I’ve tried several harsh chemicals to try and remove blackening from the treads of metal wheels, but I haven’t had any luck. Other than abrasion, is there anything else that DEFINITELY works?
Brass wire wheel in the Dremel has always worked for me. If that’s to coarse for you, a buffing wheel and some polishing rouge in your dremel also works, but is more time consuming and the buffing wheel gets really dirty quickly.
Mark.
If you are referring to the black gunk build up, a gum like substance, I use the blade of a thin hobby screw driver to remove it and then I polish the wheel with a Bright Boy.
I haven’t had to do it though since I converted all of the plastic wheels to metal wheels on my rolling stock.
Rich
Pirate:
Just out of curiousity, why do you need to remove the blackening from the wheel treads? I am not questioning your need to do it. I just want to know the reason for my own education.
Thanks
Dave
If it is crud, he is probably losing electrical contact. Let’s see what he says.
Rich
The treads on wheels are shiny in real life, unless they’ve been sitting for some time. So it helps with the looks.
I’m assuming he’s referring to the chemically blackened wheelsets that come on numerous freight cars today, including some aftermarket wheels as well, like Kadee.
Granted, that black coating will wear off on its own, but if you have a lot of cars on your layout, that black coating is going somewhere. I prefer to clean it off right from the get-go - besides, as was already mentioned … real cars have shiney wheel treads !
Mark.
That’s it, chemically blackened wheels will look more real if they are shiny.
Rather then take a Dremel tool or screw driver to the wheel surface I would prefer to let it wear off.
Why?
First I don’t have the "dirty track worries " like most and I wouldn’t want to risk scratching the wheel surface or worst breaking off a tiny detail part or step.
I’ll be darned, that is a new one on me.
Chemically blackened wheels ! When did they start doing that?
I have Intermountain metal wheels on all my rolling stock, but my inventory did not come blackened.
Why are manufacturers chemically blackening the wheels?
Rich
I still have a lot of Central Valley trucks from over 40 years back. They are metal sprung truck perform great look good .These were in the days they were packed by the pair in small plastic boxes cushioned with disintegrating foam that we didn`t know about back them. A few years ago when I dug the out the trucks the foam was stuck to the trucks. I found that the best way to clean the wheels was with the small wire brush in a Dremel tool. It also remove the blackening at the same time it took time . I have managed to clean the foam crud stuck the wheels. I also used a hypodermic style needle from ink cartridge refill kits to squirt some graphite into the bearings They now are performing well on a lot of newer cars that I have purchased. Because of their weight and flexible springing they perform very well. Most of these were purchased before CV was sold and the truck manufacturing process changed which resulted in a quality drop. Around that time they also stopped blackening the wheels.
Ron High
I believe KD wheels are blackened. Good wheels but the black tread bothers me, too. I have some that are 30+ years old and have seen lots of club use. Still black.
For that reason, I stick with I-M or Proto.
Years ago I used JB wheelsets exclusively. That blackened tread bothered me also. I would remove the blackening w/ a well worn piece of Wet/ Dry #600. A small strip held curved and run/ twisting around the tread would remove the black to the nickle rather quickly. I know that you can get those minute scratches that may PU dirt, but most times I did this on pieces that needed elec p/u for caboose lighting etc. (insulated wheel but using brass axles) Numerous or too heavy handed cleaning w/ the #600 can wear right through the nickle to the brass.
I have since gone to Proto and IM wheelsets and only have to weather the faces. Atlas wheelsets are completely shined and have a poor stamping on the face, but after weathering work and look fine.
The Proto, although not the best quality wheelset, does have an excellent stamping of the face and the wheels roll/ track excellent for all my purposes. Have only had a very small % of hundreds that showed out of gauge or wobble.
I will still consider the JB for any project that requires the brass axle for wipers. Not the most accurate in detail, but very high quality materials and workmanship. Never had a bad one.
I use a wire wheel (the disk one, not the cone shaped one - I’m guessing they are steel, not brass; brass is probably safer) in a Dremel to clean my wheels.
A few tips:
First, it’s probably a good idea to use eye protection, in case the wheelset goes flying, and I routinely feel specks of crud (wire wheel bits?) hitting my face. Use the slowest speed possible. Hold the Dremel so the wire wheel is diagonal across the wheel face. It produces a sideways polishing action, while making the wheels turn by themselves.
Hold a finger (lightly) on the opposite wheel that you are cleaning so the wheel isn’t spinning at 10,000 mph. If the Dremel is just making the wheel spin, it’s not rubbing the black off.
Don’t hold the wheel still! Kadee’s seem to be a softer metal that will form pits first and (I’m guessing) eventually, wear away a flat spot. You should be able to see the wheel spin quickly, but it shouldn’t be a blur. Vary pressure of your finger (brake) and pressure of the wire wheel on the tread (gas); balance so one tread is clean in 5-10 secs.
Not sure about this because it hasn’t happened (yet), but I’m a little worried if the wheel is spinning too fast, or for more than 15-20 secs, the needle point axles might be heating up and possibly melt or deform, so keep the drive pressure light, keep the wheels turning and for a short period of time.
Once the wheels are clean, stop. The treads might not have a mirror finish (it’s the kind of metal, not lack of polishing) but if you continue to polish, the wheels might start pitting. This doesn’t destroy the wheels or their rolling characteristics, but it is extra wear so can’t be all that good.
Keep the wire wheel on the tread; if it slips off (usually due to the angle of the wire wheel catching the rim of the wheel and getting pulled off) it might rub the paint off the truck or axle (easy to touch up); I’ve never
A lot depends on what chemical or process was used in the blackening. When I was doing stained glass, we blackened the solder lines with a patina chemical (don’t remember what it was). We were cautioned not to use an ammonia based cleaner like Windex on the glass, as it would remove the patina, so you might try full strength ammonia. It is stinkey, but may work.