# Track Cleaner Cars for O gauge? Can I make one?



## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

My son wants something to clean the tracks on the set while he is playing with it, either a locomotive or a car.

I found these:

http://www.lionelstore.com/christmas-track-cleaning-car.html

http://02aedf8.netsolstores.com/t10...lication-wonedozenpadsnocouplersprovided.aspx

http://02aedf8.netsolstores.com/t-1...plicationwonedozenpadsnocouplersprovided.aspx

Then I got to thinking it might be fun to try to build one. Does anyone on MTF have any suggestions or has anyone attempted or successfully completed a build? If you have or did I would love to see pictures.

I thought I would need a high flatcar with no low clearance and found this article.

http://ctt.trains.com/en/Collecting...r/2008/02/Build an O gauge track cleaner.aspx

Then I thought 2 Trucks and a piece of 1/2 inch plastic cut to size would work. 
My son would have a great time doing this with me. 
Enough of my rambling, looking forward to some input.


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

Get a CMX clean machine!









If you want to build one make it Very Heavy!


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

some time ago,I built a cleaner car,it was kinda fun,and after two are three mistakes, I got it to work perfectly.
I listed a detailed parts list plus a detailed discription of what I did to build it,maybe you can go back a few pages to find it. ..........Mike


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Big Mike said:


> some time ago,I built a cleaner car,it was kinda fun,and after two are three mistakes, I got it to work perfectly.
> I listed a detailed parts list plus a detailed discription of what I did to build it,maybe you can go back a few pages to find it. ..........Mike


I remember that, a nice car.:thumbsup:

Why didn't you just throw him a link?
Couldn't find it?

Big Mikes track cleaner car,

http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=12882


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

Mike, that's a great build. Ed thanks for the link. Any other ideas would be great. How did you weigh the car down?


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Chiefmcfuz said:


> Mike, that's a great build. Ed thanks for the link. Any other ideas would be great. How did you weigh the car down?



#15 post in the link,

sorry ed ,maybe in my first post I should have added more text detail

the frame is 2.25 x 6.00x.25" aluminum painted in high heat black out lined in yellow

hand rails are 3 mm round stock aluminum 

truck assy.are new from Lionel spring suspension die-cast [only parts that are new]

scruber is a "bright boy" hot glued to an aluminum plate mounted by two slide rods for constent contact with the track [hidden by the body]

note: hot glue used for easy replacement of scruber pad

stick-on wheel weights adds the weight of the car [also hidden by the body]

the body is a re-painted B-N caboose I bought cheep at a local train show [old MPC junk]

hollow wood stacks at each end hides the screws that mounts the trucks

water barrel shows the direction the car should go for best cleaning results

cab is hand painted

the cleaning liquid is applied to the pad on the car behind the scruber car, scruber bar =liquid pad= dry pad

the two cars are so heavy ,two SD-70 m-2 are used to pull them around the track

I will try my best to get a better picture of both cars together, so its easier to see how they work............Mike


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

I think there is a thread on an HO cleaner car here too.

I have a N scale homemade car somewhere in my N boxes.


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

thanks Ed ,yes I tryed to find the page ,luckly you did,BTW, I did find the white "CN" decals ,I will try to take a better pic. of both cares together...........Mike


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Big Mike said:


> thanks Ed ,yes I tryed to find the page ,luckly you did,BTW, I did find the white "CN" decals ,I will try to take a better pic. of both cares together...........Mike


And an American flag on each side.:thumbsup:

Mike when your looking for your threads, just click on your name, then click statistics, then click your threads and all your threads are right there.


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

Mike, do you have anymore pics of it?


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

A N scale homemade track cleaner car,
I did not make it, he made the weight look like a tarp covering a load.

In the lower right hand corner, in front blue box car, is the homemade track cleaning car. 
The block on top is the weight, underneath is what looks like cork road bed, I think?
Must weigh 4 lbs.


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

Sorry I meant of the O cleaner


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

Keep it simple. The idea came from Shay in the HO section, now adapted to O


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

I am thinking about getting some stuff at Home Ripoff today and working on something while the snow hits. Going to have to remember to get 2 of each so when my some comes home we can work on another together.


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

Hardware store run down. Forgot a couple of things so might not have a prototype complete today but I will take lots of pics and post them.


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## Chiefmcfuz (Dec 30, 2008)

Ok so I figure I could start with this Gondola car as my base.










I marked out the bottom and top of the car where I would place some metal keys on the car for weight.



















I have not mounted anything but this is where I was thinking of mounting the keys for the bottom of the car.











These are the pins I bought to secure some sort of cleaning pad. 

If you look in the picture of the top of the car I marked out where I would drill the holes for these pins. 


















How am I doing?


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

More weight.  A nice scrap load in the gondola would work out well.


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## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

I alway place weight on the pad. Not too much, if the pad catches oooops. My track is old and full of places for ooopps.

This I have to see.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

I agree with John, though the weights on the bottom are OK you picked the perfect car to make it out of.

Fill it with some kind of heavy scrap load also.:thumbsup:


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

I took more pics ,but can't get them to down load,yall know I ant to smart on dis computer thing.
any way, be carfull on how long you make your car,I found that a long car catches on the switches, and it ends up "crabing" one truck straight,one on the turnout,derailment problem.
use pins so your cleaner bar or pad can floot up and down,this helps keep the pad in contact with your track incase of minor dips or rises.
I wish I could get dem darn pics up ..........Mike


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## rrbill (Mar 11, 2012)

Some years ago, in HO, I took - I think - a boxcar, drilled a couple of holes in the floor for nails to slide up and down in, and glued the heads to a thin piece of Masonite. The reverse side of the Masonite with the grooves in it was to ride over the railheads and wipe them clean. The fit of the nails in the holes was loose so that the pad could adjust to track irregularities. The front and rear edge of the pad was beveled to prevent snagging on anything projecting. There was no absorbent pad or liquid used with this car.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Mike ... when uploading here, make sure pics are less than about 1600x1200 pixles or so. (I know you said problem with download, but just checking to make sure you didn't mean upload.)

TJ


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## Big Mike (Dec 2, 2011)

you know, like I said "I ant to bright on computers"I don't know why I can't get it right,so I'am going to get my daughter to do it for me, she is the photo expert in my family,and yes ,she has tryed to teach me several times how,but an old dog,new tricks,you know ............Mike :laugh:


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