Centerline-track cleaner car

I have this car and a couple of others. I do use goo gone with these kinds of cars. I have some set up to apply the goo gone and some set up to wipe. My experience is that one car is not enough. 

Here is another track cleaner/scrubber car to consider.

I have them, One I use with Goo Gone and the other a dry roller. Don't use them very much in fact haven't use'd them in a couple of years. I find a drywall sanding tool with a long handle and clean cloth works best. Guess I could use them in the curved tunnels and other hard to reach places. I find the rollers at the hardware store, have to buy long ones and cut to size. I don't clean track very much, maybe once a year.

Clem

This is the best track cleaner for the money, and you can run several including one with the sponge dampened in your cleaning fluid of choice.

I have the Trackman 2000 with plain ScotchBrite on it, it works great without any cleaning fluid.  A few passes and the track is clean.  I need to finish my custom logo on it, but it's functional.

You can make your own track cleaning car cheap.  I have plans and photos for you if you want to try it.

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Dennis

If you're talking about the Trackman, we run one on the club layout with a ton of Atlas switches, I've never seen it hang up on them.  I suppose it depends on what kind of ScotchBrite you put on, I tend to use the purple stuff for a but more "scrub".

I know someone that will buy the Trackman if you don't use it.

I use the Trackman 2000 pads on my homemade track cleaning car.  I'll take any spares you have.

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Dennis

No spares Dennis, I bought it used on eBay and it came with a worn out pad.  Since they're no longer being made, I was lucky to find one.  We have one at our club, and I really liked how well it worked, so I setup a search on eBay and snagged one.

Hi All,

Thanks for all the input I appreciate it.

So from what I see, when this car does its cleaning it leaves the tracks somewhat wet with the Goo Gone Etc.

Also, regarding replacing the cleaning rollers, does the company itself sell them?

I will also check a little mode on their web site -thanks

I use denim cloth cut from old jeans in my home-made track-wiper cars. I replace the cloth when it gets dirty.

I run my track-wiper cars in regular trains, as regular maintenance. That way I don't need fluids or heavy-duty abrasives to clean the track. Consistently clean rails keeps all those wheels clean, too.

Somebody told me that Masonite with the rough side down works well.  Never tried it.

It works well until it gets dirty and greasy, then it just smears the same old crud around. That's why I use a disposable material that I can replace when it's dirty.

Ace, how do you attach those denim cloth sections? I 'm not short on old jean denim and that seems like a good use for them? thanks.

jerrman

Gunrunnerjohn, the track in your photo looks like tubular. do you know if the trackman 2000 will work as well on a lower profile type track? thanks. 

jerrman

My track an 2000 works just as well on my Atlas track layout, when I remember to drag it around. Although for a "quick clean" I just do over the main lines with denatured alcohol on a red cotton rag wrapped around a small piece of 1"X2" wood block.

I've got a centerline. She works nicely over plain rail and lionel switches with a half load of BBs in the roller tube.

If I wanted to go crazy and make it look ugly one could install a drip oiler{habor freight} over the roller, via a bracket, to get big layouts...I run a carpet empire so that's not needed- for me at least.

I need to pop over to Ace hardware for some e-clips for my 2 rehabbed lionel cars{darn oem clips break when I recrimp them}....I'll see if they have any roller stock there that works in this cleaner.

Oh, the oem rollers that come with a centerline cleaner look like they're paper rolls inside- the replacement rollers centerline sells are said to be waterproof- I doubt the "1st set" that comes with it are though....input on that from those who've tried?

...that's how I nailed my centerline cleaner for $30...ya gotta love the bay!...now why can't I nail some old steamers on there for that cheap too!!!

It works fine on Fastrack, which is most of mine.  That's just a small section of tubular for the culvert loader/unloader to run from.  The club track is Atlas, and it works great on that track as well.

I don't know about the rest of you but when I use those sponges they leave pieces around switches. 

At the club we cut shamwows into strips as wide as the track wrap it around a aluminum block to act as a weight, cut out metal the size of a flat car attached some trucks and pull this around with an engine.  first we spray the shamwow with goo-gone run it around the track two times then get a new pad and soak the shamwow in denatured alcohol run it around once flip it over and run it around again. then replace the pad with a new one and do it again replacing pads until the pad only has three indents for the track. 

creates a very clean track.  we do this each running session.  anyone who has ever been to the club has seen how it works, and the good job it does.

I haven't had any issue with the Scotchbrite leaving stuff behind.  We've been using one of these on the club layout Atlas track for a long time.

On most of my track wiper cars, I use small strips of duct tape to attach the denim to a metal slider that fits loosely under the car. It wipes the rail with just the weight of the metal pressing the denim onto the rail.

well, i still think it is more efficient to run a train of track cleaning cars rather than the same car changing pads.

i run a centerline with goo gone followed by a centerline followed by an R & L Lines scrubbing car.  the latter two are wipers.

i used to run the trackman as the second car in this consists, but, as i said, it would sometimes foul on a switch.  my other problem with this car was figuring out a way to effectively clean the pad once it was filled up with gunk.

what do you trackman users do?

Like I said earlier, I just use the purple ScotchBrite and cut it to fit.  I get a few pads out of one sheet, and they last quite a long time before I need to replace it.  I can also flip it over one time for a fresh side.

I run a fleet of three homemade track cleaning cars, all dry.  Does the job well enough.

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Dennis

I run 2 cars following Dennis' design, one with scotchbrite, one with a folded paper towel. I change the paper towel out after 2 laps. I stop when it comes back clean, usually 3 or 4 laps. Then again, I don't run the MOW consist as often as I should.

If I ran it every week I'm sure 1 to 2 laps would do the job.

Dennis: Your car is the least expensive one out there and it does a good job.

Now I just need to build the dust buster car.

Thanks Russell.

I have sent the plans to 177 Forum members now.

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Dennis