# I'm new! ..and poor!



## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Hi guys, I inherited a Bachman G scale train set a year or two ago and didn't do much to it, just took it out of the box put it all together and discovered it did'nt work.. Well just recently my interest in garden railroading has spiked and I want to get into it but money is an issue and I'd probably need to get this train I have working. I hooked it all up again today, the tracks are steel I believe, they have black spots on them (appears to be corrosion but idk) when I cranked up the power, the locomotive kicked forward, stopped and sat there. The light on the locomotive stayed on a couple seconds after it stopped, but it was very dim. What should I go about doing? I'm new to all this so break it down for me please! If needed I can try to get some pics up.. If I can even post pics in this site.. Lol. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!


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## jbwilcox (Jan 2, 2008)

You have to be a First Class member to post pictures. _(Not the case. All you need is a place on line to store your photos. Check your ISP to see if they provide space, or use a service like Photobucket, etc. See note below. - Mod)_

Even then it can be tricky until you catch on to how to do it.

But 1St Class is probably worth the 20 dollars a year.

I am sure you can get plenty of help from the experienced people here. 

John


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Let's go back to the basics. 
We're gonna start by testing for the problem. 
Get a short bit of speaker wire, or a couple small loose wires. strip both ends and attach the wires (one to each DC terminal, of course) to the transformer so you have the free ends for test leads. Gently flip the locomotive over and try touching these leads to the front or rear drive wheels and see if it runs. Depending upon if it does, or doesn't, will give you your logical next step. 

The track might well be the corroded enough to cause your issues, and it will be useless outdoors anyway..... but let's get the loco question settled first before you spend any money.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Thanks for replay! I am already glad I came here first, I will do that right now. I will let you know what happens momentaraly.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Well.. bad news for me I guess.. I did exactly what you said and hooked some speaker wire to the DC terminal and touched the other end to the loco's wheels.. The same thing happened.. It kicked a bit, made a humming noise, and acted like it was trying to do somthing and then went quite. I repeated this severl times, the only differeance is that it didn't kick the other times, just made a humming noise and went silent.


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By jbwilcox on 13 Jul 2012 12:03 PM 
You have to be a First Class member to post pictures. Even then it can be tricky until you catch on to how to do it.

But 1St Class is probably worth the 20 dollars a year.

I am sure you can get plenty of help from the experienced people here. 

John


You DO NOT have to be a 1st class member to post photos! You need a place to store the photo "on-line" and you just insert a URL code to point at that ON-LINE storage place.

Being a 1st class member provides you with a very convenient place to store your photos, on-line, so that you can use some tools in the tool bar to access those photos easily and not have to remember the simple code to insert the URL manually, you just pick the photo from a gallery presented by the tool and it gets inserted with the proper code to make it show in the missive.

If you store the image on some other on-line facility then you have to copy and paste the URL of the file into the text/body of your missive and then remember to put the proper text/code around the URL so that the system will go fetch that image from where you have stored it. It has to be a place that is On-Line so that anybody can access it, if you keep it on your own computer (unless it is a server and has a URL permanently assigned) then when you turn your computer off, it would not be able to be accessed (and most personal computers do not have a permanent URL assigned and so could not be "found" anyway).

You can also use that same 1st class member on-line storage to post photos in other forums (other than MLS, like Trains dot com) or to allow people to get to files you store in your 1st class on-line storage place (for sharing spreadsheets or text files, etc. as well as photos/drawings).

Sorry, but since I am a 1st class member, I cannot remember the simpleton codes to bracket the URL to post photos, but if you do a search of this site I am sure you will find thread after thread where it is explained... or just keep looking at this thread and I am sure someone will explain it or point specifically at one of the threads where it is explained.


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## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Posted By Newbie94 on 13 Jul 2012 12:19 PM 
Well.. bad news for me I guess.. I did exactly what you said and hooked some speaker wire to the DC terminal and touched the other end to the loco's wheels.. The same thing happened.. It kicked a bit, made a humming noise, and acted like it was trying to do somthing and then went quite. I repeated this severl times, the only differeance is that it didn't kick the other times, just made a humming noise and went silent. 
Don't give up yet--could be a bunch of things

First, how old is it? Was it run a lot before you got it? 

Could be dirty wheels, or dirty power pickup. Could also be it needs to be cleaned and lubed


I would go to home depot and get a can of CRC 2-26. it's in the electrical section. It cleans corrosion and also lubricates. Spray some on the wheels and wipe them off. try spraying some around the axles as well


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## Dave Meashey (Jan 2, 2008)

Does the locomotive hum or does the power pack hum? Bachmann starter set packs are "just able" to do the job. A very small amount of resistance can cause their circuit breakers to "kick." How clean are the drive wheels on your locomotive? If they look dirty (I know it hasn't been run, but metal can oxidize just while it is stored - depending on conditions like dampness.), you may want to take some cotton swabs and rubbing alcohol, and try cleaning the drive wheels. 

I am going to be offline for the next 8 days, but thought I'd suggest that approach as well. Others here should be able to give you additional guidance. 

Best of luck with your ailing locomotive, 
David Meashey


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Update: also when the loco goes silent i beleive i hear a click noise coming from the DC transformer.. I may try the test with another transformer I have from a past HO scale layout I had.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

More details on the train set: The name of the set is Blue Comet: Atlantic City Express. The loco is a model 4-6-0 Steam engine w/ tender. It also came with two passenger carriges and track. To find the last time it was run I would have to contact the previous owners which I wouldn't know where to start for that.. I can't seem to find a manufacturing date but it surely can't be more than 10 years old..


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## Torby (Jan 2, 2008)

Those little 4-6-0's usually run very nicely.


Um, Check that nothing is jambing up the rods. I once had the plastic insert on one of the drive wheels fall out. There's just a screws holding the rods to the wheels. If you don't see anything obvious, try taking the rods off and see if it works without them. Then we just have to get them put back on right.


Turn the loco over and look between the rear drivers. You should see a rubber plug and a bump to clear a gear. If not, it's a really old one that may not work well.


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

It could be a multitued of things...
Is there a club around you? If so try hooking up with them, maybe they will have pitty on a newbie..usually there you will find someone that is willing to help for free, and help you get started...

OR take it to as hobby shop and have them problem solve it, which will cost money to do..to me it sounds if the motor hums..maybe the motor is siezed/shot, but can't tell.

Sometimes if they haven't been run for quite sometime they tend to stick..a good bathing in WD-40, by bathing I mean lubricating somewhat generously, to free it up..if that works place it on a piece of track, (on rollers), or on its side with power to the wheels and let it run for a spell..forward, then backwards, to get it back used to running..sometimes the wheels being out of quarter will not let the wheels turn....numerus issues to problem solve.

Try hooking up with a main stream large scale group, join if you have to, then pick their brain and learn how to problem solve them...that will save you tons of money!

Bubba


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Thanks for the Suggestions. Joining a club would be a GREAT and very appreciated thing I wish I could do but there are none that I know of anywhere local to me. I live in Deep East Texas. Nearest hobby shop Would probably be in Shreveport, LA (Hour and a half away) Theres a Hobby Lobby in Nacadoches, TX (45mins-1hr away) but they would not have a the slightest clue of anything, theit trains section is a measly half isle and its all HO scale.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

I took a good look at the underneath like you said. I couldn't find anything out of place. Only thing I saw of intrest is some metal looking rods poking out of the innerds of the loco touching the insides of the rearest wheel and the first big wheel on both sides. It looks like these are meant to be hear but I have no clue at all! What do you think?


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## lownote (Jan 3, 2008)

Sounds like you are describing the power pickup brushes? 

Take a look at George Schreyer's page on the Bachmann 4-6-0--he has all you'd ever want to know about them

http://www.girr.org/girr/tips/tips1/big_hauler_tips.html


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Update: I dug up some old DC transformers from a old HO layout I had. (An ancient looking Model Power and a Life-Like) When I pressed the wires to the wheels using the Model Power with Full thottle it created a very faint humming and didnt stop until i removed the wire. When I used the Life-Like, The results were better. I pressed the wire against the wheel on full thottle forward. It kicked a tad and hummed, the light was on also but it was pretty dim. I switched it to full throttle reverse and touched the wires back. It kicked the other way and hummed just like it did in forward.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

I'm going to take the bottom cover off to reveal the insides and see if I can't see whats causing the problem..


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Update: Still using the Life-Like DC transformer as it has givin me best results. I didn't take off the bottem cover because I probably would have done more harm than good.. I kept repeating the test I previously did (Touching the live wires to the wheels and watching what happens.) Now it turns about a half revolution to a full revolution and stops and hums, when the wheels are turning the headlight gets bright.


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## blueregal (Jan 3, 2008)

Talk or email Noel Wilson, he can have you send it to him, and he will fix it and have it running in an hour. I sent him an Accucraft K-27 and it was dead on arrival, and he had it up and running in 45minutes. Guys a whizz at fixin. Email him through here or I will tell him about you and you two may be able to get together. Regal 


p.s. he''s on Livestream, and Google too. Check him out 

http://www.livestream.com/noelw/


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

It sounds like 1. the motor and gears should be OK, and 2. you have a major bind somewhere. 
I'd start by making certain the wheel centers aren't loose and interfering with the siderods, as previously suggested. Then I'd look to make sure there isn't carpet fibers or something else wound around the axles. Then I'd probably look at the crosshead assemblies to make certain there wasn't something jammed there.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Nothing is visible wrong from the outside so I guess I'm gunna have to take this thing apart and disect it.. Hooray.. I just hope I don't break anything..


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Eureka! After eating some quick pizza rolls I went back to check out the loco and noticed the rearest right side wheel was poking far out and crooked.. It wasn't earlier.. I pushed back in to place and tested it again and... It works like a charm now!


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## Semper Vaporo (Jan 2, 2008)

Are you sure the power supplies are up to providing the current to drive the motor? An HO supply is pretty small to be driving a G engine. The symptoms you have described are that the motor is drawing too much current, which it will do if not turning and that is sucking all the current from the supply such that there is little left over to run the lightbulb (thus it is dim). 

The bulb will brighten when the motor starts to spin because a motor creates what is called Back EMF which reduces the current draw allowing more to reach the lightbulb.

Have you tried to help the wheels move while applyiing power? This may help loosen things up to the point where the available current can sustain the motion... at least for a little while.

Granted, if it is just sticky from sitting a long time then it might be helped by a good cleaning of lint and congealed grease and then the motor will move easier and will draw less current and thus the supplies will be able to sustain the current without shutting down with their internal circuit breaker. And, of course, all the things suggested here about binding or something jamming in the cross heads or interfering with movement should also be sought out and repaired.

I'd also recommend AGAINST using WD-40 as a lubricant... it will work to remove sticky grease and such, but MUST be wiped off before it dries or it will leave a sticky residue that repels grease and oil which increases friction instead of reducing it. It must be removed from surfaces that actually touch, so you have to pull axles out of bearings and wipe down the axle that is normally inside the bearing and the inner surface of the bearing to get rid of the stuff. I used to like WD-40, but the more I see people using it the more trouble I have to correct the problems it causes. My car doors were "lubricated" with it and now the passenger door won't close without slamming it hard; it just stops moving if there is not force being applied by hand. I cannot get the hinges far enough apart to get the pins out to clean the sticky off of them so I am applying lithium grease weekly in the hopes it will eventually work its way in and releave the problem, so far it has "helped" but not by much.

Make sure when you reassembe the gear box that you put the appropriate grease on the gears and axles. The gears are probably plastic and the grease must be plastic compatible or they may get brittle and crack easily.

I'd suggest before you go much further that you get a known good higher power G scale type power supply and try it. The engine may need additional power to overcome the sticktion caused by non-use and once that is loosened up it may work better on a the original supply.


And I see no one has brought up the reason the motor "hums"... it is because it doesn't know the words!


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Its working now on the Life-Like transformer. It goes a good pace on straights and pretty slow on curves, Ill hook up the bachman power supply back up and see what it does now.


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Well, that's one crisis solved  On to the next. If you're going outside you'll need to get different track (the stamped tin stuff rusts out real quick), and a bit heavier transformer. 

BTW the galloping on the straights and drag in the curves is typical of the B'mann sets. Brass track and broader curves help. 

Since you're "poor", this article might come in handy as you progress.... 
http://www.the-ashpit.com/mik/budget.html


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Ok so I hooked up the original Bachman power supply and it worked good for a little bit running at a speed that looked normal but after about 30seconds of doing great it stopped. I put the throttle on zero and let it sit and then cranked it back up, it went a few feet and stopped again. Someone earlier said it has breakers or somthing that trip very easily. Thats probably what the problem is now.


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Transformer suggestion: I use the Crest/Aristocraft 5400 (the same one that comes in the Aristo sets). It works reallyy good on smaller layouts and isn't too expensive. It has a built in soft start/stop that partly imitates the mass of a real train. 
The only "problem" is it uses pulse width control (rather than just changing the voltage like analog) which some sound cards don't like. OTOH motors run cooler, and it's more tolerant of dirty track


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

I've been looking at your site, you have a great RR and I someday hope mine is as good as yours! I enjoyed reading about the history of your railroad and it's defenatly got character! So back to mine, All I've got is a train.. I still need tracks and a transformer.. How much do you think enough track to start an outdoor layout and a transformer?


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## alecescolme (Dec 20, 2010)

An alternative idea for outdoors... 
I use aluminum rail (much cheaper than brass) to save costs and battery power on-board- saves cleaning track ect. Simple manual control could be used to avoid the costs of R/C. 

I make my own switches/turnouts to greatly reduce costs also. 

Alec


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

So would traditional analog control work on aluminum tracks?


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## alecescolme (Dec 20, 2010)

Can do, but you would need to clean the rails more often and watch the rail connections for oxidation. 

Alec


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## NTCGRR (Jan 2, 2008)

LOL 
define poor. 

I sold alot of stuff to get into this hobby once I decided it was for me.


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

Posted By Newbie94 on 13 Jul 2012 01:46 PM 
Thanks for the Suggestions. Joining a club would be a GREAT and very appreciated thing I wish I could do but there are none that I know of anywhere local to me. I live in Deep East Texas. Nearest hobby shop Would probably be in Shreveport, LA (Hour and a half away) Theres a Hobby Lobby in Nacadoches, TX (45mins-1hr away) but they would not have a the slightest clue of anything, theit trains section is a measly half isle and its all HO scale.


Oppsi! Then the next best thing is pick minds here. One suggestion, take pics of the steps you take, if you decide to do it yourself..cheeper, for future reference so you can go back to them in a year or when ever something happens, or you want to change something. 
Bubba


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

Well I'm a high school student (Senior) got one year left and then I'm leaving for the army. I don't have alot of money at the time being because all I do is work at my school doing odd jobs.. I will have about 500 bucks in my bank account after this weeks pay gets put in.. So pretty dang poor! I'm not sure when I will start this project or where I'll be when I do start it.. But I will start it.. Sometime.. ha


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## noelw (Jan 2, 2008)

Hi Guy.. Glad you got it going.. Most of the time as a newbie...I wouldn't do anything to it now.. Get ahold of some one local club or someone around you that has Garden R.R. trains of check in to a hobby shop to find out where to get ahold of a guy. 
Most likely the grease harden up and is now hard chunks from old age and if keep playing with it, it can split or mess up the gear or nothing else burn up the motor. If you know about taking these big huller apart then probably no problem to do an inspections and then you know where the problem is. Just our two cents worth before you mess it up with trial and error. 

Add.. that you might ck the lub on it and make sure the grease did not harden up.

Glad to have you with us. 
This is the place "MLS.com " to get quick ans. 








Heres to ya........


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## Madstang (Jan 4, 2008)

Well where ever you start it you can check out clubs near by, or hobby shops, but they will charge you. Usually at a club someone will be willing to help you fix it for nothing...If you were close by I would help you do it.

Anyway just pick brains where you end up or here....

Bubba


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## jaug (Oct 18, 2011)

The clicking noise you are hearing from the power supply is the over load protection working, it is a bi-metal type of circuit breaker and it is shutting of power probably due to a high current draw when you touch the wires to the locomotive wheels. This may be due to the binding of gears or components in the dirve line it may also be a short circuit in the loco. Sounds like you are about to get a hands on indoctronation in the wonderful world of trouble shooting.


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## jaug (Oct 18, 2011)

Well I don't know how that posted 4 times, sorry about that. Anyway just take it a step at a time and follow the advice you have received so far, checking the mechanical areas for binding you can see if that fails to resolve the problem you may have to pop a few screws out and look inside but relax it's not rocket science and you should be able to fix the problem.


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## jdmitchell (Jan 2, 2008)

Where in Deep East Texas are you. I'm in Jasper and am a member of Houston Area G Gaugers, in Houston. It's not a bad drive once a month to the meetings.


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Here's another page that might come in handy as you continue your journey:
http://www.the-ashpit.com/mik/tips2.html


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

I live Near Center, TX in a town named Shelbyville. Shreveport, LA would probably be the closest big city. Its about a 3 hour drive toHouston from where I am.


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## rdamurphy (Jan 3, 2008)

I'm kind of surprised no one mentioned that Bachmann locomotives come with a Lifetime warranty. If you send it back to Bachmann, they'll either repair it or replace it. 

Robert


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## Mik (Jan 2, 2008)

Posted By rdamurphy on 14 Jul 2012 08:12 PM 
I'm kind of surprised no one mentioned that Bachmann locomotives come with a Lifetime warranty. If you send it back to Bachmann, they'll either repair it or replace it. 

Robert 
Last time i checked that only applied to the original purchaser, and the service fee ($25 _I think_?) for warranty work was about the same price as a used bug mauler..... So if it's something simple, you're probably ahead if you can fix it yourself. And ESPECIALLY if you've done any customizing.


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## Newbie94 (Jul 13, 2012)

My train is completely stock and running now, someone said that chunks of dried grease may be in the Loco and I have the risk of breaking gears if I continue to run it. I'm no grease expert but the visible grease on the loco is still soft and functioning.. My mains foucus now is going to be finding a good bit of track I can use outside to start my layout.. I'm going to need to find it for dirt cheap on my current budget.. Someone said I might need a new transformer but I will worry about that later when I expand as I'm not going to veer away from thoe basic look in my original plan. (if you've seen the how-to video by garden railroading magazine, that's how I'm going to model mine) small and simple for now, as it will probably be temporary if I start in the next year.


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## Tnwhite (Jul 10, 2012)

Caboose Hobbies has some great prices on consignment LGB 16000 track right now, it's where I got some of mine: 
http://www.caboosehobbies.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=207715 

Comes out to about $9.10 each. Cheapest I could find anywhere else was $12.

Forgot to add: 16 LGB 16000 pieces will make a complete circle, but only 12 come in a box.


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## FlagstaffLGB (Jul 15, 2012)

Dear Deep East, Texas....whoa, and I thought I was off the beaten path. I only found one railroad club that is listed and it was in Commerce, Texas. Another suggestion, you might want to get someone's email address and see if you can take some pictures (even some email quality video) of what you are doing with the engine testing and send it to one of these guys who can examine in and see if there is something obvious. Not sure how adventure-some you might be, but stripping the engine down carefully to just the motor (all the decoration removed -shell) and then looking for the binding element might be the best method of see that the engine at least works. I like to use the wife's muffin tins, old reused butter cups and mark everything as I take it apart. If you have that digital camera, you can even take pictures at critical stages so you can remember how to put it back together. I find a #11 Exacto knife blade and a small pair of tweazers are great for removing anything from around the wheels and axle areas....used that method for fixing vacuum cleaner beater brushes as well...Ha. A light sanding of the rails (steel wool, homemade sanding block, even a dry brillo pad) should clean up the steel rails. Looking forward to hearing how this works out for you.


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