Layout Track Cleaning Methods

Railheadz Jul 18, 2009

  1. maxairedale

    maxairedale TrainBoard Member

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    The easiest way I find to keep the track clean is to run the trains regularly. But of course you have to start with clean track and wheels. When that does not work due to not running the trains I resort to cleaning the track and wheels as described on the GD&R website on the "Track Cleaning" page.

    Gary
    [​IMG]
     
  2. 6206_S1a

    6206_S1a TrainBoard Member

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    the best thing I've found to clean track and wheels is 3M brake cleaner in the aerosol can. It's alcohol based, so it leaves no residue and evaporates cleanly. It is a great track cleaner on a clean rag or a paper towel rag you can get from your auto parts store. It also cleans wheels on cars and locos when used on a cotton swab (Q-Tips). The full name of it is 3M High Power Brake Cleaner.
     
  3. timenet

    timenet TrainBoard Member

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    The method I use @ the club is a plain old Cork, that's right open a bottle of wine, drink the contents do not use to clean track even though after a few sniffters you may be tempted, just run the cork along the track no need for any chemicals just the cork keeps the track clean as a whistle.
     
  4. Chaya

    Chaya TrainBoard Supporter

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    Pierre, I think I like your method best of all. :tb-biggrin:
     
  5. gary60s

    gary60s TrainBoard Member

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    I thought I would jump in with my 2 cents.

    Everyone has their own method of cleaning track to ensure smooth running of locos. All will swear by their method as being the best. With the exceptions of WD-40, Goo gone, or oil, they will all work to get smooth running. One of the best appears to be the gleam method, but is labor intensive compared to No-Ox and No-Ox will last just as long or longer with much less effort.

    Before I continue, IMO there is something very important that most model railroaders have missed.

    For those that may not know, Linn Wescott was a famous model railroader who was an editor of Model Railroader for 16 years. In an article from '764 Helpful Hints for Model Railroaders' 1965 - third printing, 1970, he covers the subject of track cleaning vs. treatment, and is what clued me in to the use of NO-OX. The article is too long to post, (almost a full page). This is sage old advice, but still accurate with the exception of No-Ox’s evolution into a paste form. I consider this article the best advice on track that I have ever seen, bar none.

    I have posted my experiences with NO-OX for the benefit of other model railroaders on other forums besides this one. I was met with a lot of acceptance, but also a lot of resistance. The resistance all came from those who have NOT tried NO-OX. I couldn’t understand resistance to the use of a product that works as well as it does, and it finally hit me. Linn Westcott’s article was last published in 1970. With the exception of those that have read the article, this information has been lost to the model railroading population. Without this information, the majority of modelers had to develop a way to get their locomotives to run smoothly. The answer to the problem was to clean track - RELIGIOUSLY, RELENTLESSLY, and OVER and OVER again. In 1980 his article would have been out of print for 10 years. Without Westcott’s information, the practice of cleaning track on a regular basis became an accepted part of model railroading. A modeler who has been doing it for 29 years (since 1980) could be called an expert on smooth operations, and many have published their experiences with nice shiny track. A modeler with 29 years of experience, who gives advice, is to be reckoned with seriously. So many of them have published or posted their experiences that it has become gospel. Unfortunately, they may have missed the key information in Westcott’s article. I ACCEPTED THE GOSPEL, AND CLEANED MY TRACK WEEKLY, LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE.

    Any relatively new model railroader who suggests that track cleaning is not necessary would naturally run across an “expert” who would scoff at this “new technique”. I believe this is why I ran into resistance. The funny thing is it’s not new. Linn Westcott’s article was first published in 1965, and I suspect that he tried NO-OX a few years before that. That would make the “new technique” 45 years old, and it still works, even on the newer track, DC or DCC.

    I applied No-Ox to my track 5 years ago and have not had to clean my track since then. I bought a quart of it back then, but only used about a ¼ teaspoon on my 700 feet of track. I had so much left that I started giving away samples. Those sample giveaways resulted in many testimonials from amazed and happy users. A few years later I contacted Sanchem (the maker of No-Ox), and told them about my results, and the results of others. At the time there was no mention of its use in model railroading. They revised their site to include my testimonials and my application directions and can be seen here by scrolling down to paragraph 9:

    http://www.sanchem.com/aSpecialE.html

    Those same directions are included in every container sold by Bar Mills. Art Fahey told me that he has been using No-Ox since the 70’s and that his N gage layout runs like a watch. He also mentioned that he couldn’t understand why more model railroaders weren’t using it. IMO it’s because of Linn Wescott’s lost article.

    I have been keeping a running record of testimonial results that can be seen here:

    http://www.nscale.org/forum/showpost.php?p=171276&postcount=1


    One final note. To my knowledge, EVERYONE that has properly applied No-Ox has nothing but GOOD things to say about its use. The only bad comments come from those who HAVE NOT TRIED IT.
     
  6. saronaterry

    saronaterry TrainBoard Member

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    I will give hearty second to Jeff on the gleam method.I sold my track cleaning car. I have not turned a wheel in over 8 months. I will GUARANTEE you with but a quick wipe to get rid of residual dust with one of my wife's make up wipes the layout WILL go.HO scale and DCC.

    Terry
     
  7. Chaya

    Chaya TrainBoard Supporter

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    Oh, shoot. :tb-frown: I guess it won't work for me, then. Unless your wife is willing to send me one of her make up wipes. :tb-wink:
     
  8. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

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    For me, there are a lot of variables that affect any specific track cleaning or treatment regimen. No-OX may not work when applied to oily track, for example.

    I no longer have a track cleaning problem on over 1100 linear feet of track. That's because I cleaned the track really well once, and then cleaned every stinking wheel of every car and loco I owned. The second step was more important than the first. Before I realized I needed really clean wheels, I'd clean the track, and then just put gunk back on it via the wheels.

    Once I got everything really clean in my sealed train room, I could go six months without a cleaning. And then a cleaning was just a CMC tank car using acetone, with a pad car behind. Now I must admit it took a few loops, and a loop took about 40 minutes, but I just put them on regular trains. You do have to stop and replenish the acetone--so I put the tank car behind a steam loco.

    Not everyone wants to use acetone--I had no problem with it. 91% isopropyl alcohol also works well, but I find it worse than acetone.
     
  9. gary60s

    gary60s TrainBoard Member

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    No-Ox application requires a thourough cleaning to remove any contaminants, including oil, before it is applied to rails. I agree, cleaning rolling stock wheels is important.

    One other thing that Art Fahey told me. The No-Ox worked so well, that he was upset that he had just spent $200.00 on track cleaning cars.

    I have an Aztec, but don't have to use it anymore.
     
  10. Carl Sowell

    Carl Sowell TrainBoard Supporter

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    I have a Tony's CMX (?) tank car that I run 91% alcohol in before running trains if it has been a week or two since last operating. It does an excellent job. Then, as Flash, stated I run an Aztec car with the Cratex roller offset at an angle to the rails at the head end of each train that runs. I made some of the slider type but they do not work as well as the basic Aztec car. My layout is in the garage and I can go 3-4 weeks before having problems.
     
  11. COverton

    COverton TrainBoard Supporter

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    I have never had to remove items, or roll them out of the way continuously, and do any track cleaning, and I am now three years into the use of my layout. I do occasionally find some dark track near turnout frogs, but that is about it. I keep a 2" X 2" square of 600 grit sandpaper handy when I find that points rails aren't making good contact against stock rails. Other than that....honestly, I have never, in three years, said to myself, "Time to git 'er done...things aren't working right."

    I use metal wheels, and those few that are plastic are almost always the ones that I have to scrape about every 20 hours or so.
     
  12. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

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    I did use NO-OX when I first finished the layout. Maybe that's why I haven't have significant track cleaning problems in over seven years? It's hard to say, because I really gunked up parts of the track with scenicking, and had trouble cleaning those sections up.

    I think NO-Ox is not a miracle, but one of a number of tools to use to keep track clean. I'm not a fan of 600-grit sandpaper; I prefer 800 to 1200-grit papers, but those are usually specialty items. With the Internet, specialty items are pretty easy to get. I've found the higher the grit, the less it seems you are actually doing something to the rails. 1200-grit papers are like running a sheet of copy paper along the rails--in fact, copy paper may be rougher.
     
  13. Pete Nolan

    Pete Nolan TrainBoard Supporter

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    I've also found that my "dirty track syndrome" was sometimes an "old brass wheel" problem, as others have noticed. My older locos were always the first to go bad, and I suspect this is because the hard coating had worn off, leaving the brass core to exposure to oxidation. I came to this conclusion when reliable albeit old locos had problems when brand-new locos ran like gems. When I cleaned up the wheels of the old locos, and also all the connections from wheels to motor, they ran almost like new. They also needed a good, but sparing application of lube.

    My locos run hard, and the wheels sometimes slip on grades. When I was working on scenes, I always had a train or two running. At 40 MPH or so, it took a train 40 minutes to complete a lap, so running and working simultaneously was feasible, and not difficult. So many of my locos have hundreds of hours of running or more, and that wears down the platings on the wheels, as well as the Kato pointed cups for the axles, and the lubrication of the motor bearings. I'm ruthless about this: if a loco can't stand it, then tough. When I was working I didn't have time to baby my engines; they ran until they started complaining, and then they got pulled until I could find the problem, which was usually never.

    When a loco goes bad, look at it, not the track. Unless all locos have gone bad. Then look at the track.
     
  14. dgwinup

    dgwinup TrainBoard Member

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    I'm thrilled that a member of the forum like Jeffrey Wimbley who has a great deal of knowledge in model railroading is promoting the GLEAM method of track cleaning!

    I stumbled upon this method about three years ago. It took me a long time to work up the courage to try it and it took a long time to gleam all the rails on my SMALL layout. But I'm here to tell you that it was worth every bit of effort! It's been over TWO YEARS since I gleamed my rails and I haven't cleaned them since!

    I'd like to give credit to the person who came up with this method, but I don't know who he or she was. They belong in the Model Railroader's Hall of Fame!

    Incidentally, not long after I gleamed my rails, I bought a jar of No-Ox. It sits on my workbench, unopened and unused. In another thread somewhere, Spidge mentions using the gleam method followed by an application of No-Ox. He reported excellent results with both methods.

    Darrell, quiet...for now
     
  15. jhn_plsn

    jhn_plsn TrainBoard Supporter

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    I second the big pat on the back for Jeffrey who is always ready to share his solutions.

    By the way gleaming is one step of the process for me, not the final solution. Its not done until the rails are treated with the no-ox.

    Also, Gary actually ran his locos for a couple hours after the no-ox application but before wiping the rails to remove the excess. This will allow the locos to get the same treatment. I ran most of my locos for about 30 minutes but those that were not run have noticeable differences so will go back and do the rest on a test loop thats used for programing.

    I cannot thank Gary enough for this as I do not have to worry about cleaning the track even once a month or every six months. Think about it, the layout is always ready to go with only a vacuum from time to time.

    This track treatment should be included with all train sets to help insure reliability for those who are just starting out. Think back when you set up your first layout or train set. I am willing to bet at some point you became frustrated with the hesitations and walked away for a time. Think of how more enjoyable it would be and increasing the odds of staying in the hobby from the get go. I am sure people walk away from the hobby because of track cleaning issues and the lack of expectations concerning it.
     
  16. Flash Blackman

    Flash Blackman TrainBoard Member

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    WD40 Better Than 91% Alcohol...It's Up to You

    Today I saw a demonstration of cleaning track with WD40. I was cleaning loco wheels (H0 scale) by wetting a towel with 91% isopropyl alcohol and then running each truck on the paper towel to remove the dirt. One member suggested using WD40, so I did the same thing using some WD40 sprayed on the paper towel. There was a lot more dirt removed from the wheels using the WD40.

    Then, we tried cleaning the track. The same paper towel was used to first wipe the track. It became very soiled with the debris removed from the track. Next, the member doing the demonstration wiped the track down three times to be sure the WD40 was removed. Interesting. This particular method involves going over the track three times to clean it. Seems like a lot.

    We didn't use much WD40. The paper towel was just wet to the touch.

    Of course the guys doing the demo think WD40 is the only way. I would suggest reading this long thread before you decide for yourself. Someone else was discussing track cleaning today, so I thought I would resurrect this old thread I found in the How To Forum.

    I think the next method I will try is No-Ox.
     
  17. Flash Blackman

    Flash Blackman TrainBoard Member

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    No Ox Test

    No Ox test is underway. I have so much track that I can't get to all of it at once. I'm trying to do long stretches on the main line first. I don't know if it is just because of clean track or the No Ox, but the results after 4 days is encouraging. I want to have one section of cleaned track that I don't treat so that section will be the "control" subject.

    More results in a week or so.
     
  18. Chaya

    Chaya TrainBoard Supporter

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    I am soooo far away from getting to where I can do a No Ox test. I have my track all covered with newspapers while I struggle with backdrop scenery. I "Gleamed" a short stretch just as an experiment, though, and was delighted.

    I like the idea of using a control. It seems to me, though, that if your control stretch of track is connected to the rest of your track that has been "Gleamed," it will defeat the purpose--that loco and car wheels will pick up grime from the control stretch and transfer it to the rest of the track.
     
  19. COverton

    COverton TrainBoard Supporter

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    Agreed. You would want a separate loop on the same layout in the same environment, and for each loop to get the same usage (hours, rolling stock and engines with the same numbers of wheels and material of wheels, plus the same track voltage..very important.)
     
  20. MOPMAN

    MOPMAN TrainBoard Member

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    I rarely clean track, but when I do it's with a bright boy and no-ox.
     

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