Track cleaning can be a tedious task. At the Club we were looking for ways to reduce the level of effort in cleaning the main line. The “Dark Hole” being the longest segment of hidden tunnel tack was especially challenging. Commercially produced cleaning cars and tools are available in many shapes and forms however at the Club we through we would try make our own implementing non abrasive dry cleaning.

The goal was just to remove the thin layer of dust and dirt on the rail head. With regular running of the cleainig car ahead of the loco, or by including one of there cars in a consist, this helps keep the rail head clean.

A box car was selected to be converted to a cleaning car due to the larger volume inside to accommodate the extra weights along with the mechanism to apply a small amount of pressure on the cleaning pad.

The cleaning pad is made from a rectangle of masonite with beveled edges. Felt material is glued onto the masonite to form the cleaning surface.