Hi guys, i need some help trying to figure out whats going on with my track or power? i set up a road course on a 4 1/2' X 8 1/2' table, the question is all my cars even brand new ones will only run on certain part of my track sections, then stops its frustrating, then i decided okay i will just make a large oval well it still does this right now its only set up as a 2 lane using Tyco track and a stock Tyco wall wart untill i get my X2 high performance wall wart from smokin ho.

i checked the rail everything is getting contact, i dont know what the problem would be, I hope this isn't a dumb newbie question to me it is,lol. i know it has to be something simple, i just dont know what to do i'm so excited to get my track up and running, and it bums me out that i cant use it.

now i see why most of you guys do away with the wall warts they are a pain in the #$%.lol (i'm sure you know the word i'm trying to say)

if anyone has any ideahs or tricks to fixing this please let me know, i would really apprecite it alot, thanks, Shon:confused:

i just tried it again i wonder if i should clean my track with rubbing alcohol? it does seem that some sections are a little oxidized but not bad or shoud i just scrap the track its not been painted. shon

lol, trying to figure it out i think i got a little closer than i did still haven't made a complete lap but 3/4 of track, i scraped my track with an xacto blade it did help, but still not almost right, track looks better, i think the track sections i have are just been dusty from sitting and kinda oxidized, now need to know whats the best thing to clean it with, can i use your normal everyday rubbing alcohol? please let me know thanks,shon

A pink eraser will do a good job of cleaning the tops of the rails.

I found that with my Tomy track, the first few laps each time after the track was initially powered up would result in stop and go progress. I would bump the car each time it stopped, and after a lap or two of this, they would start doing complete laps. Never really knew why - maybe the rails were getting a final cleaning from the shoes - maybe the shoes were getting a final cleaning.

Kinda like the track had to 'warm up', but I see no logic in that either.

A pink eraser will do a good job of cleaning the tops of the rails.

I found that with my Tomy track, the first few laps each time after the track was initially powered up would result in stop and go progress. I would bump the car each time it stopped, and after a lap or two of this, they would start doing complete laps. Never really knew why - maybe the rails were getting a final cleaning from the shoes - maybe the shoes were getting a final cleaning.

Kinda like the track had to 'warm up', but I see no logic in that either.

thanks, i do have a pink eraser, now my new Tyco 440x2 cars i just opened and tried them and to tell you how dirty the track was the pick up shoes were black just in less than a lap, sounds to me my track is very dirty even if it dont look like it but up close it definitly needs to be cleaned or pressure washed,lol i'm joking about that,lol.

but thank you i will go over it with a pink eraser to, i also just took a 9" straight section i dont use from my lifelike and tested rubbing alcohol on it wiped it with a cloth, it came out nice and no damage, so i think this might help. shon:thumbsup:

Some guys use WD-40 to clean track surface.

Or was that never use WD-40.

Hmmm....should probably delete this post.

Whatever you try, apply to cloth, not direct to track, and use a test piece, then wait 72 hours to see if there is a bad reaction. :-)

Some guys use WD-40 to clean track surface.

Or was that never use WD-40.

Hmmm....should probably delete this post.

Whatever you try, apply to cloth, not direct to track, and use a test piece, then wait 72 hours to see if there is a bad reaction. :-)

lol, to late i ened up putting a small amout of alcohol on a cloth and now after scraping my track and wiping it down i made lots of laps i'm good to go now thank you for your help, track is clean no melting i did test a piece of track and only waited about 20 min. i know i should of waited but i'm as bad as a kid,lol could wait to run my cars. :thumbsup:

yes this post can be delete now unless its useful for other newbies. sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and try things, I also noticed something to if i ever painted my track i think the scraping prcess would be the easy part it did not take me long at all to scrap the track then just make sure you get rid of the little tiny metal shavings off the track so it dont ruin motors ect. this is for us newbies to know,lol.

thanks again, shon:thumbsup::woohoo::wave:

Most tracks I have run on require a couple of warm up laps to run well. If it were me I would not use an exaxto or any blade to scrape your track. It will cause many small imperfections in the rail that while you can't see them your pickups will. That is why your pickups are dirty. They are not getting good contact with the rail and creating little arcs between the rail and shoes. This will leave a little piece of carbon each place it arcs. Try running your cars in the dark sometime and watch the sparks fly! Each spark adds carbon and contributes to the dirty pick ups. My reccomendation is to first apply WD-40 to a lint free rag and wipe your track down. Then use very fine sandpaper. at least 1200 grit or finer{I use 8000 when my tracks gets bad} and lightly sand the rails. Repeat the WD-40 process untill the dust has been removed. Make sure you don't soak the track, you only need to lightly wipe it. If you wipe it down after each session you will rarely ever have to "dress" your rails. Also make sure your pickups are adjusted properly. Too little tension will carbon them up more. My final suggestion is to replace the wall wart with a filtered and regulated power supply. They are a lot of money but are well worth it. Rob

Most tracks I have run on require a couple of warm up laps to run well. If it were me I would not use an exaxto or any blade to scrape your track. It will cause many small imperfections in the rail that while you can't see them your pickups will. That is why your pickups are dirty. They are not getting good contact with the rail and creating little arcs between the rail and shoes. This will leave a little piece of carbon each place it arcs. Try running your cars in the dark sometime and watch the sparks fly! Each spark adds carbon and contributes to the dirty pick ups. My reccomendation is to first apply WD-40 to a lint free rag and wipe your track down. Then use very fine sandpaper. at least 1200 grit or finer{I use 8000 when my tracks gets bad} and lightly sand the rails. Repeat the WD-40 process untill the dust has been removed. Make sure you don't soak the track, you only need to lightly wipe it. If you wipe it down after each session you will rarely ever have to "dress" your rails. Also make sure your pickups are adjusted properly. Too little tension will carbon them up more. My final suggestion is to replace the wall wart with a filtered and regulated power supply. They are a lot of money but are well worth it. Rob

hi Rob, actually my pick ups were dirty before i scraped the rails i did scrap them lightly to not harm anything, i know most guys scrap there tracks when they paint them and never had a bit of trouble, i guess its preference. now after i cleaned my track lightly with alcohol it also helped a bunch its alot cleaner and now i dont have a problem. I do know they arc, i seen lots of arcs back when i raced 1/24 scale winged cars, box stocks and group 27 on glued tracks, i have seen several motors smoked and toasted.lol.
so i know these little cars would arc to pretty good.

I am not sure about wd40 i would think because its oily and leaves a resudue it would keep adding dust to your track, but maybe it depends how you apply it.

I want to thank everyone for your help i appreciate it alot, thanks, shon:thumbsup:

If I remember correctly, I believe that alchohol can remove the oils that are in the plastic and cause brittlness in the plastic. I used WD=40 in Tucson AZ(always dusty) and never had an issue. In the summer months with the swamp coolers running I never had rusty rails.

Ampracing99, clean the track to track connections with a high number sand paper. If those connections are not pure is is like adding a resistor to that piece of track. Don't use steel wool as it will collect on you motor magnets creating havoc to the internals. Lightly slide a razor blade (not your shaving razor but the ones that have one hard side and go in the box cutters) along the tops of the rails with the power off. Vacuum the track of crap and see what happens. David

One other note.. It the track is dirty where it joins together it will cause issues.. the old T-Jet lock and joiner and old AFX track were the biggest offenders in this department..