Flitz metal polish

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Hi Guys

I was wondering have any of you guys used flitz metal polish on your rails? is it safe to do?. I remember reading it in Model railroader years ago and found that issue again today and was wondering if anybody still uses it?

I see flitz has a couple different polishes, I think the one mentioned in the magazine was the little silver tube one.

Cheers

Jeremy

2

I use MOTHERS MAG WHEEL Polish (same thing as the Flitz).

AND - YES I still use the Polish on my rails!

BUT !

I really don’t need to use it much as my rails have NOT Needed cleaned since I used it back in 2003.

If I am doing Ballasting or Scenery work (which is coming along slowly) or ADDING new track - then I will repolish the rails when I clean the glue of the track!

SO - i am really happy with the results of the POLISH !

Others will state others ways of cleaning track BUT - the one thing they have to do OVER & OVER is reclean the tracks

I QUIT that crap years ago - I better use my time running trains!

BOB H - Clarion, PA

3

cheers, I might pick up a tube today

4

Don’t use it myself. I use Blue Magic metal polish.

5

do you find the polish messy to use Jeff?

6

Not if it’s used correctly. I smear a thin coating onto a flat piece of cork big enough to span both rails. I then put the cork, polish side down straight down on the track then pick it up again without moving it laterally in any direction. I then repeat with the next part of the track and so on until all the railheads have a thin coat of polish. After it has dried I buff it off with another piece of cork making sure to go in the same direction as the rails, not across. The amount of gunk that comes up is fantastic!

7

If you use the metal polish as part of the Gleeming process you only need to use it once. I have lifted and re-laid Gleemed rails without repeating the process. The only right-of-way cleaning I do is done with a mini shop vac. This is on a layout in a non-climate-controlled garage with vents open to the (windy, dusty) outside.

I use Mother’s Mag Wheel Polish - same application system as Jeffery uses. Then I burnish the rails with the convex side of a stainless steel auto body washer. Never did bother to sandpaper them.

Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with Gleemed - once - rails)