Shining up Plastic

How about some pictures?

I don't think of the finish on 2032 Alcos as being shiny. Personally I think Armor All would make it too shiny.
But it's your train.

Also, when applying any sort of polish, it is very difficult to get the shell to look even around cast in details, corners, and such.

Perhaps "shiny" is not actually what I mean.  I'm thinking that the original black finish may look a bit darker if a product of this type were applied.    

I have seen some recommend Pledge for shine and dust repell.  Not used it my self,

Meguiar's makes an automotive plastic "cleaner" and a plastic "polish" that I have used with good results on plastic and Lexan and may be what you are looking for. They should be available at most major auto parts stores. 

The cleaner is fairly abrasive and used primarily to remove scratches. The polish is - well, a polish.

Make sure you try it on a small area before the whole locomotive.

Good suggestions.  It was just a thought and wanted to see if the community knew of a "can't miss" application that would make my engine look newer. Of course, that's part of the charm,  it's patina.  I just wanted to make sure I did not damage the finish or the decals in particular.

Use Armour All sparingly.  Spritz a little onto a shaving brush and gently brush the loco.

Lou N

I have used Pledge on many surfaces, including plastics, with great results. I do not use it on furniture, however. Pledge also has what they claim is a multi-surface product. It's crap.

I've used Armorall on several post war plastic tenders with heat stamped lettering.  Works fine.  Not too sure I's use it on trains with decals.  You could put a drop of Armorall on a piece of cloth and dab a bit on a decal section in an inconspicuous location and check it the next day to see if there was any damage, but that's about as far as I's go.  

Flitz works real well on diesel shells and unlike things like car wax, it doesn't remove paint if you use too much elbow grease.

Roger

Google Forever Black

I use NOVUS plastic polish which I purchased from a hobby shop in south Jersey a couple of years back and I have had superb results with it on both rolling stock and plastic diesels.  The NOVUS kit comes with three different applicators.  One is for plastic cleaning and shining, another is Fine scratch remover while the third is a heavy scratch remover.   I recommend it. 

Just for information purposes I have been using Armor All on my post-war die cast engines for about 35 years and recommend it as well as a cleaning agent for old motive power.  I got the idea from the late Roland Lavoie's book, Greenberg's Model Railroading with Lionel trains.  One of the great things about Armor All is it brings back the deep satin like finish on those old engines and amazingly enough makes the engines practically impervious to dust.  Great stuff on die cast. 

As I suspected, Armor All would be useful to restore the deep black finish of the Erie and as an added bonus repels dust.  That's what I will use the.  Thank you all for the information.

Mill City posted:

I have used Pledge on many surfaces, including plastics, with great results. I do not use it on furniture, however. Pledge also has what they claim is a multi-surface product. It's crap.

I agree, Pledge works great.  I spray it on a make-up brush the gently swab the surface.  You can get a suitable brush at Rite Aid or such stores.

I have also used Pledge with good results, but I have always been concerned that, at it's core, it's a wax and therefore will leave wax on the train.  By contrast, Endust is not a wax, it's just a dust remover.  I HAVE NOT USED IT YET MYSELF, but when I begin putting accessories on the layout I'm building, I plan to give Endust a try.  

I'll report back here with results.

Steven J. Serenska

I should have noted in the post above that I would be very leery of using Armor All on a toy train finish.  

I use Armor All extensively on the vinyl seats and dash pad of my 1965/1966 cars and it is immediately obvious that it changes the nature of the vinyl by adding a sort of clear coat on top.  This is nice to look at on a 50 year old car seat, but I'm not sure I'd like to see a suddenly (and weirdly) gleaming 6464 boxcar.

Also, there's a joke in the car community that seats and dashes form an "addiction" to Armor All such that, if you stop using it, the vinyl looks like crap in no time.

I think the only place I'd use Armor All in the train room would be on a ZW or KW bakelite transformer case.  Even then my plan is to put them in the dishwasher, let them dry, and then hit them with Pledge afterward to see where things stand.

I would tend to approach Armor All with care when it comes to toy train finishes.

SJS

I have used Armorall in the past with good results......no problems with decals either.  Used it on both trains and some WW II models  I have.   Just try not to drench the train or plastic with it.  Use it sparingly andbyou will be fine.

-Pete

I think I will use one of the "Armor All wipes" on my engine.  Of course, I will try it out on the inside of the plastic shell for a test before using on the exterior.  It's good to know it will not damage the decals, one of my main concerns.

A few years ago I found and posted here information from Armoral's own web site that clearly stated NOT to use it on painted items. Just do not use it. Many other good products are out there.

Rob

That's all I need to hear that the manufacturer recommends not using it.  I think I will just leave my engines alone except I intend to replace one of the "wing" decals on the front of one of them that is completely gone.  Thanks to everyone for commenting.