Cleaning Brass Track

Ok. No Brasso.
Years ago I believe I tried GooGone. Left a residue that ended up all over my traction tires and had to replace them. Wonder if the Bachmann stuff would. ? What worries me about the Bachmann stuff it says cleaner & “LUBE”
I’m going to try some vinegar right now.
 
The Bachmann product should be fine..
A damp cloth, will remove a fair bit of 'crud', before using any products..

If you are talking ground-level track, you can use a 'Swiffer' (think that is a US trade-name) pad on a long handle, which safes a lot of bending.

PhilP.
 
Yardtrain said:
Ok. No Brasso.
Years ago I believe I tried GooGone. Left a residue that ended up all over my traction tires and had to replace them. Wonder if the Bachmann stuff would. ? What worries me about the Bachmann stuff it says cleaner & “LUBE”
I’m going to try some vinegar right now.
Click to expand...
After my track sit all winter track is brass and I live in oklahoma where the humidity is always a factor I use a 3 part method to clean my layout when spring final gets here and all the cleaning is done while I sit on my deck and drink coffee.
Step 1. I run a spinning brush set up around the layout pushed by a piko clean michine which is battery operated to remove twigs and leaves.
Step 2. I get out the big boy which is a battery operated GP 9 that pushes a track cleaning car dragging drywall sand paper or scotch bright depending on how bad the track looks in front of it is a barrel spinning with corcus cloth which hits the top of the rail removing bird crap or what ever else is on it. It also spins fast enough to remove anything not removed in Step 1.
Step 3. I make a solution of 1 part isopropyl alcohol and 1 part original windex diluted with 1/4 part water. I soak a sponge with the solution and squeeze out all I can the set it on the track and pull it with a track powered little critter which removes and residue left behind and shines the top of the rail. The little critter also let me know the track is clean enough to run all my track powered engines on.
David
 

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David. It appears you have years of experience with this. I only have an indoor elevated 2 track loop currently.
Lord willing (health) I will be able to get back to our outdoor in the building stage this Sping.
 
I've found than an ink eraser (hard rubber) will clean the most obstinate rail head. For lighter work, a wine bottle cork cut in half works very well. The problem with that is that the kind of wine we tend to buy is mostly cheap stuff in screw top bottles.
 
I use a rotating brush in front of a locomotive to clean my traks on a dayly basis, especially to remove fine sand particles that cover the track after the rain.(my track is at ground level)
The first run after winter takes a double of triple round.
When necessary on very dirty spots i use the 13 mm thick 2 sided Abrasive sponge of Festool grain 220 by hand mounted on the end of a stick. That will do the job.
For conductivity of the top of the rails it is not necessary to make it bright and brass shiny.
The effect of the rotating brush is more like making the occidized surface flat.

About the conductivity of your rail connectors: Massoth screwed connectors are indeed perfect but rather costly.
The original LGB sliding connectors can also work perfect when you apply Copper Grease after brushing the rails ends clean first. The grease is electric conductive and keeps its shape in the sun heat and will not be washed away by the rain. My track is still OK for some 7 years now!

I wish you succes!
 
For my outdoor RR I use the LGB short gondola (4021) and added the LGB attachment (5505/55050) to the bottom and use the LGB pads for it and keep it on my mainline to clean the track every time I run trains. Lets me use the LGB powered track cleaner much less often.
I also run the powered LGB track cleaner with a trailing car with power pickups tied to the TCL (TrackCleanerLoco).
 
I got the LGB cleaning block on Friday 14th. only got 2/3 of track cleaned with it. We’ve been having several winter weather blasts come thru, so I’m pre occupied with the snow and ice. It does appear to clean the track decently from what I can tell but it’s an overhead in our basement which limits a clear viewing angle. I’ll try running something when I get all the track cleaned
 
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Lyn Westcot of Model Railroader fame used to use a bit of hardboard (homasote?) that dangled below a wagon in HO gauge with a bit of weight. It was suspended from a couple of tubes in the middle of the wagon and in a consist did a regular clean of the track whilst running. A similar jibby may suite you with just a use of the block when things get really mucky.
 
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