Can anyone explain the difference in operation between the LGB 20670 and 21670. I know the difference in price is 2x.
I have seen a 20670 in operation and thought it did a great job.
I use an LGB track-cleaning block or a Brite-boy pan-scrubber on a stick - same kind of results. I’m way too poor to spend $800 or more on something that looks like Rube Goldberg built it in the dark.
I guess that if I had large ground level track I’d make the stick longer, and still put the Brite-Boy on the track end of it. There sure ain’t no ‘bright-boy’ on the end I’m holding, but I’m darned if I’d go to the expense of buying a costy piece of gear when I could spend it on another proper-looking locomotive.
tac, bitter and cynical old fart
Mark Demyan said:
Can anyone explain the difference in operation between the LGB 20670 and 21670. I know the difference in price is 2x.
I have seen a 20670 in operation and thought it did a great job.
21670 Orange is DCC decoder equipped and can be run on DCC or DC,
20670 Yellow used to come without a decoder
http://www.gbdb.info/categories.php?cat_id=299&sessionid=899761feeee281922fa838586042d499&l=english
As far as operation is concerned: same cleaning function.
Price differences between dealers are substantial.
Hans-Joerg Mueller said:
Mark Demyan said:
Can anyone explain the difference in operation between the LGB 20670 and 21670. I know the difference in price is 2x.
I have seen a 20670 in operation and thought it did a great job.
21670 Orange is DCC decoder equipped and can be run on DCC or DC,
20670 Yellow used to come without a decoder
http://www.gbdb.info/categories.php?cat_id=299&sessionid=899761feeee281922fa838586042d499&l=english
As far as operation is concerned: same cleaning function.
Price differences between dealers are substantial.
Thanks Hans, that makes sense to me and completely answers my question.
I have a little over 200’ of ground laid track with 8’ of it in a tunnel. At the moment I am using a drywall sanding pole I bought at Home Depot and it works fine. I am concerned in the future when I am not running it every week and the build up on the track is such that it takes 2 or 3 times longer to clean the track and I can’t reach most of the center section of the tunnel with the pole.
I am running DCC but since I would be running this by it’s self to clean the track before putting any of the trains on I can make a switch that will transfer track power from the DCC Controller directly to the power supply to operate the cleaning engine. The ~$400 for the basic unit is already a lot so I don’t see why I need to pay an additional ~$400 on top of the base unit for something I don’t really need.
This unit requires pretty high voltage on the track to be effective, at least 24v.
I had one, and it would barely run. I found that the higher amperage draw of the 2 motors overworked my cheap MRC pack. More amps showed it also needed a higher voltage to spin the cleaning wheels fast enough.
You have to have enough “oomph” to have the cleaning wheels break free and spin. On heavily oxidized track (this does not clean dirt or gunk, it removes oxide) there is more “grip” and the higher voltage is necessary. I had one that was decoder equipped and I needed 27 volts on the rails for satisfactory operation.
Greg
Mark, Here’s a $1.99 solution to track cleaning.
caboose with a replacable Scotch Brite pad on a floating block.
Screws were left loose to allow the lower cleaning block to float, the wood block is just weight. You could save $398.01. Good luck.
Now THAT’s MY kind of solution, but then I don’t have an eight-foot long tunnel to deal with. Perhaps the OP had better bite his knuckles and get the thing after all.
tac
Ottawa Valley GRS
Nah… I won’t say anything. I’ll be good. 
Steve Featherkile said:
Nah… I won’t say anything. I’ll be good.
Bawkkkkkkkkk, Bawkkkkkkkkkkkkk…
Yup.
We have a ten+ foot tunnel on the layout. with a number of shorter ones. In order to leave easy access for cleaning the cross-section of the tunnels is oversize.
The portals get adjusted as required and remain removable.
(http://www.rhb-grischun.ca/P1a/MuotNord03_s.jpg)
Plenty of room to clean once the portal is removed.
Having owned the LGB track cleaning loco, and used several others on other layouts, it works very well as long as you maintain the abrasive disks and the “flanges” on the rotating cleaner wheel.
You can run a scotchbrite car around for hours and not come very close to what this loco will do especially on heavily oxidized track.
I’ve basically had one of everything at one time or another:
http://www.elmassian.com/trains/track-aamp-switches/track-cleaning
(scroll down if you like pictures more than reading 
)
greg
But I have an idea for an cheap easy electric track cleaner with replaceable cleaning pads. Next time I’m at someplace that has these, I need to measure the length of the roller.
Two things, one is a powered broom car. The Broom unit I get at a Show several years ago and built the car to carry it and the battery to power it. Works great to finish clearing the CCRy! Two, for the indoor layout (Modular PSGRS) I built a box car from a 4x4, some scribed siding and a piece of masonite that slides on the track while running around the layout at the show.
Paul
I ma glad I run stainless steel track. I have a home brew cleaning car made from a 1x4, with a piece of drywall screen rubber banded to it. its effective enough at cleaning the gunk off the tracks, that 3 or 4 passes on the railroad and the track is clean.
I bought the yellow track cleaning locomotive a few months ago. I love it! It makes lots of noise, lots of lights and does something. What could be better? Is a drywall sander faster? Yes.
I like how it really polishes the rails to a finer finish than the drywall sandpaper.
I’ve used them all. If I still had brass rail, I’d still have the LGB unit.
Now, with stainless, I only need a wet paper towel, David why are you using sandpaper… get a “swiffer” and it will not only take the gunk off, but the black grime too, which will not be removed by sandpaper.
Key point: after I wipe the rails once with a swiffer, rubbing my finger on the rail, no black stuff comes back… and there’s no reason to put scratches or wear down the surface.
Greg
Greg. usually I put a blue shop towel on the pole sander. The towel isn’t really cloth, but its definitely not paper neither. Anyway I put a drop of dish soap on the towel and the run water on it, put it on the pole sander and clean the track. It gets the bird doo, grit, crushed bug stuff, and black gunk off the rails. I seldom use the home brew cleaning car, usually just when I am lazy, and have been running trains for a few hours, and want to run for a few hours more.
Sometimes I do need to use the drywall screen to get something off the rails. Its clear, and insulates very well. I dunno if its crystallized tree sap or what it is. I even sliced it off the rails with a razor blade one time, just to prove to myself that there was something there, even though I couldn’t see it.
LGB Track Cleaning Loco?
Nope, it’s really a track grinder.
I’ve watch one take it’s time grinding away on 1800 curve track and seeing the filings it left.
By the time it went around our layout I could have walked it with a pole sander and pad fifteen times.
Waste of money.
Are they still being made?
Wendell Hanks said:
LGB Track Cleaning Loco?
Nope, it’s really a track grinder.
I’ve watch one take it’s time grinding away on 1800 curve track and seeing the filings it left.
By the time it went around our layout I could have walked it with a pole sander and pad fifteen times.
Waste of money.
Are they still being made?
Yep new and improved errrr I mean now Orange livery and a DCC decoder. Somewhere, some time ago there was a picture of what happens if the gizmo gets stuck and merrily keeps on grinding. Didn’t look as good as the prototype.
PS perhaps that’s one way to get the C332 closer to C250 or C215, eh!