track maintenance

[r.cprmier]

Rub a damped pad with ammonia along the rails; all you are going to do is pick up the crud.  In the fifties, there was a concoction used for this purpose that I got a whiff of, and I do remember a faint smell of ammonia.  I tried it and it does work.  The less crud on the track, the less that the wheels are going to pick up.
Alcohol is used in the same way; a damped pad.  You can use a thick piece of felt, etc for the pad.

Rich