Swiffer to dust OGR track and equipment?

I can't see any reason a swifer is a bad idea however I use a large (4") soft bristle paintbrush for everything. It gets all of the dust out of the nooks and cranies on my steamers making them look like I just took them out of the box.

i use that hand swifter with the green handle to dust off my shelves. works good no negitive effects.

Swiffer WET cloths are treated with various chemicals, not all of them harmless, and their reaction with various finishes would be unknown.  However,  the Swiffer DRY cloths are made of polyester and polypropylene and work by static cling.  They should work well for removing dust from track and layout, vs. just getting it airborne again and spreading it around with brushes etc.  The cloths are soft and are made for smooth surfaces.  My experience is that edges like track joints, or rough surfaces in general, tend to shred the swiffer cloth and leave white fibers.  Nothing gets rid of the dust as well as vacuuming, but that has its own drawbacks.

I think the Swiffer would have a good chance of snagging on detail parts of engines and cars, and switch points on track, and possibly damaging them but would recommend Swiffer for shelves, etc.

I'm with RickO on using the brush to dust track and equipment.

I have one and use it on engines, cars, and structures.  As mentioned it does catch on detail parts so you have to be careful and gentle.  For a quick little cleaning i find it very effective. 

I have used dry swiffers now for several years after reading about them here on the forum.

They work great ant the make a fast thorough job of it.

I use a 1/2" sable paint bush for nooks and crannies on engines and cars where needed.

Rod

I use it ... it works like a charm

I actually had the "snag" situation happen.  The Swiffer material got caught under a hatch on the top of my RK Bigboy and ripped half of it off.  I have never been able to find a replacement part, even from MTH.  After that, I never used a Swiffer again on my trains.

Been using them on everything for years, that and an old fashioned shaving brush, even removed the handle from a swifter duster and put it on a piece of PVC about 4 ft long now can reach all the hard to get places on the layout.

Aside from the possibility of snagging on things, as mentioned above, a Swiffer Duster is certainly safe enough to use on train items.

Why dust off your stuff?  The dust is like "weathering".

I would use a different Swiffer for track.  Any grease and dirt collected by the Swiffer should then not be used on engines and rolling stock.  I usually use a paint brush for track and a Swiffer for engines and rolling stock.

Paul Edgar