I just picked up some inexpensive HO track for my son from ebay and as you might imagine, something is amiss. I’ve noticed a few of the pieces missing the small brass end pieces that conduct the power and thus have removed these from the layout. I can hear and feel the train engine trying to go, but it just won’t work like it did before. I suspect some of the track, which is now intermingled with the good track, is bad. Is there an easy way to test? Is there a good way to clean the metal rails, ie rubbing alcohol?
My only thought to test is to create a simple test oval, make sure it works at full power, and then exchange piece by piece until I find the bad piece/pieces. Thoughts?
If your train isn’t running well on any of the track, I’ds guess the connectors are bad which may be just dirty. If you can get a small electrical tester, start at the point where your power connects to the track and check each piece as you go. Also you could check each piece for conductivity. If your trains ran OK on the track you had and do not run well on only certain sections of track, then I’d say the track needed a good cleaning (never hurts to clean it anyhow, LHS track cleaner, Brite Boy, Goo Gone, any would probaably help), however, if they don’t run well anywhere, I’d suspect the connections between track pieces.
Look closely at the connectors between the pieces. On the end is a small tab which sticks out a bit. Sometimes these tabs get smashed down and don’t press against the tab on the next connector like they should. You can use a small flat tip jewelers screwdriver to lift the tabs back up so they look like those on the good pieces. To get these ‘new’ pieces as clean as you can get an old toothbrush and some alcohol and scrub the rails tops and sides then dry them thoroughly.
Using more than just one set of power feed wires to the track helps too. On larger layouts, we use multiple sets of “feeder” wires to the track and all the sidings. Make sure you keep the polarity correct.
About every 6’ of track and every siding is a good rule of thumb. This helps overcome bad track connections.
An electric meter is a must have tool.
Rubbing alcohol should work well to clean the track. I prefer to use a cloth rag, rather than a paper towel, because paper leaves fuzz stuck in the rail gaps. That doesn’t mean I don’t use paper, it just means that I need to stop leaving it within my reach when cleaning track.
Long-stored track might have an accumulated layer of dust and perhaps oxides that are best removed with abrasive, but don’t use anything coarse. I have had good results from using a modified “Gleam” method on Powerloc track…I sand it with 600 grit paper, burnish it well with a stainless steel fender washer, and wipe it clean with alcohol and a rag. This improves contact, reduces sparking, and keeps the rails cleaner.
