I have had some difficulty finding 400- to 800-grit sandpaper in my village, but I have no fewer than four “rubber” blocks, ranging from the Brite Boy to the newish Woodland Scenics two-sided one. (The yellow product–I’ve forgotten its name–is no longer made, according to my local hobby dealer; he’s now selling a sort of oatmeal-colored version.)
Not for the first time, I’m wondering how to describe the grittiness of these erasers with the conventional numbers used for sandpaper. Is a Brite Boy closer to 200 or 600? You get the idea. I’m doing a lot of track painting and scenery work that calls for these right now, and when Lance Mindheim or Paul Dolkos or Joe Fugate recommends a certain sandpaper grit, I wonder if I can pick up one of my little rubber things and get about the same result.
I’m not going to get in the Brite-Boy,erasers,But I believe you are looking for different grit sand paper in the wrong place,look for it in Auto Body Paint suppliers,or Auto Parts Stores,it’s the Black one’s,that are used for wet sanding,they are not paper,like you would find in big box stores…
I don’t know the answer, but I would sincerely hope the grittiness equivalency is something beyond 599. I would like to know it is between 600 and 800, but not much finer than that. I know many don’t like the idea of grit at all due to their leaving microgrooves in the rail surfaces. I use 600 grit in the black paper sheets from Home Depot, local hardware, autobody repair…It does a good job, and I don’t seem to have to clean it up again frequently. As the current wisdom goes, and seems to hold, running a train or two a day, or even once a week, seems to keep the rail dirt away for me. I just use the grit to tidy up around frogs now and then…mostly.
I can not attest to the grit equivalent to a bright boy but I had quit using bright boys years ago. Go to any office supply store such as Staples and secure yourself some white ink and pink pencil erasers. They work great and much more friendlier to the wallet.
Another thing you can do before painting your rails is to add a couple of drops of light oil to a scrap of pine, let it soak in and rub it along the top of the rails. The wood will keep the oil from getting anywhere else not wanted and will put a lighter amount of oil to clean off after. The oily rag was a mess and oil got on the sides of the rail too. The wood is stiff and holds up very well and only the top of the rail is oiled.
I have no grit number equivalent for you, but some of us are old enough to remember when there were “ink erasers” (some of which were a sort of half-and-half with a pencil eraser: pink and gray) and “typewriter erasers” (an eraser that was a wheel, and the holder included a stiff brush) and I think both of those had more “grit” than a BriteBoy. They worked by actually wearing away some of the paper and I suspect would be too abrasive than is good for the track.
I believe you can get Emory cloth, which is sold at automotive supply houses, in 900 grit. I would not consider using anything of a larger grit because it can scratch the railhead and cause it to attract more dirt.
My local hardware store carries 1500 grit, not sure if that is the finest or not. I bought it to try for simulating rolled roofing. Haven’t done it yet, so don’t know my answer.
It is very fine and I think there are finer ones, however, I’m not sure I’d use it on a whole layout. Maybe a short section to see over time if it had the effect of scratching. One answer above, I think said they’d used 600 grit, so maybe it would be alright to use it.
I didn’t mention this in my other reply,but instead of any sand paper,Auto Body shops,or even Auto Supply have scuff pads in different grits,think of a dish sponge with a scuff pad on one side,cheaper and works…
I’ve been using emery boards (for finger nails) for years. There are many grit sizes; the ones I use you can’t even feel any grit, it’s is very fine. Even after years of use, even though it feels worn out, it still works great…maybe better than when it was new. They can even be cleaned with soap and water, but an occasional wipe on a rag during everyday use is usually all that’s needed.
After I use the emery board, I use a piece of cardboard (roughly 1" x 2") with a couple drops of rubbing alcohol or contact cleaner (I even used WD-40 once) to pick up any loose ‘dust’. Sometimes the cardboard treatment is all the cleaning the track needs.