Tomix Track Cleaning Car

[Bernard]

Does anyone have the Tomix track cleaning car?

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10028711

How do you like it and has anyone put a decoder in it?

[Martijn Meerts]

I have a blue and a red version of the cleaning car. The blue version is digital, the red one is still fairly new so I haven't gotten around to installing a decoder in that one.

Decoder installation is easy, especially if you use a decoder with a 6-pin plug. Just order a specially designed circuit board for it from for example Japan Model Railways (http://www.japanmodelrailways.com/shopenglish/d_5351.php). This board replaces the one that's in there, and then the only thing left is to bend the pins on the decoder 90 degress, so that it'll fit into a recess at the end of the car.

If your decoder doesn't have a 6-pin plug, it's still quite easy. You should still use the above mentioned circuit board, but solder off the 6-pin socket, and solder the wires directly onto the circuit board. The decoder  goes into the same recess as with the 6-pin plug decoder install.

I've done both installs, Lenz gold mini for myself, and I gave my father a cleaning car with a Selectrix decoder in it. I haven't used it much myself, but I've tested it a few rounds, and it picks up a LOT of dirt. My father's been running his as a vacuum cleaner only, and it does vacuum up a lot of dust and other small things.

One thing to note though (and the reason my father's only using the vacuum part) is that in sharp turns, both the polishing and the grinding/sanding discs will pop off the rail, and will almost certainly cause the car to derail. This happens on all of Tomix's tram tracks and turnouts, as well as the sharp minitrix/fleischmann etc. tracks. It can be solved by making your own polishing/sanding pads that are slightly larger than the original Tomix ones.

Also, when running as polishing or grinding machine, the thing makes a terrible noise, so it's not something you want to have running around on a regular route, but rather something that's off on a spur somewhere, ready to be used when you feel it's necessary. I'm planning on getting 1 more myself (preferably a different color from the red and blue ones I have already), and then run one of them as vacuum, one as grinder and one as polisher. Place a fairly heavy diesel loco in front of it, and for example a Maya 34-2004 as a trailing car. Maya 34-2004 (the prototype that is) is a track testing car, so the whole set would be like a track maintenance train. Just imagine the noise that will generate though........ =)

I'll post a picture of the installed Lenz decoder when I get home from work. Don't have access to the one with the Selectrix decoder.

[Martijn Meerts]

And here are the images


The circuit board that will replace the old one.





The little black harness removed to make space to solder the decoder, and decoder soldered





Decoder installed in a little recess that almost seems to be made for a decoder install ;)





As for whether it works or not, sanding/grinding and polishing pad after a few rounds on an oval of track

[CaptOblivious]

How helpful is that replacement circuit board? It looks expensive to import into the US from Europe, and I wonder if my money wouldn't be better spent working with the extent circuit board?

[C62]

Does anyone have the Tomix rail cleaning track? I would like to hear some opinions so that I can decide whether to order the cleaning car or the whole set with track.

[Martijn Meerts]

Capt, I can't say if the replacement circuit board is much easier than the default one, since I've used the replacement circuit board the whole time. You also keep your warranty on the car if you use the replacement circuit board, since you're not modifying anything. That said, the circuit board is really small and flat and could be sent in a regular envelope which means shipping cost should be low and there should be no import costs either.


C62, I have the cleaning track as well, but haven't tried it yet. I've read some reports that it works okay, but it doesn't completely clean the wheels. Especially where the running surface meets the wheel flanges, the cleaning track won't be able to clean.

[Bernard]

Martijn,
Great photos & excellent work, you're a whiz with a soldering iron!
Where did you purchase the circuit board?

[Martijn Meerts]

Bernard, the circuit board is from Japan Model Railways in Kamen/Germany (http://www.japanmodelrailways.de). That's actually where almost all my stuff comes from ;)

I would recommend using the circuit board, considering the original has some extra electronics on it which allows you to turn the cleaner on and off, and switch it to be used with an advanced Tomix power pack. You won't need any of the electronics when you put in a decoder  though, and by using the replacement circuit board you can easily bring the back to its original state.

On a sidenote, the car will also run as analogue car even on a digital layout, the problem is that you can't control the speed of the little motor inside the car, so it'll run full power. After a few minutes it'll overheat and the protection circuitry will activate. Leave it to cool off for a while, and you can run it for another few minutes.

[CaptOblivious]

Well, I've got one now too. I've only run it once or so, and it picked up a bunch of dirt in vacuum mode. I forgot to order some of Tomix's rail cleaner, so my first mopping used a little dilute liquid soap. It cleaned the rails, but left a film behind, so trains still run a little rough. I've read that others use rubbing alcohol, and I'm going to try that next. A solvent seems the best bet.

The thing is heavy, and my Tomix EF81, trooper that it is, had a little difficulty hauling it up 4% inclines (especially soapy-slick inclines!), but it managed. This is not a car to be hauled as part of a long train, or by a wussy loco.

Anyway, once I've been using it for a while, I'll post a more detailed review.

[Martijn Meerts]

I'm planning on running 3 of them in series (grind, vacuum, polish) with either 2 loco's at 1 end, or 1 loco at each end..

Of course, I need to move to a bigger place and spend about 10 years building modules before I have anything big enough to use that setup =)

[Shashinka]

I'm planning on running 3 of them in series (grind, vacuum, polish) with either 2 loco's at 1 end, or 1 loco at each end..

Of course, I need to move to a bigger place and spend about 10 years building modules before I have anything big enough to use that setup =)

Sorta what I'd like to do. Interesting to note that I've seen them sold new on eBay with a DD54 engine with it as a set.

[TaeOH]

Wow.  I was just about to post a thread on what you use to clean your track and I see this. 

I am not looking to buy one of these cars right now, so what does Kato mean by Plastic safe liquid cleaner?  I need to start cleaning the track and the trucks of my loco's and want to know what you guys do.  Ever since I got the Master 2 set I have actually been running trains enough that cleaning is necessary...lol

[Shashinka]

http://www.1999.co.jp/eng/10014384