Large Scale Central

Track Help!

Problem Solving
#1

I have two issues to ask for help with.

First, I have one piece of track where the 2mm joiner screw has bee sheared off in the web of the rail. There is relatively nothing to get hold of. Does anyone have any suggestions how to remove this screw?

Second, I have purchased about 150 feet of straight and an almost 20 foot diameter circle, both are heavily tarnished and conductivity is an issue. What is the best recommendation to remove the tarnish in the areas where conductivity is critical (ie top and insides of rail heads and ends at joiners)?

Thanks in advance.

Bob C.

#2

  1. Get a small enough drill bit and drill bit which I think is 1/16th and drill it out, it won’t hurt the hole at all I use it to drill new holes in my track where there are no holes after cutting them to fit!

  2. I use the Green Scotch Brite scrubbing pads, I take each one and cut it into 4’s then use it to take all the tarnish off, works great, and secondly get yourself a Aristo track cleaning caboose and run it at the end of one of your trains, it will keep the tops clean too!! Regal

#3

The cleaning block on my Aristo caboose bangs into LGB whistle-bell magnets and derails the caboose. That’s annoying, so I put the caboose in a box up on a high shelf and bought a Trackman track cleaning car. It isn’t cheap, it isn’t protypical, but it is what they use at the big layout at the Fairplex in Pomona, and it does keep the track clean once it has been buffed real well with a Scotch-Brite pad, or even better, with an LGB cleaning block.

#4
Art Sylvester said:
The cleaning block on my Aristo caboose bangs into LGB whistle-bell magnets and derails the caboose. That's annoying, so I put the caboose in a box up on a high shelf and bought a Trackman track cleaning car. It isn't cheap, it isn't protypical, but it is what they use at the big layout at the Fairplex in Pomona, and it does keep the track clean once it has been buffed real well with a Scotch-Brite pad, or even better, with an LGB cleaning block.
Art what I did with my Aristo Caboose was cut the center part out of the pad and use two sided tape to hold the parts on to the bottom. It worked great for me when I had LGB magnets on my layout.

but by far the best way is my LGB track cleaning loco.

#5

I gave up and switched to battery power.

#6

I beed blasted mine with 2400 glass at work . Some people say the tarnish oxidation is prototypical and yes I agree . I also bought a good lot about 100ft of straights and curves it was ugly but cleaned up really well . But when using DC power, dirty sure can be a hassel .I will go to battery power when I get more experience . But until then I’ll just keep bringing my track inside when I’m done for the weekend, as it’s not perminent , and I don’t trust the human eliment around here to much brass to be left out .

#7

I don’t remember where I saw someone do this, but: I bought one of the poles for sanding drywall, and some extra fine sanding rectangles. They are not sandpaper, they look like loosely woven fiberglas. I can stand up and clean the track regularly.

#8

Drywall sandpaper, silicon carbide grit on windowscreen (sort of), the open weave prevents clogging, which happens when you sand the white plaster type stuff that covers drywall joints.

Can be very aggressive and overuse can wear railheads flat. Get the finest stuff you can. I prefer to start with scotchbrite (the plastic woven stuff) and see if that works well enough.

Greg

#9

Vinegar will brighten brass.

I take out a bowlful and spread it onto the track with a Scotchbrite pad. I use the hardwood endgrain of a wooden block to rub the track, but I have used fir endgrain as well. Softwood such as pine would work more slowly, masonite would work well. I don’t think the Scotchbrite scratches brass, but if it does it’s very minor as far as I have been able to tell, and in any case the wood block treatment polishes the track back to like new very well.

The main point is that I want my rails to be scratch-free and shiny as new, so I avoid abrasives.

I do this at the beginning of the spring season to help that first train to get moving. Sometimes the Scotchbrite’s not even necessary, and just the woodblock and a little elbow grease seem to be sufficient. The trick is to get that first train over the line, and from then on it’s a cakewalk.

I clean my track about as often as I take a bath: about once every three years whether I need to or not.

I try to run at least one track-powered train over all my mainline track every day. The more I run my trains the less of a problem I have with both oxidation and dirty rail.

Only metal wheels are permitted on my railroad. I have found a good source of metal wheels in odd sizes to replace the stock plastic ones in locomotive leading and trailing trucks. I obtained a variety of Gauge 1 tinplate wheels in various sizes from a local toy train restorer. The flanges are a perfect match.

Coming from small-scale model railroading, I am constantly surprised by being able to turn the throttle and have my large-scale trains actually move in reliable response.

I used abrasives in those smaller scales, before I knew better, and it seemed that when track was new it only needed a little cleaning now and again. Then it seemed to need it more often. Finally it needed cleaning virtually every time I wanted to run a train. This would often cause me to just not bother, and to put off running trains, which I did less and less frequently…

In smaller scales I was never able to operate trains daily as I can now. I have no doubt whatever that daily running is the big secret.

I avoid all abrasives on my track. The pitting and scratching caused by abrasives gives dirt a rough surface to cling to and causes more arcing, which leads to further pitting in the rail surface, and thence to a downward spiral in track quality and an ever-increasing need for track cleaning. I believe this downward spiral was the cause of my troubles in those bad old days. Best not to start down that road.