Ballast gluing technique

[Blind Bruce]

I have read several posts about gluing ballast but none of them explain exactly how to apply the glue. Somehow, the glue needs to get between the ties. I use code 83 flextrack on cork roadbed.
Can someone help?
BB





bb

[n2mopac]

Personally, I wet the ballast with a 50/50 mix of water and isorobyl alcohol, then dribble a mix of 1 part white glue to 3 parts water. I apply both directly between the rails with a pipette, allowing it to flow under the rails out to the ballast along the sides. Do this SLOWLY as doing it too fast can wash your ballast down and misshape it.

Ron

[selector]

Some very experienced modelers pre-wet the ballast, after it has been painstakingly shaped along a section, with water and isopropyl acohol in a 50/50 mix. Virtually everyone then does the following: mix white or carpenter's glue and clean water, plus about two drops of liquid dish detergent, at a ratio somewhere near 50/50. Make sure it is gently, but thoroughly, mixed. Then, either spray it, or dribble it, onto the ballast. If sprayed, you'll have to wipe the rails, and run the risk of dislodging some of that carefully arranged ballast. If you wait until the glue is dry, your rail cleaning will be a real pain...let me tell ya. Many use an eye-dropper, or a small baster, to adminsiter the solution to where it is needed, and this will reduce your track cleaning hugely. But, it is a somewhat slower delivery.

Most will thoroughly soak the ballast until it just begins to run out the sides. That will dry to a nice hard mass. I spray, but just enough to wet the top centimeter, or so. This leaves a hard shell that still does a good job keeping the track and ballast put, and also eases my work if I change my mind about the track plan.

I hope this helps a bit.

[Blind Bruce]

From what you two said, I have another question. Do you place the ballast on the track before wetting it with the various solutions? if so, how is this best done? I have never ballasted before.
BB

[bikerraypa]

Hi Bruce:

You'll want to place the ballast before wetting and gluing it. Pour it on a teaspoon at a time, and spread it out with a small paintbrush. Make sure to get it all off the tops of the ties and the inside of the rails. Also, don't put it in or around any turnout points. Once the ballast is placed, use a spray bottle to mist everything with rubbing alcohol. For glue, you can either use Woodland Scenics "Scenic Cement," or a 50/50 mix of white glue and water with a tiny bit of rubbing alcohol added. Apply the glue with an eyedropper, and really soak the heck out of everything. Keep the spray bottle handy and mist everything with alcohol every now and again - the alcohol is a wetting agent that will help the glue better penetrate the ballast.

I was at a show last month where a gentleman named Bob Meier gave a seminar on ballasting track. He provided us with a very concise, detailed handout on the process. If you'd like a copy, email me and I will send you a PDF of it.

Ray out.

[Anonymous]

I make a line of white glue along the top of the outsides of the ties, then using an artists stiff bristle brush and repeated dippings into a glass of water, scrub the solution into ties and side of roadbed. Sprinkle on dry ballast from a spoon and before it dries use finger to rub off tops of ties just leaving them exposed. The center is filled with dry ballast and then using a soft bristle brush move ballast to fill in between ties and not cover tops of ties. Dribble the aforementioned glue on to this area. You may also dribble some over the outside edges also. Minimal cleaning of rails after dry as you will get a little glue on tops. It is still a painstaking job but one that must be done.

[Anonymous]

what I do is fill a water bottle sprayer with water and a few drops of alchohol or liquid detergent. Then I mix water with elmers white glue 50/50 and use a dropper to put the glue where I need it. This allows me to control the glue more.
Hope This Helps

[Anonymous]

I read in a different thread about the use of latex caulk adhesive for laying track. If I choose to do this, will the ballast stick to the caulk after it has dried or should I try to ballast before the caulk dries and then add the water/glue mixture after the caulk dries?

[Seamonster]

I soak the ballast first with a spray of water with a few drops of dish detergent in it. On the first couple of passes I spray it up into the air and let it gently rain down on the ballast in a mist so as not to disturb it. Once it's wet, I can spray it directly. Then I apply the glue--a 50/50 mix of white wood glue and water with a few drops of dish detergent in it. Pre-wetting makes the glue soak right in. To apply the glue, I use an old glue bottle (they get used up fast gluing down ballast and scenery) and dribble it along the ballast. I also use 60 ml and 10 ml syringes, the kind designed for use with catheters, not needles, to apply both water and glue. The 10 ml syringes are good for getting the glue into tight spots. When the caps are put on the syringes, the glue will keep in them for a very long time without hardening.
...Bob

[selector]

Some caulks never really 'dry', and some foam-friendly adhesives take several days, depending on ambient humidity. To answer your question, captain-3, once the subject material feels completely un-tacky to your fingers (better a Kleenex or cotton ball), you can place your ballast with impunity.

If, by your question, you mean will the glue-soaked ballast stick to any adhesive used to anchor the track, the answer is, absolutely....and to the track and ties, and road bed, etc. with which it makes contact. That's the whole idea, to bind it in place.

Not sure if I gave what you needed.

[Anonymous]

I spray the ballast with water/drop of soap, The glue mixture I use a bottle of Elmers with the orange top for the mix and run it right over the ties and ballast,

[RedLeader]

This is the best way to do it:
http://www.fcsme.org/bcarl/id124.htm