How To Improve Operations by Cleaning your Track and Wheels

How to clean model railroad track and model railroad locomotive wheels for improved operations.

Goo Gone - available at most home improvement stores

Gear
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T61
Microphone: Rode VideoMic GO
Tripod: Vivitar

Full Disclosure: I do not participate in affiliate marketing and I am not paid to endorse any product or vendor. If you see a product or vendor in this video, it is a product or vendor that I like, use and recommend.

[peggydersch]

Thank you, this was really helpful! Just pulled the small HO set out of the basement for the first time in years to put it under the Christmas tree, and of course it was running very choppily. It only took minutes to clean the track and wheels and now everything is running smoothly. I used rubbing alcohol on both the track and the wheels because that's all I had on hand. I can't believe how dirty that track was! Super simple clean up, thanks for the tip.

[jestebanable]

Thanks for the HO train tracks cleaning tips. 🚈🚝🚅 Greetings from Puerto Rico 🇵🇷 bendiciones.

[disneyfandisneyfan]

This was very helpful this would be helpful in my future model train layout 😊

[whatsup]

Very helpful, my train is working perfectly now

[joefugate]

Actually, professional electrical contact cleaning instructions ban the use of IPA for cleaning in electrical contact surfaces. Yes, it gets things very clean, but IPA is a polar solvent, which means it makes metal surfaces oxide up again rapidly, getting dirty very quickly again. Instead for electrical contact surfaces you want to prefer a non-polar solvent like mineral spirits. The cleaned contact surfaces stay clean much longer when you use a non-polar solvent to clean them.

[ethynvillebro]

I have found with the goo gone if there is dust in the room, ,, then the track that was clean with goo gone is now a magnet towards the dust, so I needed to then clean the track more often, &or clean the track with alcohol, so with some poking around asking all the elec... guys I know & they all say the same thing, ,, if you have dried paint on your track the goo gone works great BUT you then need to get the residue off, from the goo gone. 3 different electrician guys said to use electrical cleaner... this is what I found and work great, ,,, ( CRC Marine QD Electronic cleaner).
Are layout is in the basement and yes we have a wood stove 5feet from the layout so yes we have DUST, , ,
it is all so safe to use where the plastic may be at the same height, , like in the switches/frogs, OR if you have plastic
I have all Bachmann E-Z Track so that is Y I needed find something safe for plastic parts.
Thanks for sharing, ,, Tom from ETHYNVILLE BRO420

[tfs]

Good video, good info! THANKS, & BE SAFE!

[robertwintle]

Best thing to do with Goo Gone is leave it in the bottle.

[CarbonCuckCarney]

70% has too much water in it. You need as close to 100% as you can get. Most electronics suppliers have the good stuff.

[jacobmule]

1:38 can you clean your steam train wheels like that to?

[waltersobchek]

Can the alcohol soaked paper towel for cleaning the locomotive wheels cause a short if used on a DC powered layout? If using the (live) powered track to spin the locomotive wheels and adding a wet bridge across the rails wouldn't it arc and short. Seems fine with DCC as shown but wondering for DC layout. Thanks

[nesmandan]

I’d use a higher grade of isopropyl alcohol, but once done, wipe it off with a lint free rag and then put on a light coat of Ox Guard using a qtip or paint brush. Work it into the rails a bit. After a day or two, or even a week, simply wipe the rails again. This gives a super conductive coating and protects the tracks from oxidation.

[azmike]

Nice. But not exactly easy to do with ballast and scenery all around the road. But good effort Mate.

[willparsons]

I'd be more inclined to use a lint free cloth and the 70% alcohol wereas the paper towel could possibly shred and get clogged up around the trucks..use something like a eyeglass cleaning cloth that's got a silky feel to it.

[ricardojuricic]

Nice tip though, how do you manage with rails under scenery? ie in a tunnel.

And how do you do for cleaning the cars wheels?

Appreciate your comments
Cheers

[BobbyGregory-lx]

Goo gone why didn't anyone tell me this sooner and rubbing alcohol for train wheels very clever but i am having a track problem it one of those ez tracks and there is a plastic piece that looks like a road crossing implanted for vehicles to cross every time my trains hit it it derails all my engine's i couldn't figure out why til i had my dad look at it the first words he said was this isn't right so he measured it eel here's the problem some dumby got the measurements wrong it's three inches higher then wat it was supposed to be so my question is what type of Sandpaper do I use or a small sandpaper block if this isn't fixed it's going to tear the bottom of the locomotive's out or put a hole in it that's my biggest worry

[adamcrownvictoriacarrepair]

I keep seeing 2 things...people saying not to use goo gone because it leaves a film on the then I see goo gone in every other video..????

[therailroadempire]

Don’t use 70% alcohol use 91% alcohol. The 70% attacks dust.

[gregrunions]

Only thing i don't like about goo gone is a oil based and can collect dust over time

[cleggydadon]

Can you soak track in the bath mine is mega old and went mouldy but didnt rust or would it ruin it ?