Help with cleaning very dirt wheels

[Obi-wan-kenobi]

Hello all,

 

Whilst restoring an old hornby diesel railcar, I found the wheels to be very dirty. I gave them a go with IPA and the peco wheel cleaner but there was not much of an improvement. I am currently wondering if there is some sort of solution I can soak them in to clean it up or whether they really just need to be replaced - I'd rather not replace them as finding replacement wheelsets for it is quite difficult. Any advice is much appriciated.

 

Thanks

 

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[DEREK123]

Hi

Why do they need to be cleaned .... are they noisy , worn etc ?

Can you supply an "R" number and maybe a better description...?

You need to have the R number.  That should enable you with to locate the correct service sheet and then the bogie part numbers ... then search using that !!.... they may be quite cheap !!

Petrol might help if you were to soak them ... I am sorry I cannot help more.

Derek

Just an observation : The bogie pictured on the right in the top photo appears to need back to back adjustment !!

[Souty Train Guy]

I soak my wheels in cleaning alcohol if really dirty, and then wipe with a cloth.

You can run a track rubber round the wheels which is very effective

You can clean locomotives by giving them power while holding a track rubber to the wheel

A wheel cleaning strip of track might be a worthy investment...

[DBfan]

 I think you will find that they do not need to be cleaned as they were made like this.

[Obi-wan-kenobi]

Hi

Why do they need to be cleaned .... are they noisy , worn etc ?

Can you supply an "R" number and maybe a better description...?

You need to have the R number.  That should enable you with to locate the correct service sheet and then the bogie part numbers ... then search using that !!.... they may be quite cheap !!

Hi,

 

The wheels produce huge sparks when running (and running is a bit of an exageration!) and so need cleaning I assume. The model number for the model is R157 but the bogie (and wheels) are the same as used in the Triang dock shunter and the blue pullman etc. Have found the part number but I found hardly any spare wheels availible to replace them with.

Yep, I noticed that the back to back needs ajusting too!

[Obi-wan-kenobi]

I soak my wheels in cleaning alcohol if really dirty, and then wipe with a cloth.

You can run a track rubber round the wheels which is very effective

You can clean locomotives by giving them power while holding a track rubber to the wheel

A wheel cleaning strip of track might be a worthy investment...

Thank you, i'll look into that!

[LCDR]

I have a wheel cleaning tool that has strips of brass bristles connected to a brass strip that sits on a powered length of rail. It works very well.

 

Woodland Scenics sell one, although mine is a TRIX one which seems to be unavailable on Amazon at the moment, there are some on Ebay, and the Woodland Scenics seems a little different .

[DBfan]

 Also try cleaning your track as that can cause sparking. As said in my previous post some models wheels weremade like this and do NOT need cleaning.

[Obi-wan-kenobi]

 Also try cleaning your track as that can cause sparking. As said in my previous post some models wheels weremade like this and do NOT need cleaning.

Thanks. Wheels being made dirty strikes me as a litle odd, however I clean my track regularly so i would have thought the wheels are most of the problem.

[walkingthedog]

They not made dirty it's just a colour.  Loco wheels are that colour except for the day they are rolled out  of the factory. 

 

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[Rana Temporia]

These are from the last couple of years that the Metro-Cammell DMU was made, the plastic cog is the give-away. They will also have better profiled wheels than the earlier models. The problem may not lie with the wheels, they were treated to be black as in the picture, the track may need cleaning as well. Also, check the pick-up under the bogie as it may be dirty or have fluff on it and you need to make sure it's working on both wheels. The pick-up can also touch the metal frame in some circumstances such as being bent/distorted causing a short and sparking. If the back to back is out the wheels may be shorting on the metal chassis, especially if one or both is a bit wobbly. 

 

I would re-set the back to back and re-assemble the bogie and give it a good run. I think yours will have the big panel above the cab with I think A7 on it, you'll need to make sure the wiring for the light goes back on the right way round for this directional lighting to work. There is a diode in the circuit. 

 

Whatever you do put the wheels back in the right way round. The small plastic insulators around the axle go on the same side as the pick-up. Good luck with it, these should run very well. 

[DEREK123]

Looking at this service sheet you have the R157 ( as you say ).  Not the R156 grooved wheels.. !!

http://www.lendonsmodelshop.co.uk/pdf/Hornby%20Service%20Sheets/No.012A%20Power%20Bogies%20R156%20R157.pdf

                            **********************************************************

I only point you to these as as you say the wheels are difficult to find so you may be interested. ...have a look.

I hope its useful to you.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Triang-Motor-bogies-x4-Spares-Repairs/114187044948?hash=item1a96140854:g:8RgAAOSwk~peld2q

Derek

Check your pickups carefully.http://www.lendonsmodelshop.co.uk/pdf/Hornby%20Service%20Sheets/No.012A%20Power%20Bogies%20R156%20R157.pdf

[Going Spare]

And just in case you do ever try to obtain replacement wheels or wheelsets, they are of the same general style as those in the Dock Shunter (sintered iron?) but the wheels are not the same diameter - the early Transcontinental locos used larger diameter wheels than the UK prototypes - and therefore carry different part/assembly numbers.

[Modelnut19]

On a broader point, in my experience not all wheels are shiny clean.

 

I think Peco still produce a little brush but I have never used the still scraper that comes with it. It strike me as being a bit vicious. I would prefer to use cotton buds and wooden or plastic cocktail sticks. However, this requires patience since the loco needs to be run tiny amounts to rotate the wheels.

A cradle is recommended to avoid damaging parts on the more modern models. One also must not use too much pressure in case one disturbs the quartering of steam locos.

Care is required not to damage the coating on some wheels. I have some well used secondhand locos which still run fine but the wheels are no longer pristine.

Often I find it is the wheels of bogies that get the dirtiest, probably because they can loose contact and this enable arcing to occur.

[atom3624]

It looked like the wheels are knurled.

 

To thoroughly clean them, I would consider a dilute strong detergent in an untrasonic bath - except I would be wary what it may do to the insulation bushes - hopefully nothing would happen ....

 

Al.