SBX So where does this leave me. I have a 5' x 10" switching layout and was going to ballast with WS grey ballast. Should I replace that with WS brown ballast?
So where does this leave me. I have a 5' x 10" switching layout and was going to ballast with WS grey ballast. Should I replace that with WS brown ballast?
Initially, my own inclination was to go with a shade of brown for the yard ballast, but if you look at the photos submitted by other members or the links that have been provided in this thread, the predominant yard ballast color seems to be a shade of gray. I also noticed in the photos and links that there seems to be a tone of what I would refer to as crushed limestone, giving the gray color a tint of whitish yellow.
So, in my case, I have decided to go with Woodland Scenics Fine Gray Ballast with some Woodland Scenics Fine Buff Ballast blended in for that limestone effect.
In you case, I can only make a suggestion, but my suggestion would be some sort of shade of gray.
Hope that helps.
Rich
Alton Junction
That's good because I have a fresh bottle of WS fine grey ballast. Saves me asking my LHS to deliver one bottle (I am shielding which means that I cannot leave my apartment!).
Long Haired DavidA.K.A. David Penningtonmain man on the Sunset and North Eastern R.R.http://www.gmrblog.co.ukfrom the UK
SBX That's good because I have a fresh bottle of WS fine grey ballast. Saves me asking my LHS to deliver one bottle (I am shielding which means that I cannot leave my apartment!).
SBXI have a 5' x 10" switching layout and was going to ballast with WS grey ballast. Should I replace that with WS brown ballast?
I would suggest avoiding the Wodland Scenics products entirely. I don't care for how they look on industry track, and I very much dislike how they are to spread and glue compared to real rock. I haven't seen much prototype ballast that looks anything like WS brown, at least not on any industry spurs.
DSC00358 by wp8thsub, on Flickr
DSC00358
Industry track often has much finer ballast than mainlines. It also tends to vary from place to place, so using one brand and color may be unrealistic.
The above tracks on the BNSF in Lamar, CO show variation from a gray on the main, to mostly dirt on the spurs. Fine sand can be had as play sand, paver material, or products intended for other uses at a home center, or you can dig it up yourself. It can be mixed here and there with ballast from other sources to provide variation. Note above how the basic ground cover around the tracks blends with the spurs.
Cenex-Fuel Spots by wp8thsub, on Flickr
Cenex-Fuel Spots
Here the industry tracks have a similar look, with the spurs blending with the sand ground cover around them and the main track and siding using other ballast (from Scenic Express) with more uniform color, plus a slightly coarser texture.
Rob Spangler
wp8thsub I would suggest avoiding the Wodland Scenics products entirely. I don't care for how they look on industry track, and I very much dislike how they are to spread and glue compared to real rock. I haven't seen much prototype ballast that looks anything like WS brown, at least not on any industry spurs. Industry track often has much finer ballast than mainlines. It also tends to vary from place to place, so using one brand and color may be unrealistic.
But, I'm not so sure that Woodland Scenics ballast ought to be avoided entirely, particularly when looking for some sort of material for yard ballasting where you simply need a covering over essentially a flat surface.
I have found in researching ballast that Woodland Scenics has a more extensive selection of ballast colors in their product line than does Scenic Express which offers mostly light gray and dark gray in its product line. Arizona Rock & Mineral does seem to offer more different color ballast in its product line, so maybe that is a better option than Scenic Express if you want more choice of color.
I do agree with wp8thsub that Woodland Scenics Brown is not a realistic looking color for yards. However, Woodland Scenics Dark Brown is not all that bad looking, especially if it is blended with Woodland Scenics Cinders which creates a better look of something like a dirt surface.
wp8thsub Here the industry tracks have a similar look, with the spurs blending with the sand ground cover around them and the main track and siding using other ballast (from Scenic Express) with more uniform color, plus a slightly coarser texture.
I haven't found that Scenic Express or Woodland Scenics has anything to offer in HO scale to create a believable ballasted yard. The closest that I have come is a blend of Woodland Scenics Fine Gray and Buff Ballast.
To create a level surface for the yard ballast, I have literally sprinkled the ballast over the entire yard surface with my fingers to avoid unintended mounds when simply pouring the ballast out of the bottle or spooning it on the surface. Then I heavily spray the the entire area with 70% isopropyl alcohol and apply a matte medium glue mix to secure it.
You're right, Rich, getting ground cover, especially ballast or dirt, level on flat, open, expanses is difficult. Sometimes I do a fairly thin application, wet it, and apply the glue...
...then come back after it's set, and add light second application to fill-in the low spots...
This empty lot, destined to serve a team track...
...looked like a real mess initially...
...but after it dried (it took several days), I applied more very fine limestone "gravel" (it was actually limestone dust), along with some powdered dirt, again, so fine that it could be called dust, then added some finely-ground foam and some static grass, and it turned out, I think, not too badly...
Wayne
Even a yard track will look reasonably spiffy when first put in, that being said, washes using a multitude of colours will age and pollute it in a hurry. Sprinkling tile grout and other fine powders before hand also add to the affect. Tile grout makes great yard muck.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
doctorwayne You're right, Rich, getting ground cover, especially ballast or dirt, level on flat, open, expanses is difficult. Sometimes I do a fairly thin application, wet it, and apply the glue... ...then come back after it's set, and add light second application to fill-in the low spots... This empty lot, destined to serve a team track... ...looked like a real mess initially... ...but after it dried (it took several days), I applied more very fine limestone "gravel" (it was actually limestone dust), along with some powdered dirt, again, so fine that it could be called dust, then added some finely-ground foam and some static grass, and it turned out, I think, not too badly... Wayne
Having sprinkled the yard ballast with my fingers to create an even, level look and glued it in place, I plan to go back and add light second application to provide a finished look.
Your application of very fine limestone "gravel" (i.e., limestone dust) interests me. Is there a hobby-related source for the purchase of limestone dust?
richhotrain doctorwayne I applied more very fine limestone "gravel" (it was actually limestone dust), along with some powdered dirt, again, so fine that it could be called dust Wayne Your application of very fine limestone "gravel" (i.e., limestone dust) interests me. Is there a hobby-related source for the purchase of limestone dust? Rich
doctorwayne I applied more very fine limestone "gravel" (it was actually limestone dust), along with some powdered dirt, again, so fine that it could be called dust Wayne
I applied more very fine limestone "gravel" (it was actually limestone dust), along with some powdered dirt, again, so fine that it could be called dust
https://www.makeyourown.buzz/calcium-carbonate-ground-limestone/?gclid=CjwKCAjwq832BRA5EiwACvCWsZZ6UFFJG6PTCeJ2-_tsNtUcQpbKiM-ArfdolOgero9_MPBIHK72gRoCMAQQAvD_BwE
I have no idea of the size or grade of this "dust", but it does interest me as a way to add accent to the traditional ballast for yard ballasting.
richhotrain...Your application of very fine limestone "gravel" (i.e., limestone dust) interests me. Is there a hobby-related source for the purchase of limestone dust?...
Sorry for the late reply, Rich, but I attempted, over four hours-or-so last night to compose a reply, but the screen disappeared several times, and most of the rest of the time was frozen. I could get a sentence or two in, then it locked-up again. Of course, photobucket still has a few issues to improve, so I managed, at that time, to include only one photo.
Anyway, I'll show you the three grades of limestone, then, if I can continue, will fill in with some related info.
The good news is that the limestone is not a hobby product. I got mine at a local lumberyard - don't recall the price, but it wasn't outrageous, for three 50lb. bags of limestone screenings. Likely cheaper than three bags of HO scale real rock ballast. This is the stuff one would use to lay brick or concrete paver-stones.
However, running it through a seive (I used four or five, with each successive one finer than the previous) yields various useful sizes.
Here's the coarsest - good shape and colour, but likely suitable only for rock-fill in low-lying areas due to its size - the guy in the container is HO scale for comparison....
Here's the size I use as ballast...
Unfortunately, there was a lot of really fine stuff in with it, and I couldn't find a seive with a fine-enough mesh to let the dust portion through, and retain the ballast. I finally 'phoned my friend in Ohio, who had given me some ballast made from the same material, to ask how he sorted the dust from the ballast. The answer was...a spatter guard, used atop a frying pan full of bacon to keep the stove from being covered in grease...I guess you could lick it off, if you didn't have a spatter guard...after all. it's bacon!
Anyway, I quickly ran off to Canadian Tire (who'd-a-thunk-it?) and picked one up. Here's the mostly-dust portion from a bag of screenings...
The one caveat when doing this screening is to do it outdoors. Engrossed in seive management and quality control, I never noticed, as I worked in the layout room, how much dust it created in the air, and spent several days later cleaning the entire layout and layout room.
I'm pretty sure that I included some of the dust portion on the track in the lower left in the photo below, along with some real dirt (literally in powder-form), ground foam, and static grass...
I'll end this for now, before everything gets squirrely again and freezes-up.
Thanks for that reply, Wayne. I might try some limestone dust.