a LONG way. To much lube and you'll be taking it apart and cleaning it all over. The process stevi456 documented is exactly what I do to clean the wheels of my locos as well. I never did think of using coffee filters instead of a lint-free cloth (paper towels will do the job, but lint-free is the way to go) but the filters are a fantastic idea! Here's the link to my howto: Repairing a Kato SD40 - Step By Step How-To | nScale.net
First of all, what are they doing to "tell" you "they need oil?" If they are making a screeching noise, then you are (probably) correct that they need oil. This is (usually) only necessary on the inner bearing blocks, and it is not necessary to take the entire mechanism apart to reach those with some oil. If the symptoms are something besides the screeching, let us know, because oil is probably not the solution. (A thorough cleaning like mammy posted might be a likely help, though.) Kato locomotives do not come lubricated from the factory and are generally not supposed to need it. As for the oil type, I use Labelle's 108, like the other poster. If you delve into the forum archives here or elsewhere, you may find a variety of strong opinions on the virtues of various cleaning methods. Personally I have taken to using a method suggested here (if I remember right) by sandro scheer. It involves running the engine upside down and lightly applying the edge of a Dremel cutting wheel (or a shard from a broken cutting wheel) to the wheel. One advantage of this abrasive technique is that it definitely seems to increase traction/pulling power. I also just find it faster and easier. Many folks also like the kind of wheel cleaner sold by Minitrix; you set it on the tracks and it transfers the track power to a set of metal bristles. That's even easier and faster. However, I fully concede that the abrasive approach also probably leads to the wheels getting dirty again faster. And that is why some folks strenuously oppose abrasive cleaning and favor the alcohol approach. (I have found that with many locos I can power them upside down by lodging the end of the loco frame (with shell off) in a piece of Unitrack connected to a power pack. Just be very careful not to make electrical contact with lighting boards, since if you make contact in the wrong place you can destroy the LEDs.)
