track cleaning

[kirk59]

Has anyone heard tell of using mr clean magic erasers for cleaning track.  I read that one of its uses is to clean silverware so I'm thinking it could work on nickel silver.  Kirk

[Jim Starbuck]

On our old club layout I didn't use these to clean the c80 track as we always used alcohol and a cloth rag.
I did make a makeshift track cleaning car using the magic erasers though.
I cut a rectangle the width of a boxcar by about an inch long and maybe a quarter inch thick. I taped it to the bottom of a weighted boxcar using a loop of masking tape or double sided tape.
Pressure on the rails was dictated by the thickness of the piece so a little trial and error was needed.
I wouldn't rely on it to clean the track exclusively but it did seem to keep the rails from getting dirty quite as quickly.
I would sometimes soak the eraser with alcohol and run it around like that too.
The layout wasn't in a very clean environment to start with and we were running anything and everything for wheelsets but I think the erasers helped.

[Rich_S]

Has anyone heard tell of using mr clean magic erasers for cleaning track.  I read that one of its uses is to clean silverware so I'm thinking it could work on nickel silver.  Kirk

Personally I've never heard of using a Mr. Clean magic eraser for track cleaning. Are they being used wet or dry? My favorite is a good old Cratex block, I think it does a better job than a bright boy, with less scratching of the rails.

[Joetrain59]

This is always a recurring subject, but shows a common culprit. I run mostly metal wheels now on my small pike. Track still needs cleaning every few weeks. With Summer here, too hot upstairs to run trains a lot. I might try the Magic eraser idea. Paper towels with alcohol always get snagged at turnouts, and leave debris.
 My GF just showed me a bottle of "Purple Cleaner". Worked great on monitor and other flat screens. Claims to clean nearly every thing.
 Have to dig out the Atlas/Tomix cleaner, and fill with PC. Alcohol doesn't last long in the little reservoir.
 Joe D

[Rossford Yard]

As to rubber blocks, which always seem the easiest to me, the new Woodland Scenics block is my favorite now.  Real soft on one side, grittier on the other. I always use the soft side, having heard that the grit leaves little pits where even more dirt can gravitate to.

For what its worth, I have used many track brands over the years. The best at staying clean in the Kato Unitrak.  Atlas C55 is a close second. It seems I need to clean my loco wheels, but not the track so much.

[Jeff AKA St0rm]

It is funny you say that Atlas code 55 stays cleaner. I started to build my layout in Dec last year and am using Code 55 for the first time. I have been running trains since Jan and i have yet to clean the track. I am in an unfinished basement. I went from may to july without running any trains at all and when i turned the layout on it ran fine and i have been running it about 3 times a weeks since then. I am trying to not clean the track and seeing how long it can go and even when i do clean it i think i will only use my finger. After 9 months with no cleaning i think that if you are starting with new track don't use anything on the rails. With my older layout i was always cleaning so i wanted to try something different. So far so good. I think that anything used to clean track will over time just make it get dirtier.

[mmagliaro]

I just had a recent experience with track cleaning that might be of use here.
I have always cleaned my track with paper towel dipped in alcohol, or laquer thinner.
It works, but on my current layout (Atlas code 55), I kept finding that I needed to clean the track
a lot more than should be necessary.   I would clean, and then in a day or two, have stalling issues
and have to clean again.  This has never been a problem for me before.

I had read about folks who use a stainless steel washer, hard-rubbed over the rails after cleaning them,
to "burnish" the rail surface.

Well, I had some handy little 1" square stainless steel plates with smooth edges, so I tried this.

What I noticed was that in places where I had used very fine sandpaper (400 or 800 grit)
to clean up after ballasting and weathering, this still left quite visible scratches in the
rail head that I could see under magnification.   Burnishing with the steel plate completely removed these,
leaving a super-smooth surface.

The trains immediately ran better, and immediately my track cleaning problems went away.

In fact, the sections of my trackwork that are behind mountains, where I did not ballast (and did not sand)
have never ever been cleaned, and those areas had no problems with dirt or stalling.
Those rails were still naturally smooth.

So I think that using anything that abraids that railhead, however slight, is a bad idea.

The burnishing did amazing things.
(And no, this is not the cause of my squeaking 4-8-4, as no other engines make that noise, and
my friend's 4-8-4 squeaks on his code 80 Unitrak which  has not been sanded).

[davefoxx]

I had read about folks who use a stainless steel washer, hard-rubbed over the rails after cleaning them,
to "burnish" the rail surface.

Well, I had some handy little 1" square stainless steel plates with smooth edges, so I tried this.

What I noticed was that in places where I had used very fine sandpaper (400 or 800 grit)
to clean up after ballasting and weathering, this still left quite visible scratches in the
rail head that I could see under magnification.   Burnishing with the steel plate completely removed these,
leaving a super-smooth surface.

The trains immediately ran better, and immediately my track cleaning problems went away.

. . . .

So I think that using anything that abraids that railhead, however slight, is a bad idea.

The burnishing did amazing things.

Max,

Thanks for the suggestion.  I'll try to locate a stainless steel washer at the home center and give this a try.  Unfortunately, my layout is in a basement that is unfinished in the section where the layout is located.  I also have to run a dehumidifier in the spring, summer, and fall months, which is unneeded in the winter months once I turn on the heat.  Anyhow, in the months when I need the dehumidifier, I have to clean my Atlas Code 55 track at least weekly.  I would love to find a way to decrease the amount of cleaning that I have to do.  I look forward to experimenting with your recommendation.

DFF

[peteski]

Ah, the gleem track polishing method touted on the A-board. I remember that. 

[mmagliaro]

Ah, the gleem track polishing method touted on the A-board. I remember that. 

That's right!  I've read that post and seen it called that.  I would never have immediately believed it.
In fact, when it comes to track cleaning, I think we've all tried so many crackpot "snake oil" remedies,
that we approach any of them with doubt.

I can't say it always helps.  I think in my case, since I had scratches on my railheads, it helped.
And the results are undeniable.  I have not cleaned my track in weeks now, and the trains continue to
run, whereas before that, they wouldn't make it for 2 days without cleaning.

But if you have other dirt problems, like a very dusty room, or if your railheads are smooth already,
you may not see any improvement at all.

Dave, did you use fine sandpaper or any other abrasive, however slight, to clean your track before?

[davefoxx]

@mmagliaro,

I've always used a Bright Boy.

DFF

[Rossford Yard]

 My GF just showed me a bottle of "Purple Cleaner". Worked great on monitor and other flat screens. Claims to clean nearly every thing.
 
 Joe D

Funny, but just saw this product and bought a bottle at the local home show.  Cleaned my wedding band very nicely.  Talked of how it charged positive ions to clean.  I asked how it affected electrical conductivity.  Sales rep didn't know, so I may try a small area and see if it works without harmful effects.

[peteski]

Funny, but just saw this product and bought a bottle at the local home show.  Cleaned my wedding band very nicely.  Talked of how it charged positive ions to clean.  I asked how it affected electrical conductivity.  Sales rep didn't know, so I may try a small area and see if it works without harmful effects.

Any product touting positive ions, Alpha particles, or any similar "scientific"claims is way up there on my bullshit meter.  Call ma a cynic... 

[SP-Wolf]

I too, over the years, have gotten caught up in the latest and greatest track cleaning products, trends or fads. I keep going back to the good 'ol bright boy. I do, however, have and use a couple of the new Woodland Scenics bars. They work very well.

My 2 pennies,
Wolf