Track conductivity

GAP said:
Just to add fuel to the fire Conductive Carbon Grease 50g | Jaycar Australia.
I do not think it is supposed to be used for what we do more likely contactor blades, knife swirches
etc
Oh and I use battery power exclusively and have 3D printed points.
Click to expand...
New product to me mentioned by a pub contact ‘Electrical Contact Cleaner’ not effectively for track cleaning but may get one of those dodgy switches cleaned out of carp. Apparently leaves no residue unlike WD40.
 
I use fishplates , at this point. (Have a big stash of hillmans, but im reluctant to pull all the plates..pita).
1 inside plate must be clean of all debris.tiny grit. a real pita .
2 i use liquid flux to deoxidize. Another pita.
3 rinse
4 crimp plates carefully to be very snug.
5 Add pea sized conductive paste. (Imho, all this does, not insignificantly, is block/trap micro grit)
6 if done well, and track has minimal shifting/movement, you can get years of good conductivity. It wont last forever, but ive had 5-6 years at a time.

Fwiw, when i did use clamps, conductivity was perfect , flawless, in all conditions. Imho, theyre unsightly, but very effective…and expensive, even used.

I periodically clean points, polish contact areas, and lube.
 
dunnyrail said:
New product to me mentioned by a pub contact ‘Electrical Contact Cleaner’ not effectively for track cleaning but may get one of those dodgy switches cleaned out of carp. Apparently leaves no residue unlike WD40.
Click to expand...
CO Contact Cleaner came out as soon as they banned freon which was the go to degreaser. would be good for cleaning wheels. Just be careful spraying it on your skin it will suck the oil right out of it.

12101 | CRC Contact Cleaner Cleaner 500 ml Aerosol | RS

uk.rs-online.com uk.rs-online.com
 
GAP said:
CO Contact Cleaner came out as soon as they banned freon which was the go to degreaser. would be good for cleaning wheels. Just be careful spraying it on your skin it will suck the oil right out of it.

12101 | CRC Contact Cleaner Cleaner 500 ml Aerosol | RS

uk.rs-online.com uk.rs-online.com
Click to expand...
Contact cleaner is good. Imho, to really clean and flush, it can get pricey.

I use isopropyl alcohol, 91%. Over here much cheaper, and leaves zero residue. (The contact residue can be desirable, but may also collect ‘stuff’. I use large veterinary cotton swabs on a stick, (back of wheels), normal cotton swabs, and, those micro swabs (again over here i got something like a thousand for $5-6 dollars. They get into really tiny areas. They are great for many many uses, even painting and streaking chalks, applying ACC.

Fwiw, meths also dries the skin.
 
Last edited:
stevedenver said:
Contact cleaner is good. Imho, to really clean and flush, it can get pricey.

I use meths, 91%. Over here much cheaper, and leaves zero residue. (The contact residue can be desirable, but may also collect ‘stuff’. I use large veterinary cotton swabs on a stick, (back of wheels), normal cotton swabs, and, those micro swabs (again over here i got something like a thousand for $5-6 dollars. They get into really tiny areas. They are great for many many uses, even painting and streaking chalks, applying ACC.

Fwiw, meths also dries the skin.
Click to expand...
Meths certainly has its uses for cleaning, but to get into a micro switch to clear dust perhaps an Air cleaner may be a better but.
 
Methylated Spirit is not as good a degreaser as Isopropyl alcohol because of its faster evaporation which can also lead to some residue.
Iso is what is used in electronics to dissolve solder flux it does remove it a lot faster.
To clean switches just working the action a number of times in a row can break through any tarnish and vertigris on the contacts, works well in sealed switches that the internals can't be gotten at.
 
I miss here the application of copper paste. This paste is especially designed for securing conductivity under all wheather circumstances even for high temperarures up to 300 degrees celsius! This paste is especially is also very sticky so rain has no effect on it! I used it in fis hplates and massoth clamps and all other couplings for about 10 year now without problems. My track is laying freely on concrete slabs on ground level so each winter there is a lot of water and leaves on the track for many months. When i start in spring i run two rounds with a brushing machine and if necessary here and there a bit of manual brushing using very fine brushpaper on a flexible foam layer. I described it all in more detail in the book “our model garden rail” available on Amazon. I hope this will help.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom