6.1 Clean trucks
If this loco has been used, there will probably be an accumula-
tion of dirt and debris on the wheels. I use a brass brush in my
rotary tool to clean the wheels of the trucks before reassembly,
as shown in figure 17. I use my finger to limit the rotation of
the wheel assembly, while the motor tool is trying to acceler-
ate the wheels. The difference in speed between the brush and
wheel allows the brass brush to remove or loosen debris on
the wheels and polish them. Then, I use a Q-tip soaked in dena-
tured alcohol to remove the remainder or send them through
the ultrasonic cleaning explained in section 6.2.
If this loco is brand new, the wheels will be blackened overall.
This brass brush technique will allow you to remove the black-
ening and expose new metal, making the electrical connection
between the wheels and track more reliable.
6.2 Clean the drive train
I took the drive train parts and the truck assemblies and
immersed them in a degreasing solution and ran them through
17
17: Cleaning the
truck assemblies
with a motor tool
and brass brush
wheel.
DCC Impulses column - 11
MRH-Jan 2013
