How well does this work?
is it worth the money?
Ben
It doesn’t work at all – it scratches your rail and causes it to attract more dirt because the wiper on the bottom is a piece of stone.
I have one and have been very disappointed. [tdn] It is too heavy to push or pull well and hangs up on everything. I’ve done better with a Masonite pad on the bottom of a box car. If you don’t have the means to make your own, you can buy a kit from A-line.
I’d have to agree mine dosen’t do much. I think the CMX clean machine ( Tony’s train ex I think ) would be better.
There’s always ads in the MR for good cleaning cars.
Ken.
If you can spring for it and your layout size justifies the $99.00 cost, www.tonystrainexchange.com(click on
clean machine) is expensive, popular & effective. I think they offer a satisfaction guarantee policy.
Save your money and use metal polish and then you don’t have to clean your track at all!
Unless YOU like to clean your track!
I haven’t cleaned my 2700 feet of track for over 2 years now and my sound engines don’t miss a beat!
BOB H - Clarion, PA
Has anyone ever tried putting metal polish on the masonite pad on their cleaning car?
Just a thought to automate the process of polishing their track?
Mark in Utah
The more I think about this, the more I wonder if a good old chalk eraser impregnated with a couple of teaspons of MAAS or similar metal polish wouldn’t work if dragged behind a loco. The way they are made, with the rows of felt-like material, they would tend to track well…I think.
Maybe I’ll volunteer to tackle this one.
You guys are still trying to find a reason to run your railroad, if you have to find a way to automate the process.
And using any train mounted unit will not clean the sidings and spur tracks effectively!
Remember you will only have to do the metal polish ONCE not over and over again!
I just wish I could convince everyone you don’t have to use the metal polish like you have had to use any other cleaner.
This process ENDS cleaning track PERIOD!
BOB H – Clarion, PA
As an ex Centerline/Tony’s clean machine I was converted over to MAAS thanks to
MR January 2003.
It’s works three ways, Cleans, Polishes and Retards oxidation.
As Bob pointed out, yes there are other paste products that are effective.
I have found nothing wrong with my cleaning cars. I have two, and although they are heavy, I usually put 1 or 2 too many locos on my trains anyways. Just make sure you put them near the front! Another thing you might want to do is replace the couplers with kadees and the wheels are better when metal, it’ll decrease the drag.
I don’t find the pad too hard, but I do clean it regularely.
I think it’s worth the money, but so are the centerline cars.
trainboy
Thank you.
Ben