by jdelgrosso
Yo, how do I get rid of dead spots. I used to get rid of em by brushing a womens nail filer in the top, but I get the idea that this is damaging the track. Any other ways to take care of this?
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Troubleshooting dead spots on the track
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by Throttle_JCKY
from the last response, sounds more like a short to me. The high pitched sound is the current shorting itself. You need to look and see if anything is trading current where it shouldn't.
Is this close to a switch?
If it is, then you need to look close around the switch, as shorts occur in the most hard to find areas.
The other issue, don't use an emory board on the rail. Take a small block of wood, get a few sections of paper towel, dip the towel in 91% Iso alcohol, the rub over the rail , then take a dry towel and whip up the mess, repeat as needed, this will work well on the grime that builds and won't scratch the rail head.
As a suggestion, add feeders roughly every 6 feet or less. This will help with keeping the rails close to full power.
Is this close to a switch?
If it is, then you need to look close around the switch, as shorts occur in the most hard to find areas.
The other issue, don't use an emory board on the rail. Take a small block of wood, get a few sections of paper towel, dip the towel in 91% Iso alcohol, the rub over the rail , then take a dry towel and whip up the mess, repeat as needed, this will work well on the grime that builds and won't scratch the rail head.
As a suggestion, add feeders roughly every 6 feet or less. This will help with keeping the rails close to full power.
by Otto Vondrak
And of course, spin your locomotive wheels on a towel soaked in alcohol... keep spinning them until you dont see black streaks anymore.
-otto-
-otto-
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NYW&B Fan Site :: A Magazine I Read Often :: A Museum I Volunteer At
by jwb1323
The poster says he can hear the (presumably loco) wheels moving. That says something is making the loco hang up, probably a coupler downdrop-thingy, depending on what kind of couplers he's using. I would look for a switch where the closure rail is catching a coupler downdrop-thingy. Then I would check and see which coupler might be causing the problem and correct the coupler height, possibly with a washer between the truck and the bolster, or by some other repair to the equipment if the coupler box lid is loose, for instance.
by jwb1323
The truck is the swivel assembly below the car's chassis that contains the wheels.
A bolster is the component on the chassis to which the truck attaches, usually via a screw. There are two bolsters on a typical car, one at each end.
A feeder is a piece of wire that carries track power to the rail.
A bolster is the component on the chassis to which the truck attaches, usually via a screw. There are two bolsters on a typical car, one at each end.
A feeder is a piece of wire that carries track power to the rail.
by Throttle_JCKY
As jwb1323 said,
Check and make sure you don't have something hanging up on the track.
If you rule that out, go to Radio Shack and buy a voltmeter. They sell em pretty cheap and you can use them on other things too.
Check the so called deadspot for the voltage, make sure your current is on, and check the area all around it.
Also, like Otto said, take a towel and get it wet, lay it over the rail and do one set of trucks on a locomotive at a time, keep doing it til you get the dirt off!
Check and make sure you don't have something hanging up on the track.
If you rule that out, go to Radio Shack and buy a voltmeter. They sell em pretty cheap and you can use them on other things too.
Check the so called deadspot for the voltage, make sure your current is on, and check the area all around it.
Also, like Otto said, take a towel and get it wet, lay it over the rail and do one set of trucks on a locomotive at a time, keep doing it til you get the dirt off!