# Black muck on wheels



## Mseav (Jul 30, 2015)

What is this black muck on my locomotive wheels and is there an easier way to get it off than scotchbrite and elbow grease?


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## MtRR75 (Nov 27, 2013)

It is just dirt picked up from running on dirty track. I have used rubbing alcohol and Q-tip, or for stubborn cases, a track-cleaning eraser. But there is no substitute for elbow grease.


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## Mseav (Jul 30, 2015)

MtRR75 said:


> It is just dirt picked up from running on dirty track. I have used rubbing alcohol and Q-tip, or for stubborn cases, a track-cleaning eraser. But there is no substitute for elbow grease.


Thanks


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## mikek (Dec 29, 2013)

There are tricks posted showing a loco sitting on a track on a soft rag sprayed with WD40 or such. The loco is picking up power from the track and the wheels are spinning on the rag. I used to use my Dremel with a wire wheel, but was told that would scratch the wheels, making matters worse. Next I'm going to try the buffing wheels I have, first dry and maybe with alcohol or WD 40 or such on the buffing pad. There are commercial wheel cleaners available, I think they use a power wire brush.
The tricky part with the Dremel is I have to power the loco with jumper wires with gator clips to spin the wheels while simultaneously holding the Dremel to the wheel. Having the loco in a soft cradle really helps.


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## Magic (Jan 28, 2014)

I use this.
Woodland Scenics wheel cleaner. 








Does a great job, just a little alcohol on the pads and run the loco.
The two clips clamp to the track for power, dial up the loco and run it till the wheels are clean. If real dirty I use a little Goo Gone first. 

Magic


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## Mseav (Jul 30, 2015)

Magic said:


> I use this.
> Woodland Scenics wheel cleaner.
> View attachment 70313
> 
> ...


 I looked at a couple of those online.Does it clean non-drive axles? Or do non-drive axles not get as dirty as drive axles?


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## MtRR75 (Nov 27, 2013)

All wheels can get dirty sooner or later, but it seems to me that wheels with electrical pickups get dirty faster.


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## MtRR75 (Nov 27, 2013)

mikek said:


> I used to use my Dremel with a wire wheel, but was told that would scratch the wheels, making matters worse. Next I'm going to try the buffing wheels I have, first dry and maybe with alcohol or WD 40 or such on the buffing pad. There are commercial wheel cleaners available, I think they use a power wire brush.


NO WIRE BRUSHES!!! Wire brushes remove METAL (part of your wheels).

On old, used locos that I have purchased, I have sometimes used a track-cleaning eraser to get the thick stuff off. They do remove an insignificant amount of metal. But that should only be necessary once. After that, periodic cleaning with alcohol should be all that is necessary.

--------

By the way, there is a trick for cleaning steamer wheels. When you turn them over, you can only access about 1/3 of the wheel for cleaning. So what I do is note the position of the point where the drive shaft is bolted to the wheel. Then I put the loco on the track and use the transformer to move the bolt to the 12:00 position. Then I remove the loco, clean the wheels and repeat the process with the wheels at the 3:00, 6:00 and 9:00 positions. Just remember to look at the same side of the loco each time, because the bolt positions are different on the two sides. This does not work for diesels unless you have some way of temporarily marking a wheel.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

I have a couple of Trix wheel cleaners, which are essentially a powered wire brush. You set them brush side up on the rails, and there is a copper strip that picks up track power and feeds it to the brushes. The wheels pick up power from the brushes and turn, cleaning the wheels. These things will shred traction tires, but the brass wires on the cleaners are too soft to remove metal from the steel wheels.

For routine cleaning, though, I just use a swab dipped in alcohol.

You don't really have to worry about cleaning non-powered wheels. You can just turn them by hand.

I would advise against using WD-40, Goo-Gone, or anything else which will leave an oily residue on your wheels. They will just attract more crud, forcing you to clean the wheels again.


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## tr1 (Mar 9, 2013)

*plastic wheels=dirty track?*

My thoughts on this subject:
For example, I have a small set of small coal cars with plastic wheels. Which induce a small static charge build up from the rolling resistance. This static charge attracts loose dirt/dust that is non conductive. It builds up to a grey flakey gunk that is caked onto the plastic wheels. This gunk eventually transfers to the top of the rails.
Converting all of your rolling stock over to non magnetic metal(nonferrous metal).will eliminate the static charge. Thus reducing the problems with dirty track. Somewhat.
Applying conductive oil(industrial contact cleaner) to the top of the rails also will help.
The problem here?
Most of my rolling stock has plastic wheels that still need to be converted over to metal.
So, in the meantime? Frequent cleaning/polishing (of the rails) will be necessary to ensure smooth operations. Regard's,tr1


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## Magic (Jan 28, 2014)

Mseav said:


> I looked at a couple of those online.Does it clean non-drive axles? Or do non-drive axles not get as dirty as drive axles?


It only cleans driven wheels, as most of my locos are diesel no problem. 
It doesn't take much dirt to cause pick up problems so clean loco wheels are most important. I don't clean non driven wheels all that often. 

If I use Goo Gone I always use some alcohol after to remove oily residue. 

Magic


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*Or such, (LPS-1) not WD 40*



mikek said:


> There are tricks posted showing a loco sitting on a track on a soft rag sprayed with WD40 or such. The loco is picking up power from the track and the wheels are spinning on the rag. I used to use my Dremel with a wire wheel, but was told that would scratch the wheels, making matters worse. Next I'm going to try the buffing wheels I have, first dry and maybe with alcohol or WD 40 or such on the buffing pad. There are commercial wheel cleaners available, I think they use a power wire brush.
> The tricky part with the Dremel is I have to power the loco with jumper wires with gator clips to spin the wheels while simultaneously holding the Dremel to the wheel. Having the loco in a soft cradle really helps.


 WD-40 contains kerosene. This is a powerful solvent, and a good cleaner in general. I would not recommend it for cleaning any part of a model train however. The solvent in it may harm plastic and/or paint on your model. The residue on the wheels and rail tops is non-conductive.
It is also a petroleum-based(aka greasy) lubricant, and as such will allow wheel slipping and reduce traction. 
A different product, which I have long used with great success, is LPS-1. This comes in a spray can about the shape and size of WD-40. The similarities end there. LPS-1 is a 
GREASE LESS silicone cleaner, which leaves a thin, CONDUCTIVE residue on wheels and track.
LPS-1 actually helps trains run better! It won't hurt plastic or paint either.
I highly recommend LPS-1, (NOT WD-40,) for cleaning track. It can be ordered from grainger.com One can is a lifetime supply as you should use only a little amount on the track.

Traction Fan

Note: The same company makes LPS-2, and LPS-3, neither is conductive and neither should be used as a track cleaner. 

Ps. For cleaning powered wheels, I use a Minitrix cleaner. Shown below.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Wahl's clipper oil, used by Barbers to lubricate and clean the trimmers they cut you hair with. It's non-greasy (because you don't want that crud in your customers' hair), and won't harm plastics. I have never usdd itmyself (on trains; clippers is a different story), but lots of folks recommend it.


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