lgb track cleaning loco.

Yes well worth the money ,well I would say that as mine was a christmas present 4 year's ago I alway's use my one with another loco pushing it (STAINZ) help's the track cleaner get up any incline's (Which they do not like) also stop's it sticking in one place to long grinding away RECOMENDED
 
Sorry to come in at this late stage and be a bit on a naysayer. My experiences with an LGB track cleaning loco not that positive. But, that was more down to my infequent track usage and the shady nature of the line. Read on if you wish...........

I bought it secondhand on Ebay. Loco in perfect working condition but was factory MTS equipped. In this spec it would not work on my analogue line so had to be de-chipped. Operating it was very noisy (I value my relationships with neighbours) and largly ineffectual despite new cleaning discs and checking all the usual things. The fact that it only has two, closely coulped, axles to pick up current made it a contant stop and start operation, very irritating. Also I have an a 1 in 20 incline on the line, as mentioned elswhere they don't like inclines so it has to be run "light engine" most of the time.

I think part of the problem is that I am not a constant user of my line and the dirt build up, from various sources, between running sesions is too much for it to cope with. Also, a fair proportion of my line is in shade so the "morning dew" and general dampness does not burn off and I know this impedes the effectivness of this loco.

What works for me is a cleaning pad on a pole (saves the back and is a doddle on 35 metres of ground laid track) with regular top-ups by placing a short wheelbase wagon into a consist that has been fitted with the LGB springy cleaning legs. The loco pulling that has 8 axles (including the tender) that is picking up current, so no stop/starts .

Horses for courses. Frequent flyer - LGB cleaning loco, Occasional user (with good neighbours) and a shady line - my above suggested method, possibly.

Happy ending, I sold the loco for a small profit so lost nothing from the experiencebut lots learnt.

Max.
 
Stainzmeister said:
whatlep said:
The same goes for the first clean at the start of the season.
Click to expand...

Season Peter ? ;)
All year round running at mine. :bigsmile:
Click to expand...

I've gone all nesh since moving down south! 8D
 
I have one of these locos and find it excellent for maintaining clean track. One thing that I found helps was to get a normal wagon, fit metal wheels and the LGB pickup kit and have jumper leads into the rear of the loco. With the wagon I also put the cleaning skates underneath just to give the track a little polish after the cleaner has passed.
 
Ive got a yellow one thats been converted to MTS complete with box, manual and new spare cleaning wheels. Bought it from a fellow G Scaler who did not give it a lot of use. Ive never used it, as I have changed gauge, so its in excellent condition. Will sell for £300 plus postage if interested.
Graham
 
Hi Folks,
Thanks for the continued advice,opinions.Very interesting to read.Graham,i have sent you a private message.Because my railway is analogue throughout,i don`t suppose your loco would work.
Thanks very much though
Cheers
Ade
 
I'm surprised at Maxi-model's note about having to de-chip his TCL. Maybe Max uses some form of pulse power/PCM control which a lot of decoders don't like? A factory-fitted MTS TCL should work on analogue - mine does. Same should be true for a customer-fitted DCC decoder. It's possible for the user to disable analogue mode (but this could be re-enabled by someone with DCC programming capabilities) or a very obsure decoder could have been used which doesn't support analogue mode (I cannot think of such a decoder in large scale although have read of some small scale ones).
 
ntpntpntp said:
I'm surprised at Maxi-model's note about having to de-chip his TCL. Maybe Max uses some form of pulse power/PCM control which a lot of decoders don't like? A factory-fitted MTS TCL should work on analogue - mine does. Same should be true for a customer-fitted DCC decoder. It's possible for the user to disable analogue mode (but this could be re-enabled by someone with DCC programming capabilities) or a very obsure decoder could have been used which doesn't support analogue mode (I cannot think of such a decoder in large scale although have read of some small scale ones).
Click to expand...

That's a neat bit of timing. It's 5 years ago now so the precise details are no longer clear. While the loco could be run its cleaning functions (and flashing lights) could not irrespective of the cab mounted switch's position. Yes, I do use a Train Engineer set-rup but it is always set to "Linear" not "PWC".

A call to GRS came up with the solution, remove the MTS card (an LGB part numbered item) and it will work on analogue. So it was removed by them and it then worked normally as a track cleaner. It was sold with its MTS card that was re-installed by its new owner for use on a digital set-up.
Possibly an early example of MTS decoder which has been modified/rectified on subsequent models to allow ease of switching of use between analogue and digital ?

Max.
 
Do I take it that the track cleaner is best suited to dry dirt and oxidisation and less so for greasy rails after live steam running or railways where leaves, grass and wet objects clag the rails?
 
I bought one a few years ago and was disappointed. The cleaning wheels wore unevenly causing vibration, and forward motion was not possible without double heading. I decided to try again, replaced the cleaning tyres and also the polarity of the wheels (to 'pull' the loco forward).

This has transformed it and it is effective, even on rails subject to the falling sap of the forest.

But I don't understand why the 'swarf' should appear. I took mine apart to check, and found nothing. Then when re-attaching the retaining plate it became apparent that one of the self-tapping screws had stripped. Doh!!
 
agree -wet track reduces effectiveness-as the oxide dust, i think, stay s on the track and turns to a light film of 'muck' until dry-but still works

and i too reversed polarity on the grinding wheels for pull-as mine might stall up grade on wet track -no longer an issue-also thei change seems to make it track a bit better through points
 
well my manual, on re-reading, indicates not to use it on wet track-cos all you do is spread wet black stuff around-whcih i know from looking at my LGB block when i have used it on wet areas-just a black, wet mess that travels along the rails

but my manual, for the early decoder version, specifically mentions the EMF feature and that the loco will run constant on curves and grades -which implicitly seems to mean, to me, use on grades is acceptable-and it is designed for this purpose. There is no specific mention of not using it on a grade at all.

HOwever, as i have stated before, and as i recommend, i did reverse the grinding wheels because, on grade, particularly with sap, my engine used to mambo--a sometimes perfect equilibrium between traction of the loco and reverse push traction of the rough grinding discs on grade-up and back and repeat!
Once reversed this was eliminated , and imho, much for the better.
 
My good friend, Neil Robinson (where would some of us be without him?!) has just done a mod on mine. It would stall on points with a long dead frog (not the hopping croaking ones) and would need a little push, so he electrically connected it to an LGB caboose which has electrical pick-up ball-bearing wheels, thus greatly extending the pick-up connections. Works a treat and no more stalling.
 
Stainzmeister said:
Make sure the cleaning wheel bearings are kept clean and LIGHTLY lubricated.
You need to keep the business end of the loco clean for long life. :bigsmile:
Click to expand...
What would you recommended for lightly lubricating the wheel bearings ?
I remember reading recent posts abut avoiding WD40 and 'm thinking that 3 in 1 oil might be a bit crude ?
Chris
 
Sewing machine oil or something formulated for models would be better than 3-in-1, but whatever you use a little drop on the end of a cocktail stick would be all you need. Avoid WD40 in this instance, it's not as good a long term lubricant as proper oil - it's mainly for freeing up rusty stuff and dispersing/protecting against moisture - hence WD = Water Dispersal if I remember correctly.
 
Steer clear of 3in1, it swells and softens plastics.
 
I am new to forums and this is my first ever post oi I hope I get it right.
Can someone please advise me how to reverse the polarity of the track cleaning end
Thanks
 
first try to find the other thread on how to change the cleaning tires
you'll see pics to familiarize yourself with disassembly -see post 6 above and the link for disaasembly info

its as easy as turning the unit over -(on a towel)


its very simple and easy

next-
remove the screws that hold the black plastic cross piece which supports the cleaning unit-its located on the underside of the cleaning cowl

it will then 'drop' down--the motor is then accessible
find the motor leads which plug into the motor -switch them -one side to the other-there are small metal plugs that make this easy and entirely reversible
reassemble -
youre done

(when you do this you might as well also clean any dust and bits of plastic threads from the flanged plastic wheels, and add a dab of grease to the cleaning gear assembly-large white gears that turn the grinding wheels)

as for axel lube on the cleaning portion-graphite powder will not attract fine dust-a puff into the axel /chassis area should work nicely and be easy to clean later too

hope this helps
 
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