I have replaced several of my cars with Atlas metal wheelsets and they run great. I was wondering has anyone seen the longterm benfits of replacing all their rolling stock to metal wheels. I would like to but it is quite costly to do all at once. [?]
If you are going to the expense of replacing all of your wheesets, I would suggest that you go ahead and purchase a truck tuner from Micro Mark. And yes, there are several benefits in regards to replacing your plastic wheelsets with metal ones.
The track seems to stay very clean. I’ve been running trains for about 2 1/2 years and the only time I have to clean track is when I’m doing scenery.
Tom
The main benefits to having metal wheels are that the track and locomotive wheels stay cleaner, and the trains make a more prototypical sound when operating (you can hear the “klickety-klack” as the wheels travel over rail joiners), and finally, the metal wheels look quite a bit more realistic than plastic ones do. I am sure there are other benefits as well, but these are the ones that came to mind for me.
I have been using the LL P2K wheelsets for most of my rolling stock, and am very happy with them. I was able to find 12 packs of wheelsets for less than five dollars a pack (about a year ago), so I bought a bunch of them. I haven’t seen that price recently, but they can still be found for a reasonable price.
I’m still mystified why this should make any difference in how often the track needs to be cleaned. Like fiatfan, I need to clean track only after scenery or ballast work, and then, only in that immediate area. My layout is HO scale, with DC power. I replace plastic wheelsets only if they are in some way faulty, such as out-of-round, not centred on the axle, or not square to the axle. As far as rolling qualities go, the truck tuner is a useful tool for both plastic and metal wheels. I would say that metal wheels make up about 10% of my total roster, most of them came as standard equipment on newer cars. In 15 years of operation, the only track cleaning has been as noted above. Many of the plastic-wheeled cars operated on a previous layout, again with no cleaning, for about 10 years. The only cleaning needed is on those cars equipped with Kadee wheelsets: they seem, for some reason, to accumulate a lot of crud which eventually requires removal. It’s possible that this contributes to keeping the track clean, so I’m not going to tamper with the situation.
I have done a fair bit of locomotive repair, remotoring, and regearing for others, and I notice that in the majority of cases, the locomotive has been grossly over-lubricated. If those findings are representative of most modeller’s locos, then the need for such frequent track cleaning would be explained. I think that layout environment would also be a contributing factor, moreso than plastic wheelsets.
Wayne
Wayne
To me, the most important factor is nickel silver versus brass rail. Many moons ago when I was running brass track and plastic wheels (Lindberg, anybody remember those?), it was a constant battle to keep the wheels clean. When I got back into the hobby a couple years ago, I listened to the advice on the forums “use metal wheels.” I’m sure I don’t need to elaborate on the cleaning of brass track.
Another factor, as you mentioned, is the environment. My basement floor is completely seald with epoxy paint and the ceiling in the train room (and most of the rest of the basement) is drywalled. Both of these factors contributed to a significantly reduced amount of dust.
I have not done any scientific studies, nor am I an expert in this area. These are simply my observations.
Tom
Another benefit of metal wheels I think is they add weight at the lowest point on the car. This helps tracking alot and in my opinion helps reduce derailments. I had alot of trainset quality cars with the “cookie cutter” plastic wheels. The oversized flanges found every little flaw in the track work, mainly at turnouts. I"ve read that most metal wheels are designed like the prototype. The tread is tapered slightly towards the flange. If guaged right, the flange doesn’t touch the rail on straight level track.
Sorry for the misunderstanding. I made the assumption that we were speaking solely about nickel silver rail. My first layout was brass (on fibre ties) and it required cleaning pretty well anytime I wanted to run trains. In those days, all of my locos had unplated brass wheels, which also needed frequent cleaning. With respect to poorly formed plastic wheels, yes, they certainly cause problems and should be replaced. I was fortunate to have had the opportunity to do paint and weathering for other modellers who also wanted their cars to be converted to Kadee wheelsets. Many of those plastic wheelsets that were changed out found new life in the cars of my own which had poor quality wheels. At that time, my model railroading budget was pretty tight, so this savings translated into more visible additions to my layout, like locos or rolling stock.
By the way, I do remember those Lindberg trucks. They were “state of the art” at one time, and while there are many better (more accurate and better rolling) trucks around now, I still have a few cabooses equipped with them.
Wayne
This is what has been explained to me by my LHS owner :
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The metal-on-metal action of metal wheels rolling on track actually helps polish your tracks. This helps reduce the dirt that your wheels can accumulate. And, more importantly, reduces the dirt that can foul up your locomotives’ pickup brushes. Metal wheels may not reduce the need for track cleaning, per se; but can help reduce the need to clean your wheels (especially those on your locomotives).
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Plastic wheels generate static electricity while running on metal tracks, thereby attracting dust and dirt not just to the track but to the wheels themselves. While your track may not appear to be very dirty; the plastic wheels are likely to be filthy. Dirty wheels rolling on track can lead to dirtier track which, in turn, can lead to dirty wheels and clogged pickup brushes on locomotives. And we all know what poor power pickup on a locomotive means.
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Metal wheels also roll more freely, making it easier for your locomotive(s) to pull longer trains (particularly when going up a grade).
I have a small fleet of Roundhouse “Old Timer” freight cars that I’d like to change over to metal wheels. Will any brand of metal wheel sets work, or are there specific types?
In my experience, metal wheelsets seem to “polish” the railhead and wheels at the same time increasing the length of time between track cleanings.
I use Intermountain. Others swear by (or at) various other brands such as Kadee.
Tom
PS Follow Smitty’s advice and get the MicroMark Tool.
I converted my rolling stock to metal wheels over a period of time. I use Kadee wheels, and have found them to be uniformly excellent. Most plastic wheels perform quite well. The only real disadvantage long term, is that over a period of time, plastic wheels can leave a residue on the rails. This results in the need for more frequent cleaning. Did I discard my plastic wheels? Absolutely not. Some have been donated to other “railroads”. Others sit around the wheel pit, and still others are on flat cars either enroute to, or returning from the wheel shop at Rocky Mount, N.C.
Plastic wheels accumulate dirt because of the “volatiles” in the wheels, I think.
Every plastic has some volatile compounds in it - stuff that outgasses over time (a good example of volatiles and outgassing is paint drying. In latex paint, the main volatile is water, and the outgassing is the water vapor leaving the paint as it dries). Ever seen how brittle and stiff really old supposedly “flexible” plastics get? That’s because the volatiles have all escaped. Most of the volatiles in plastics are given off in the initial curing process, but the rest can take many years to leave the plastic, and some are necessary to give the plastic its physical characteristics.
Plastic wheels may feel perfectly dry, but there is usually some microscopically small amount of volatiles at the surface. Fine dust that floats onto the wheels, or that the wheels run over on the track, sometimes sticks to this stuff, slowly building up crud over time. A tiny bit also sticks to the rails, so they get dirty over time.
At least that what some of my materials people here at the plant tell me, but we’re not a plastics specialist outfit (though we use it), so someone who is may be able to shed more light…