brass with added nickel originally called German Silver developed
for making cutlery that wouldn’t tarnish). The rail is formed by roll-
ing and forming wire stock progressively until the correct profile is
achieved. This leaves some oil residue on the rail from the rolling
process, which explains why new rail is a little dirty.
Calgary Alberta, Canada, where I live, is very dry with almost des-
ert-like conditions during the winter months. This results in the
house occupants (myself, my wife and three cats) having dry, flaky
skin during the winter, and consequently there is a lot of dust in
the house. We fight this dust in the house constantly and I fight
dirty track on my layout in the basement all the time. If you live in a
more humid environment, your dust may have a different composi-
tion. It would be interesting to hear from others to see if they have
similar results with cleaning track.
Brent recently retired from work-
ing as a production analyst with
Shell Canada. Since retiring, he has
taken on the role of editor for the
Calgary Model Railway Society’s
publication “The Order Board.”
He also belongs to the Bow Valley
Model Railroad club.
Brent’s other hobby interests
including oil painting, and he runs
an art school in Calgary. He enjoys
hiking and cross-country skiing in
the mountains outside Calgary with his wife of 33 years.
