Wondering if there is a way to rejuvinate a bright boy,have several that seemed to have hard’nd up and lost their flexiblity,anyone have any thoughts!
Maybe soak them in some kind of solution?
I’d buy a new one, about $5 at An Affair With Trains.
I clean them with liquid dishwashing detergent and an old toothbrush, but if yours have hardened because of temperature extremes or whatever, that may not help.
At our club we use old bright boys to hold track cleaning rags (the bright boys are no longer allowed to touch the rails as they were scratching them up). When we used 91% alcohol on the rags the bright boys seemed to soften up.
I been using briteboys for years as does the 3 clubs I am in with no noticeable problems…We tried Wahl at one club and cuss the day we used it and almost hung the guy from the rafters that suggest using it.[:(!][tdn] We went back to Radio Shack channel turner cleaner with far better results…[:D][tup]
I am fully persuaded that is way to much hype in using a briteboy in track cleaning.
Oh, I am not contending they don’t work. They work very well. It is just one must keep using them. Our club has moved into the polished railhead camp in an effort to reduce the over all time spent cleaning. So far it has worked quite well. We used to (had to or the trains wouldn’t run well) break out the bright boys and clean the track before each operating session (once a month). Now I believe the last time we wiped the track off was right before a big show last April. The main line is about 900 feet long and about 1/3 of that is hidden so cleaning was a very time intensive task.
We tried all the other things too. Converting the rolling stock to metal wheels[tdn], Wahl clipper oil[tdn], goo-gone[tdn][tdn][tdn], various fluids & cleaners (water to acetone), the cars with the silding pads, the roller cars, sealing the floor, new drop ceiling, air conditioning, etc etc etc Nothing really helped. I guess the only thing we didn’t try was one of those electrostatic cars.
Very possible.
I’ve never had a problem with a “brite-boy” other than they do harden up over time. I go over all my trackage with it, and follow up with a small rag with brake parts cleaner on it. Seems to work great getting any residue off the track, and it evaporates quickly. A word of caution though is you need to have the area well ventilated while using the stuff. I usually buy a new briteboy every year, since the old one is about worn down.
ROLLING electric wheels produces (1) static (2) carbon - both from arcing. This needs ‘mopping up’.
A rag with alcohol applied by hand removes it. TWO 'track cleaning cars (wet / dry) simulate this for areas difficult to reach.
ANY ‘solvent’ (alcohol, oil, detergent) will soften deposits, but application alone does not remove them, plus stubborn ‘baked-on’ deposits do require ‘scrubbing’.
A ‘BRITE BOY’ scours the track.
ENTER ‘Waxing’, ‘Polishing’, ‘Gleaming’. - after polishing and leaving a thin coating of ?? Of course these ALL work - to a point. Probably the best was ‘10’ - an electro- conductive plastic.
Problem was its high cost and the plastic wearing off.
QUESTION?: does a coating of wax prevent Arcing, or provide more traction?? DO I have an simple answer? No.
I use a rag and alcohol - but I can reach 100% of my track. (So does the MSI in Chicago). Does that mean that there can’t be better ways?
I find my KITCHEN FLOOR stays cleaner if I don’t walk on it, but when I clean it, I have to apply a surfactant (detergent) and mop that up. - and, yes. a coat of wax looks neat, but does not seem to keep it cleaner, longer.
In the days past, I believe the ‘watchword’ (selling point) was “protection”. It seemingly justified the extra work.
Re: rejuvinating a bright boy:(Orig post). Take out a loan and buy a new one.