I did what you recommended. It worked. One thing that, I did was add one drop of deoxit on all the track joint connectors. Then added the remaining deoxit to one quart of Isopropyl alcohol.
Thanks Larry and Season's Greetings! Without your channel and books, most of us model railroaders would be lost! We greatly appreciate your time and effort! Cheers! 🍻
I totally agree that Larry has been a great help to a lot of us. In the # 351 episode the 70% rubbing alcohol is shown. Just a reminder that the lower the percentage of IPA or Rubbing alcohol the higher content of water. Therefore, it is suggested that 99 % API is used. Yes, it will evaporate quicker, but it will not leave a water residue behind.
A club I use to belong to used a product called LPS-1 (a Greaseless Lubricant) to clean all of rails on the club layout. That really worked great, and we found that even if there was some "Black Grime" on the rails, when you rubbed your finger along them, it DID NOT hinder the operation of the trains at all. I have a copy of the article we found it in if anyone would like to read it. Several of our members also stated that they found their home layouts were running better because of running their trains on the club layout (Which coated the wheels on their trains) and then returning home and running them on their home layout (Which transferred the product to their home layout rails). We found we only had to clean the rails on the club layout about once a month and we ran trains at the club every day for hours. The cleaning only entailed wiping the rails with a dry cloth and replacing a light coat of LPS-1 on a block of Balsam wood to the rails and let it dry for about 30 minutes. Anyone else use this product too?
Thanks for the informative followup! I'm in the non-polar solvent camp whick includes my go to - mineral spirits. Appreciate your information on the less toxic and benzene free Gamsol mineral spirits which I purchased at Hobby Lobby for $11.99. Best, Eric
Hi Larry 😊 I received your excellent book Wiring Your Model Railroad as a Christmas gift. As I work my way through it, I'm realizing how much I didn't know!! It is really packed with great information and truly should be on every model railroaders bookshelf. Take care.
My first H0 trains in the 70s used rails made of some ferrous alloy prone to rust. I tried clipper oil and as you say, I got a gummy substance on the wheels. In the 90s I built a larger layout in an ad hoc room and installed German Rocco brand silver nickel rails and I forgot about the problem. The bad thing was that they were not enough for the entire route and when I installed the double track I bought American rails of the same material at Walthers. And the problem returned. I built some cleaner cars with ballasted masonite drag plates, but the problem was repeated from time to time. It occurred to me to compare a new piece of Rocco track with a new American one with a school microscope, discovering that the first had almost no scratches and the other did. An old local hobbyist advised me to buy a very expensive sheet of water-based sandpaper, the kind used in jewelry, passing it over the problematic paths with a few drops of light oil and then cleaning with alcohol. Chinese work that paid off. I have never had a problem again and I have not used anything else to maintain it other than pieces of wood
Great videos! You are correct to a degree about how the No-Ox and Deoxit work. However, Deoxit does not have a "lubricant" in it. It's not really designed for cleaning and lubing contactor systems like No-ox. You are also right about cleaning first. Also, Deoxit sells a two part kit. The first part is the oxide remover/cleaner. The second part is the contact enhancer which in itself is a connective electrolyte. As I think I noted in a response to part 1 I work in the electronics mfg industry. You are correct with regard to the conductivity (or lack thereof) of various metals. In order, oxidized copper is the worst and because brass is an alloy of copper (which simply oxidizes slower than copper due to the sacrificial anode in the alloy...zinc). Nickel plated copper or brass (nickel is phenomenally corrosion and oxidation resistant)...but nickel conducts 75% less than copper and brass conducts 72% less than copper. So, the old brass rail was a poor conductor in the first place AND it oxidizes. In the nickel silver, the nickel will never really oxidize but typically these alloys are about 60% copper....so they conduct power well. The corrosion of the copper is controlled/delayed by the zinc (but not fully). Most of what you are having to clean off of nickel silver rail is the zinc "rust".
Perhaps the most effective and foolproof approach to maintaining clean track is your suggestion to include one (or more) Masonite slider track cleaning car in every train that runs. Another approach that seems to enjoy some currency is the application of graphite, usually in the form of artist's chalks, to the rails. Aficionados claim that the residual graphite significantly improves electrical conductivity. Much anecdotal discussion of this approach can be found online, but like all nostrums, your mileage may vary.
Hello Larry. I have tried several things. Isopropanol 70 + 99, Deluxe Materials Track Magic, Woodland Scenics Track Solution, No OX-ID, Brake Cleaner, SR24. My best thing ever is SR24. I will use this ever. Only SR24.
I was experimenting yesterday on rail cleaning and discovered that using thin cork discs on an old MDC Box cab diesel w/ rail cleaning attachments worked well. I basically just found a thin sheet, cut out discs and attached them to the sprung drums on the diesel w/ double sided sticky tape (3M thin scotch type). The weight of the box cab seems to do a great deal of good, as the rails remain bright so far.
Well mine is in my living room so it gets the same dust as everything else. I almost never have to even rub a spot with a cloth. So not far off I'm sure.
Perhaps I put the No-ox on too thick & added cat litter dust & dander and my tracks “gummed up the works!” I cleaned all that off with some cork road bed, a clean cloth, add isopropyl alcohol & now everything works great. Thanks for the suggestions & the clarifications, another great video! Have a safe, healthy, prosperous & Happy New Year!!
Thank you Larry for the additional comments on track cleaning. I have been watching whatever youtube throws up at me about track cleaning solutions. I bought the Deox-it you recommended but have't used it yet. So far I have tried the isopropyl alcohol and I am not quite sure if that is doing much. I wonder because I don't see much black residue on the Q-tip and yet My DCC loco has all sorts of stops and starts. I watched that delightful gentleman from Sweden who recommends using small wood blocks. I have even had some success with a rubber eraser . I did use the Isopropyl on the loco wheels as well and that helped a little bit. But still I have a balking locomotive on a simple piece of flex track section. I feel like I am grasping at straws.
glad you help clear up some of the problems with these products , like cleaning rails before applying and also they dont last forever , you need to clean and reapply depending on traffic or dust buildup
Hey Larry I stick with the Masonite pieces attached to the underside of the box car as per John Allen's instructions and give them a run almost every day. I also use white spirit on occasion and Isopropyl alcohol as well for hard to remove stains/build up (very rarely required I might add). Thanks for your You Tube V blogs and all the best for the new year
Hi Larry, thank you so much for all your informative videos and information and knowledge. You are a pleasure to watch. I’m glad you cleared up the information about no ox because I’ve been using it for the past two years and it’s amazing. After applying it before scenery it’s easier to clean glue and paint off the rails. I wish you a safe new year and hope to be watching you again in 2024. All the best from Australia Kind regards Jonathan
Thanks again Larry. I like the comments from the gentleman from Marklin Trains saying (I'm paraphrasing) The best way to keep your track clean is to run trains. Sounds good to me. 😂 Happy New Year everyone 🎉
I use the "GLEAM" method written some years ago in MR. When my track was first laid, I used various grades of sandpaper, getting to very fine grit. This left the rails "gleaming" since it remove milling scratched. I have not had to clean my rails overall for 9 years. For spot cleaning, especially. Around frogs and crossings, I use a soft artist eraser (no grit) or cork. I also clean my engine wheels, using alcohol pads, which fit on the rails. I run the engine on them, holding (lightly!) the engine so the wheels spin on the little cloths. They also fit well on a block of wood for running them down the rails. All my decoders are Loksound and I do not use keep-alives (no room) since 5 of my 9 engines are Bowser Baldwin switchers. Alas, I used Wahl oil many moons ago on earlier layout. Good at first but contributed to dirt as time went by. GLEAM really has worked for my on my last two layouts (I retired and moved so the earlier layout was dismantled).
I just did this method on my n scale coffee table layout which is enclosed under glass. I've been having major issues with conductivity. In my case I used sandpaper, then burnished it with a piece of 304 stainless steel, then I used a piece of cork with chemical guys heavy metal polish to buff the rail head. I think I should have used a different metal polish because it actually left some black residue as I buffed it, but I wiped it all down with a lint free cloth and some mineral spirits. I think I could have done a little better and used different products, but so far I've had really good look. However my passenger cars are still flickering and I get an occasional stutter with my Kato gs4. Im waiting for deoxit to come in the mail, I plan on wiping all the track down one more time and applying deoxit. I was using no ox Id, it seemed like it worked great until the track gets dirty and then it's like you can never get it clean. I am experimenting so none of these methods have 100% convinced me yet but so far the gleaming process has given me the best results although like I said I should have done a few things different.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Larry! Hope 2024 is good to you! I bought a Centerline brass track clean "car" in the later nineties. I still use it. I cut strips of Handiwipes and roll them around the brass weight that rides in the center of the car. I use it with mineral spirits or alcohol for a cleaning solution that I soak the handiwipes with using an eye dropper. I tie a piece of sewing thread around the wrapped wheel to allow it to go in both directions. It is amazing what it picks up. I think the Centerline product is still available. Thanks for your posts! Really good!
I wonder how much having plastic wheels contributes to the issue of dirty track. Plastic will react differently with whatever "cleaning agent" is applied to the rails. I've always swapped any plastic wheels for metal ones, and had minimal problems with dirty track. (FWIW, I use CMX tank car with either IPA or clear nail polish remover/acetone on my HO track.)
I have been having issues without locos stalling and starting. So I clean the track my track with mineral spirits and use no ox id sparingly and it does help. Just to let you know I have a pair of old hs- 24 66 trainmaster locos. The trucks don't have the greatest pickup. When I bought them, they were dc and ran great. When I converted to dcc, the problems began. They didn't run well stopping and starting. I cleaned the track, the wheels, all contact points. Getting frustrated and about to give up, I installed a current keeper in my tsunami 2 and it works perfectly so sometimes no matter how clean the track is it isn't always the answer. Chuck
I have had very good luck using the cork to wipe the rails. I got some 1/4 inch 12x12 sheets from Amazon (used for thumbtack note boards) and cut out small rectangles to clean the rails. As one side becomes dirty I flip it over to the clean side. No abrasives and the rails are nice and bright.
They don’t need to be unless you want lights or sound in them. In that case the wheels must be metal and must be electrically isolated from one another to prevent shorts.
Happy New Years Larry, Always an opinionated subject (track cleaning). From my reading on the subject, it is best to avoid polar compounds. All the short chain alcohols fall into the category. I've had good luck with mineral spirits over the years. I don't consider the same amount of Benzene any worse than the Toluene that was in liquid plastic cement.
To get to the very basics of it, Deoxit and all the variants are formulations of non-polar solvents and all work pretty much the same. I've been using Deoxit for cleaning and conditioning track since I was introduced to it as a MIl-Spec contact cleaner when I was in the USAF in the 1970's.
About four years ago I bought several bottles of Neolube no. 2 and put it on all the rails, joints, turnouts etc. on my On30 empire Each train has one track cleaner car (Bachmann) which drags a soft fiber disk under it. As long as I ran the trains every few days, I had zero issues and I have a bit of dust in my layout room. Neolube leaves a flat black graphite residue that is electrically conductive and requires zero abrasives. I recently tried the No-ox-id on about 1/4 of my track and it was a big mistake - messy and the locos slip and also it gets on the running gear and then cat hair, loose ballast pieces etc. stick to it.
Other than the initial build where you're spraying scenic cement, painting, using plaster, sanding, ballasting, landscaping, etc, I see no need for most of these ongoing cleaning methods. Once the layout is built and assuming it isn't in a filthy environment, just switch to the Masonite slider and you'll never have to worry about dirty track again. Just add one slider car to each running consist. I choose to use a car that has a drop down side frame which disguises the slider. (lots of options) The Masonite slider is a brilliant ideas and simple to build and use and will reach 100% of the track. I see no need for any other method for "ongoing" track cleaning.
Thanks for the follow up clarifying the comments you received and i look forward to the DeOxit outcome when you do it. Have you or anyone else tried burnishing the rail with a nickel to remove the scratches in the rails? A nickel is 75% copper and 25% nickel so I don’t know if that would help with conductivity. Copper is the second most conductive mineral available (silver is first but expensive) and copper has been used for wiring for a very long time at a reasonable price and it is very resistant to corrosion. Maybe a manufacturer, like Walthers, should make track out of copper, it couldn’t be too much more than what they charge now for nickel silver rail and it would be more conductive. Any thoughts?
The oxide rail surface would likely be a poor conductor just like on brass. DCCconcepts makes rails with slightly lower copper content which they say makes them better at resisting oxidation.
After I stopped using alcohol there’s no more black streaks coming off of the rails due to carbon or arcing from electrical contact with locomotive wheels. I use a contact cleaner like CRC 2-26 or even better WD-40 contact cleaner sprayed on a clean cloth.
I cleaned my rails with turpentine then applied no ox id very lightly. I haven’t cleaned my track for 12 months . I do have the dust monkey attached to my rolling stack. Everything works better with no ox id.
Hi Larry, Wishing you and yours a Safe and Happy New Year. A follow up to your Bright Boy comment, have you tried using a Cratex Cleaning Block, like the ones sold by Walthers? Yes it's still an abrasive, but I've been told it's less abrasive than a Bright Boy? I've also been told rubbing a Nickle (5 cent piece) over the rails after using a Bright Boy or Cratex Cleaning Block will help eliminate scratches in the rail. Not sure if this is true? Is a Nickle softer or Harder than Nickle Silver Rail and will it actually polish out scratches? I'm not sure? I'm with you 100% in the Isopropyl Alcohol. I know many say it's polar and tends to attract and leave behind water molecules when the alcohol evaporates. Where non polar products like Mineral Spirits do not attract or leave behind water residue when dry. But my biggest reason for using Isopropyl Alcohol is my layout is in a spare bedroom and I don't want to stink up the house with harsh chemicals. I've also found as I get older, I'm a little more sensitive to some of these harsh cleaners, than I was when I was younger. Thank You Larry for these informative videos and I'm looking forward to your DeOxIt results video. Cheers, Rich S.
Hello Randy, I see you comment on a lot of videos and I assume there is a language difference so I’m offering a way that you may want to format your comments. Hello Larry, (or whoever you are addressing) I think your videos are cool and I am enjoying them. Thank you, your friend, Randy.
I've commented before that the oxide of nickel silver is more conductive than any coating you could apply to your rails. Do you agree with that or not?
This all seems confusing as "experts" seem to have different recommendations. The publisher of MRH magazine says: "Mineral spirits is the non-polar solvent of choice -- another good choice is Deluxe Materials' Track Magic, but it costs a lot more than mineral spirits." I suppose if Larry's objection to Mineral Spirits regards benzene, then the what about finding a benzene free mineral spirt?
Experts differ and there are also interacting reasons for selecting one pathway over another as I discuss in this video. As for another benzene free option watch the whole video for the answer!
Larry My DEOXIT D100L is arriving today from Amazon. I have everything I need going to clean some track is see how it works. But in your video you said clean your track first then apply these things I thought these things would clean the track?
I still went over my helix with IPA and also the masonite slider car just to give the DeOxIT a fighting chance. Theoretically the IPA the DeOxIT is dissolved in should do the cleaning and leave the active ingredients behind to do their trick on the rails.
Short version: Many assume IPA all evaporates and leaves absolutely no residue. This isn't always the case and can cause problems and arguments. A cautionary tale that might save some a headache: When 3D printers first came out we had a similar discussion, as we need to clean our build plates. If they're not clean (or you don't apply something else for the build to stick to) the plastic won't bond. What better than IPA? (Isopropyl Alcohol) It all evaporates and won't leave a residue! We were naive. The sheer contrast of success and failure between people posting started a lot of arguments. Something strange was clearly going on. Suddenly my prints started failing. How? Why? It was fine! I finally realized I'd grabbed a different bottle of IPA and it made a big difference, despite being the same strength! How could this make a difference? I went out and bought every different brand of 99% IPA I could find, and realized they performed drastically different. How is that possible? They're 99% IPA, and 1% water. What could change? After some research we realized that the IPA solution is made up of more than those two items, but the companies aren't required to list any ingredients that make up less than 1% of it. Turns out that "less than 1%" of items in the solution don't necessarily evaporate like the IPA and water, which become an invisible residue on your project. For us, plastic wouldn't bond to some of it. We'd been arguing that 70% or 90% or 99% IPA would or wouldn't work with X plastic on X build plates, but none of us had mentioned the brand of IPA we'd been using. We then realized that the brand could change formulas at any time, or may be regional, so we'd just need to be conscious of this. What does this mean for model railroading? I'm still getting into the hobby, so I can't yet say. I'd love it if it meant nothing, but given the scale we're working in, it wouldn't surprise me at all if an invisible residue on the tracks can interfere with how well something like NO-OX or similar either work, or continue to work over time. So two people could complete the same task and end up with different results. One didn't necessarily do something 'wrong', and may have nothing to do with the procedure or type or product people are discussing--it could literally be the BRAND of cleaning solution being used, and the residue being left behind by it that we can't even see, and assume isn't there.
All of this is why I'm interested in developing deadrail systems for HO scale. Battery technology is advancing; I realize the industry won't adopt such tech, but it won't stop me from experimenting as I enjoy seeing trains actually stop at stations, so they can easily charge there.
@@derekalexander4030 If I told you which worked best for me where I lived when I tested it, how would that help you where you live in 2023? I intentionally didn't mention a brand because--as I said in my post--formulas from companies can vary by region and over time. Moreover, what worked well for FDM printing may not for rail conductivity. My point was to run your own tests with what is available to you. Clean different sections of layout with different solutions, document, and test over time. The difference between science and just mucking about is whether or not you wrote it all down.
I did what you recommended. It worked. One thing that, I did was add one drop of deoxit on all the track joint connectors. Then added the remaining deoxit to one quart of Isopropyl alcohol.
Thanks Larry and Season's Greetings! Without your channel and books, most of us model railroaders would be lost! We greatly appreciate your time and effort! Cheers! 🍻
I totally agree that Larry has been a great help to a lot of us. In the # 351 episode the 70% rubbing alcohol is shown. Just a reminder that the lower the percentage of IPA or Rubbing alcohol the higher content of water. Therefore, it is suggested that 99 % API is used. Yes, it will evaporate quicker, but it will not leave a water residue behind.
CRC QD electronic cleaner using a dry, clean cloth. Best solution to cleaning track and wheels…evaporates quickly leaving no residue. Simply the best!
A club I use to belong to used a product called LPS-1 (a Greaseless Lubricant) to clean all of rails on the club layout. That really worked great, and we found that even if there was some "Black Grime" on the rails, when you rubbed your finger along them, it DID NOT hinder the operation of the trains at all. I have a copy of the article we found it in if anyone would like to read it. Several of our members also stated that they found their home layouts were running better because of running their trains on the club layout (Which coated the wheels on their trains) and then returning home and running them on their home layout (Which transferred the product to their home layout rails). We found we only had to clean the rails on the club layout about once a month and we ran trains at the club every day for hours. The cleaning only entailed wiping the rails with a dry cloth and replacing a light coat of LPS-1 on a block of Balsam wood to the rails and let it dry for about 30 minutes. Anyone else use this product too?
Thanks for the informative followup! I'm in the non-polar solvent camp whick includes my go to - mineral spirits. Appreciate your information on the less toxic and benzene free Gamsol mineral spirits which I purchased at Hobby Lobby for $11.99.
Best, Eric
Hi Larry 😊 I received your excellent book Wiring Your Model Railroad as a Christmas gift. As I work my way through it, I'm realizing how much I didn't know!! It is really packed with great information and truly should be on every model railroaders bookshelf. Take care.
My first H0 trains in the 70s used rails made of some ferrous alloy prone to rust. I tried clipper oil and as you say, I got a gummy substance on the wheels. In the 90s I built a larger layout in an ad hoc room and installed German Rocco brand silver nickel rails and I forgot about the problem. The bad thing was that they were not enough for the entire route and when I installed the double track I bought American rails of the same material at Walthers. And the problem returned. I built some cleaner cars with ballasted masonite drag plates, but the problem was repeated from time to time. It occurred to me to compare a new piece of Rocco track with a new American one with a school microscope, discovering that the first had almost no scratches and the other did. An old local hobbyist advised me to buy a very expensive sheet of water-based sandpaper, the kind used in jewelry, passing it over the problematic paths with a few drops of light oil and then cleaning with alcohol. Chinese work that paid off. I have never had a problem again and I have not used anything else to maintain it other than pieces of wood
Great videos! You are correct to a degree about how the No-Ox and Deoxit work. However, Deoxit does not have a "lubricant" in it. It's not really designed for cleaning and lubing contactor systems like No-ox.
You are also right about cleaning first.
Also, Deoxit sells a two part kit. The first part is the oxide remover/cleaner. The second part is the contact enhancer which in itself is a connective electrolyte.
As I think I noted in a response to part 1 I work in the electronics mfg industry. You are correct with regard to the conductivity (or lack thereof) of various metals. In order, oxidized copper is the worst and because brass is an alloy of copper (which simply oxidizes slower than copper due to the sacrificial anode in the alloy...zinc). Nickel plated copper or brass (nickel is phenomenally corrosion and oxidation resistant)...but nickel conducts 75% less than copper and brass conducts 72% less than copper. So, the old brass rail was a poor conductor in the first place AND it oxidizes.
In the nickel silver, the nickel will never really oxidize but typically these alloys are about 60% copper....so they conduct power well. The corrosion of the copper is controlled/delayed by the zinc (but not fully). Most of what you are having to clean off of nickel silver rail is the zinc "rust".
I found this comment to be very informative thank you.
Perhaps the most effective and foolproof approach to maintaining clean track is your suggestion to include one (or more) Masonite slider track cleaning car in every train that runs.
Another approach that seems to enjoy some currency is the application of graphite, usually in the form of artist's chalks, to the rails. Aficionados claim that the residual graphite significantly improves electrical conductivity. Much anecdotal discussion of this approach can be found online, but like all nostrums, your mileage may vary.
Hello Larry. I have tried several things. Isopropanol 70 + 99, Deluxe Materials Track Magic, Woodland Scenics Track Solution, No OX-ID, Brake Cleaner, SR24. My best thing ever is SR24. I will use this ever. Only SR24.
I was experimenting yesterday on rail cleaning and discovered that using thin cork discs on an old MDC Box cab diesel w/ rail cleaning attachments worked well. I basically just found a thin sheet, cut out discs and attached them to the sprung drums on the diesel w/ double sided sticky tape (3M thin scotch type). The weight of the box cab seems to do a great deal of good, as the rails remain bright so far.
Brilliant!
Thank you for expert tips. As a beginner in this hobby it's always nice to get valuable advice from an master railroader! 👍
A good way to keep the rails clean is to have the layout in a clean room, but that's a very expensive undertaking.
If you have a look at Luke Towans channel his new layout has opening doors and it is fitted with filters and is pressurised.
@@greatnorthernrailwaytother4711 Okay.
Well mine is in my living room so it gets the same dust as everything else. I almost never have to even rub a spot with a cloth. So not far off I'm sure.
@@tvtoms The clean room of a hospital is even cleaner, but that works.
George Selios who runs the massive FSM layout would agree 100%. When the layout isn't being viewed he seals it up with curtains I believe.
Thanks for those clarifying points, Larry. Happy New Year to you.
Perhaps I put the No-ox on too thick & added cat litter dust & dander and my tracks “gummed up the works!” I cleaned all that off with some cork road bed, a clean cloth, add isopropyl alcohol & now everything works great. Thanks for the suggestions & the clarifications, another great video! Have a safe, healthy, prosperous & Happy New Year!!
Thank you Larry for the additional comments on track cleaning. I have been watching whatever youtube throws up at me about track cleaning solutions. I bought the Deox-it you recommended but have't used it yet. So far I have tried the isopropyl alcohol and I am not quite sure if that is doing much. I wonder because I don't see much black residue on the Q-tip and yet My DCC loco has all sorts of stops and starts. I watched that delightful gentleman from Sweden who recommends using small wood blocks. I have even had some success with a rubber eraser . I did use the Isopropyl on the loco wheels as well and that helped a little bit. But still I have a balking locomotive on a simple piece of flex track section. I feel like I am grasping at straws.
glad you help clear up some of the problems with these products , like cleaning rails before applying and also they dont last forever , you need to clean and reapply depending on traffic or dust buildup
Hey Larry I stick with the Masonite pieces attached to the underside of the box car as per John Allen's instructions and give them a run almost every day. I also use white spirit on occasion and Isopropyl alcohol as well for hard to remove stains/build up (very rarely required I might add). Thanks for your You Tube V blogs and all the best for the new year
Hi Larry, thank you so much for all your informative videos and information and knowledge. You are a pleasure to watch. I’m glad you cleared up the information about no ox because I’ve been using it for the past two years and it’s amazing. After applying it before scenery it’s easier to clean glue and paint off the rails.
I wish you a safe new year and hope to be watching you again in 2024.
All the best from Australia
Kind regards Jonathan
Thanks again Larry. I like the comments from the gentleman from Marklin Trains saying (I'm paraphrasing) The best way to keep your track clean is to run trains. Sounds good to me. 😂 Happy New Year everyone 🎉
Thank you for your continuing videos Larry. Seasons greetings to you.
Happy Newyear Larry. Thanks for all you do for this hobby.
I use the "GLEAM" method written some years ago in MR. When my track was first laid, I used various grades of sandpaper, getting to very fine grit. This left the rails "gleaming" since it remove milling scratched. I have not had to clean my rails overall for 9 years. For spot cleaning, especially. Around frogs and crossings, I use a soft artist eraser (no grit) or cork. I also clean my engine wheels, using alcohol pads, which fit on the rails. I run the engine on them, holding (lightly!) the engine so the wheels spin on the little cloths. They also fit well on a block of wood for running them down the rails. All my decoders are Loksound and I do not use keep-alives (no room) since 5 of my 9 engines are Bowser Baldwin switchers. Alas, I used Wahl oil many moons ago on earlier layout. Good at first but contributed to dirt as time went by. GLEAM really has worked for my on my last two layouts (I retired and moved so the earlier layout was dismantled).
I just did this method on my n scale coffee table layout which is enclosed under glass. I've been having major issues with conductivity. In my case I used sandpaper, then burnished it with a piece of 304 stainless steel, then I used a piece of cork with chemical guys heavy metal polish to buff the rail head. I think I should have used a different metal polish because it actually left some black residue as I buffed it, but I wiped it all down with a lint free cloth and some mineral spirits. I think I could have done a little better and used different products, but so far I've had really good look. However my passenger cars are still flickering and I get an occasional stutter with my Kato gs4. Im waiting for deoxit to come in the mail, I plan on wiping all the track down one more time and applying deoxit. I was using no ox Id, it seemed like it worked great until the track gets dirty and then it's like you can never get it clean. I am experimenting so none of these methods have 100% convinced me yet but so far the gleaming process has given me the best results although like I said I should have done a few things different.
Happy New Year Larry. All the best to you and your family. Enjoyed your videos throughout the year. Looking forward to 2024! Rgds from Down Under.
Thank you Larry for the informative video and clearly explaining your rationale. I wish you the best in the New Year!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Larry! Hope 2024 is good to you! I bought a Centerline brass track clean "car" in the later nineties. I still use it. I cut strips of Handiwipes and roll them around the brass weight that rides in the center of the car. I use it with mineral spirits or alcohol for a cleaning solution that I soak the handiwipes with using an eye dropper. I tie a piece of sewing thread around the wrapped wheel to allow it to go in both directions. It is amazing what it picks up. I think the Centerline product is still available. Thanks for your posts! Really good!
I wonder how much having plastic wheels contributes to the issue of dirty track. Plastic will react differently with whatever "cleaning agent" is applied to the rails. I've always swapped any plastic wheels for metal ones, and had minimal problems with dirty track. (FWIW, I use CMX tank car with either IPA or clear nail polish remover/acetone on my HO track.)
I have been having issues without locos stalling and starting. So I clean the track my track with mineral spirits and use no ox id sparingly and it does help. Just to let you know I have a pair of old hs- 24 66 trainmaster locos. The trucks don't have the greatest pickup. When I bought them, they were dc and ran great. When I converted to dcc, the problems began. They didn't run well stopping and starting. I cleaned the track, the wheels, all contact points. Getting frustrated and about to give up, I installed a current keeper in my tsunami 2 and it works perfectly so sometimes no matter how clean the track is it isn't always the answer.
Chuck
I have had very good luck using the cork to wipe the rails. I got some 1/4 inch 12x12 sheets from Amazon (used for thumbtack note boards) and cut out small rectangles to clean the rails. As one side becomes dirty I flip it over to the clean side. No abrasives and the rails are nice and bright.
Great Video Larry, happy New Year,
Hello Larry, Why are caboose truck different than boxcar trucks?
I have seen all 353 of your videos and love them.
Keep up the great work.
They don’t need to be unless you want lights or sound in them. In that case the wheels must be metal and must be electrically isolated from one another to prevent shorts.
Great year of informative videos. Have a Happy New Year!!
Happy New Years Larry, Always an opinionated subject (track cleaning). From my reading on the subject, it is best to avoid polar compounds. All the short chain alcohols fall into the category. I've had good luck with mineral spirits over the years. I don't consider the same amount of Benzene any worse than the Toluene that was in liquid plastic cement.
Thank you very much for those videos, I wish you and your familly an happy new year.
Great info again on the much debated topic. Have a Happy New Year.
To get to the very basics of it, Deoxit and all the variants are formulations of non-polar solvents and all work pretty much the same. I've been using Deoxit for cleaning and conditioning track since I was introduced to it as a MIl-Spec contact cleaner when I was in the USAF in the 1970's.
About four years ago I bought several bottles of Neolube no. 2 and put it on all the rails, joints, turnouts etc. on my On30 empire Each train has one track cleaner car (Bachmann) which drags a soft fiber disk under it. As long as I ran the trains every few days, I had zero issues and I have a bit of dust in my layout room.
Neolube leaves a flat black graphite residue that is electrically conductive and requires zero abrasives.
I recently tried the No-ox-id on about 1/4 of my track and it was a big mistake - messy and the locos slip and also it gets on the running gear and then cat hair, loose ballast pieces etc. stick to it.
Great video and information! Happy New Year to you and yours!
Thank you for sharing.👍
Other than the initial build where you're spraying scenic cement, painting, using plaster, sanding, ballasting, landscaping, etc, I see no need for most of these ongoing cleaning methods. Once the layout is built and assuming it isn't in a filthy environment, just switch to the Masonite slider and you'll never have to worry about dirty track again. Just add one slider car to each running consist. I choose to use a car that has a drop down side frame which disguises the slider. (lots of options) The Masonite slider is a brilliant ideas and simple to build and use and will reach 100% of the track. I see no need for any other method for "ongoing" track cleaning.
Thanks for the follow up clarifying the comments you received and i look forward to the DeOxit outcome when you do it. Have you or anyone else tried burnishing the rail with a nickel to remove the scratches in the rails? A nickel is 75% copper and 25% nickel so I don’t know if that would help with conductivity. Copper is the second most conductive mineral available (silver is first but expensive) and copper has been used for wiring for a very long time at a reasonable price and it is very resistant to corrosion. Maybe a manufacturer, like Walthers, should make track out of copper, it couldn’t be too much more than what they charge now for nickel silver rail and it would be more conductive. Any thoughts?
The oxide rail surface would likely be a poor conductor just like on brass. DCCconcepts makes rails with slightly lower copper content which they say makes them better at resisting oxidation.
After I stopped using alcohol there’s no more black streaks coming off of the rails due to carbon or arcing from electrical contact with locomotive wheels. I use a contact cleaner like CRC 2-26 or even better WD-40 contact cleaner sprayed on a clean cloth.
I use a soft cloth ,and wet one end with water and dish soap, and dry with the other end of cloth the rails. Takes the black off the rail and dirt.
I cleaned my rails with turpentine then applied no ox id very lightly. I haven’t cleaned my track for 12 months . I do have the dust monkey attached to my rolling stack. Everything works better with no ox id.
All the best Larry for 2024, i think some of these chemicals will affect traction tyres?
Hi Larry. Have a great New Year.
Hi Larry, Wishing you and yours a Safe and Happy New Year. A follow up to your Bright Boy comment, have you tried using a Cratex Cleaning Block, like the ones sold by Walthers? Yes it's still an abrasive, but I've been told it's less abrasive than a Bright Boy? I've also been told rubbing a Nickle (5 cent piece) over the rails after using a Bright Boy or Cratex Cleaning Block will help eliminate scratches in the rail. Not sure if this is true? Is a Nickle softer or Harder than Nickle Silver Rail and will it actually polish out scratches? I'm not sure? I'm with you 100% in the Isopropyl Alcohol. I know many say it's polar and tends to attract and leave behind water molecules when the alcohol evaporates. Where non polar products like Mineral Spirits do not attract or leave behind water residue when dry. But my biggest reason for using Isopropyl Alcohol is my layout is in a spare bedroom and I don't want to stink up the house with harsh chemicals. I've also found as I get older, I'm a little more sensitive to some of these harsh cleaners, than I was when I was younger. Thank You Larry for these informative videos and I'm looking forward to your DeOxIt results video. Cheers, Rich S.
I find ATF works really wall to clean track, then follow up with IPA to get it all off the track or you will get dust buildup.
Happy New Year
Wow talk about being first, Great job Larry love your videos.
How can I contact you off line for further discussion? TJP, MMR
I puts NO-OX-ID on with my finger and then I wipe off the excess with a lint free cloth, leaving a thin film only.
I use basswood and time to clean all 65 inches of my circular layout.
hello Larry it's is randy and i like yours video is cool thanks Larry friends randy
Hello Randy, I see you comment on a lot of videos and I assume there is a language difference so I’m offering a way that you may want to format your comments. Hello Larry, (or whoever you are addressing) I think your videos are cool and I am enjoying them. Thank you, your friend, Randy.
I've commented before that the oxide of nickel silver is more conductive than any coating you could apply to your rails. Do you agree with that or not?
This all seems confusing as "experts" seem to have different recommendations. The publisher of MRH magazine says: "Mineral spirits is the non-polar solvent of choice -- another good choice is Deluxe Materials' Track Magic, but it costs a lot more than mineral spirits." I suppose if Larry's objection to Mineral Spirits regards benzene, then the what about finding a benzene free mineral spirt?
Experts differ and there are also interacting reasons for selecting one pathway over another as I discuss in this video. As for another benzene free option watch the whole video for the answer!
Thanks but I was expecting an update on your experiment with De-Oxit? Was it effective?
As I said I’ll report back in a couple of months.
Larry My DEOXIT D100L is arriving today from Amazon. I have everything I need going to clean some track is see how it works. But in your video you said clean your track first then apply these things I thought these things would clean the track?
I still went over my helix with IPA and also the masonite slider car just to give the DeOxIT a fighting chance. Theoretically the IPA the DeOxIT is dissolved in should do the cleaning and leave the active ingredients behind to do their trick on the rails.
90% Iso.... In my CMX track cleaner, I've never had a problem...
I think the best product I have used is Deluxe Track Magic this a excellent contact cleaner.
Short version: Many assume IPA all evaporates and leaves absolutely no residue. This isn't always the case and can cause problems and arguments.
A cautionary tale that might save some a headache:
When 3D printers first came out we had a similar discussion, as we need to clean our build plates. If they're not clean (or you don't apply something else for the build to stick to) the plastic won't bond. What better than IPA? (Isopropyl Alcohol) It all evaporates and won't leave a residue! We were naive.
The sheer contrast of success and failure between people posting started a lot of arguments. Something strange was clearly going on. Suddenly my prints started failing. How? Why? It was fine! I finally realized I'd grabbed a different bottle of IPA and it made a big difference, despite being the same strength! How could this make a difference? I went out and bought every different brand of 99% IPA I could find, and realized they performed drastically different. How is that possible? They're 99% IPA, and 1% water. What could change? After some research we realized that the IPA solution is made up of more than those two items, but the companies aren't required to list any ingredients that make up less than 1% of it. Turns out that "less than 1%" of items in the solution don't necessarily evaporate like the IPA and water, which become an invisible residue on your project. For us, plastic wouldn't bond to some of it. We'd been arguing that 70% or 90% or 99% IPA would or wouldn't work with X plastic on X build plates, but none of us had mentioned the brand of IPA we'd been using. We then realized that the brand could change formulas at any time, or may be regional, so we'd just need to be conscious of this.
What does this mean for model railroading? I'm still getting into the hobby, so I can't yet say. I'd love it if it meant nothing, but given the scale we're working in, it wouldn't surprise me at all if an invisible residue on the tracks can interfere with how well something like NO-OX or similar either work, or continue to work over time. So two people could complete the same task and end up with different results. One didn't necessarily do something 'wrong', and may have nothing to do with the procedure or type or product people are discussing--it could literally be the BRAND of cleaning solution being used, and the residue being left behind by it that we can't even see, and assume isn't there.
All of this is why I'm interested in developing deadrail systems for HO scale. Battery technology is advancing; I realize the industry won't adopt such tech, but it won't stop me from experimenting as I enjoy seeing trains actually stop at stations, so they can easily charge there.
So you bought every brand available but can’t tell us which brand was best.
@@derekalexander4030 If I told you which worked best for me where I lived when I tested it, how would that help you where you live in 2023? I intentionally didn't mention a brand because--as I said in my post--formulas from companies can vary by region and over time. Moreover, what worked well for FDM printing may not for rail conductivity. My point was to run your own tests with what is available to you. Clean different sections of layout with different solutions, document, and test over time. The difference between science and just mucking about is whether or not you wrote it all down.