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Author Previous Topic: How to add weight to TYCO boxcar Topic Next Topic: this one runs  

scsshaggy
Big Boy


scsshaggy

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 Posted - May 26 2017 :  1:26:21 PM Link directly to this topic  Show Profile  Add scsshaggy to Buddylist
I try to keep my tracks fairly clean, and most of my locomotives run quite well on track that's just fairly clean. I had a few engines, though, that were practically useless if the tracks were not surgically clean:

The wheels on these engines would pick up dirt and arc and spark so that it was baked on in a sort of ceramic crust. On pretty clean track, they'd be sputtering along on dirty wheels after maybe a scale mile of running. I'd clean the wheels and even polish them so the dirt wouldn't stick, and still, the problem persisted.

I like these engines, but they were nearly useless to me.

I was at a model railroad operating session, and the subject of track cleaning came up. The owner of the layout (which runs almost flawlessly) showed us this:


This stuff forms a conductive coating on surfaces to which it's applied. When you wipe it on, it feels like a light oil, but then you wipe off the excess, and it no longer seems oily, but the surface feels slippery by virtue of being very smooth, like a highly polished sliding board.

Because it makes track kind of slippery, I have not used it on the track, as yet. I have a very steep ruling grade, and most trains need all the traction they can get. If I use it on the track, at all, it'll just be on the first tracks in the yard to get dirty.

I did put it on the wheels of the finicky engines, though. I tested them on track that was pretty clean, but not perfectly clean. They just ran on and on without the wheels getting dirty. Pickup was far better than I would have believed.

The trade-off is that traction was reduced by maybe a quarter to a third. I don't think I'll use this on the engines that lug heavy trains up the hill, but for the engines whose wheels seemed to dirty themselves, I'm willing to give up some tonnage rating to make formerly useless engines run well.

It's not especially cheap, but a little goes a long way. To use it, I cleaned the wheels as best I could and put a little of this product on a rag and wiped it on the wheels. Then, I wiped off the excess.

Carpe Manana!
Edited by - scsshaggy on May 26 2017 1:27:01 PM
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Barry
Big Boy


DRGWAvatar

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 Posted - May 26 2017 :  8:57:29 PM Link directly to this reply  Show Profile  Add Barry to Buddylist
Well it'll be interesting to see what you finally decide about that stuff Don. Also be interesting to know what it is that makes some wheels do that; composition of the metal, some extracurricular rogue di-electric activity, magic, . . . ? I like the picture of your yard with that array of locomotives sittin' there waiting for a ticket. The greenery and ballast and cars in the background; all looks pretty real.
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scsshaggy
Big Boy


scsshaggy

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 Posted - May 26 2017 :  10:25:47 PM Link directly to this reply  Show Profile  Add scsshaggy to Buddylist
quote:
Well it'll be interesting to see what you finally decide about that stuff Don. Also be interesting to know what it is that makes some wheels do that; composition of the metal, some extracurricular rogue di-electric activity, magic, . . . ? I like the picture of your yard with that array of locomotives sittin' there waiting for a ticket. The greenery and ballast and cars in the background; all looks pretty real.

Originally posted by Barry - May 26 2017 :  8:57:29 PM


I think the trouble is different for the different engines:
The 44-tonner is kind of light so the contact is not all that firm. The wheels are nickel silver, so I doubt that the makeup of the wheels is an issue. Still, I have other engines that are none too heavy that are okay, so I'm not sure of the whole cause. Perhaps it's a combination of things.

The boxcab has steel wheels. They're more porous than brass or nickel silver, so they would pick up dirt faster. Also, the trucks are pretty rigidly mounted on the roll axis, so the wheels can pick up and spark if the other truck is rolling over a switch frog or uneven track.

The Dockside has only 4 wheels and a short wheel base, so I think it's too easy to lose contact and spark. The same kind of wheels on a bigger engine with more wheels work quite well.

The little shay has brass wheels with nickel plating. Being small, it's not very heavy, but it's heavy enough for its size. It's fairly flexible, so I don't think the wheels hang in the air much, and I've modified it to pick up on all 8 wheels. I really don't know what ailed it, but it was the worst engine around for how quickly the wheels crusted over. Works well, now, though.

Thanks for the kind words about the picture and scenery.

Carpe Manana!
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offtrackthoroughbred
Little Six

Ice Bandit

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 Posted - May 27 2017 :  10:34:46 AM Link directly to this reply  Show Profile  Add offtrackthoroughbred to Buddylist
Your bottle resembles lamp oil I have seen in department stores. I found this RibbonRail Track Cleaner Car on HOseeker: Kerosene suggested over 50 years ago:


ottb
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scsshaggy
Big Boy


scsshaggy

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 Posted - May 27 2017 :  11:45:07 PM Link directly to this reply  Show Profile  Add scsshaggy to Buddylist
I think it's something other than kerosene. There's a warning on the label that if you put it on the pad of a track cleaning car, the pad shouldn't be wet all the way across because that could be a short circuit. I haven't experimented with that, yet, but it would seem that the stuff is a conductor. Most oils like kerosene or automatic transmission fluid would not be.
Carpe Manana!
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cadetpwr
Big Six

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 Posted - July 27 2017 :  8:53:13 PM Link directly to this reply  Show Profile  Add cadetpwr to Buddylist
anything that leaves an oil residue on the rail heads will only make things worse with time and kill traction tires on locomotives so equipted. I find a good old Walthers bright boy is all that is needed to put a nice shiny polish on the rail heads. LGB offers a big one for G scale that is handy for doing double track areas and yards as you can do more than one track at a time. If engines still have issues, then its time to look at thier pickups. The brass shay is prone to oxidation between the bolster and truck frame. Solder wire to truck frame and clamp under screw on frame or route directly to motor ground. I made up 8 wheel pickup wipers for my PFM/United shays when I was into those models. Diesels if run in pairs, MU them together with micro connector wires to increase track pickup points(works well on Tyco diesels like Sharks or the Silver Streak style engines). Tyco/Mantua steam benefit from nickle silver wheels in tender trucks, polishing the axle bearing slots in engine frames and can motors or fresh magnets in the open frame motor to reduce amp draw and thus less arching and pitting of the pickup wheels. Also, the engines of mine that sit the most, run the worst at first. Regular operation keeps bearings and axles polished up so power pick is at its best. Mike
Still NT's, I have Aspergers.
 Country: USA  ~  Posts: 308  ~  Member Since: November 17 2008  ~  Last Visit: June 05 2023 Alert Moderator  Go To Top Of Page
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