QUOTE: Originally posted by jacon12 QUOTE: Originally posted by timl One final trick I use to get the ballast to look more prototypical is after it dries I spray it with a diluted grimy black mixture. I use Polly Scale and alcohol in my air brush and set the spray to cover the tie widths and give it quick spray. You can use less or more to get the look that you want, but start out with a little and work your way up. Do you then immediately wipe the stray paint off the rail tops? I was just looking at my ballast and it does look awfully clean. Jarrell
QUOTE: Originally posted by timl One final trick I use to get the ballast to look more prototypical is after it dries I spray it with a diluted grimy black mixture. I use Polly Scale and alcohol in my air brush and set the spray to cover the tie widths and give it quick spray. You can use less or more to get the look that you want, but start out with a little and work your way up.
QUOTE: Originally posted by rtesta All, good advice, what i have found is that i often "paint" straight while glue or yellow wood glue to the roadbed sides. its not hard to keep it away from the tie ends, just hit the slope. i find this helps keep the ballast from rolling off and i like the slightly steeper slope i get as a result. i find that as i apply ballast on the sides i get enough between the ties (where its still dry!) so i dont even add much more, i just use a brush and work it out to its FINAL position. This is key, and has been mentioned above, but until you spend a 1/2 hour chipping stray ballast from a 3 foot length of track you dont know the meaning of the word monotonous. These little micro rocks really stick and chipping them off the rails sucks! Anyway, once i like the looks of things i proceed with wetting and gluing as mentioned by others above soaking between the ties as well as the sides and slopes to really nail it all down for all eternity. final, note, ever have to give a big dog the oral worm medications?, i save the big syringes (no - no needle attached!), they hold ALOT of diluted glue and still provide as much control as an eyedropper as long as you ease on the plunger. makes this part of the job fly... .
QUOTE: Originally posted by dgwinup Here is a method I have used for 35+ years and it has worked for me on every surface, I use DAP Weldwood Plastic Resin glue available at many home centers. It is a powder, originally formulated for glueing wood surfaces. I mix the powder with my ballast and stir it well. Apply the ballast with whatever procedure you prefer, ballast applicator, spoons, paper troughs. Use small paint brushes 1/2" or smaller to groom the ballast into position. You can use artist's brushes if you prefer. Make sure to get the ballast into it's FINAL position between the ties and away from the points of your turnout. Remember, the glue is ALREADY in the ballast, so don't leave ballast anywhere you don't want it to be! Vacuum up any out-of-place ballast. Use a fine mist spray bottle (hair spray pumps work really well, but takes a LOT of pumping!). Fill the bottle with water/detergent (couple of drops) or water/alcohol mix (up to 50/50 mix). Spray a fine mist over the ballast and continue spraying until the ballast is thoroughly soaked. I like to give all the ballast a light, fine misting to keep the ballast from blowing around, then get closer to give it a good soaking. And you're done! The amount of glue you use will be determined by your preferences. Experiment with different mix ratios until you find one that works consistently well for you. I use about 15-20% glue by volume (the powder is really fine and dense). I find I also have to re-mix the ballast/glue mixture as I work because the powder is so fine it tends to settle. The advantages to this method is that you have a LONG working time to groom your ballast and you will be spraying mostly water over the track, eliminating the need for a major track clean-up when you are done. The disadvantages are the glue is expensive to buy, although I think highly economical to use, the glue is anhydrous (it will absord moisture from the air, possibly hardening when and where you don't want it to - but we're talking DAYS here, not minutes or hours!), and too heavy a mix of glue will result in 'hard-shell' ballast, where the top layer dries hard, but underneath the shell is still loose powder and ballast. Adding more water can't correct the problem as the hard-shell won't allow water to penetrate to the lower areas! If your unused supply of glue hardens, you can break it up and use it. If you wanted to go through the trouble of collecting ballast removed from the tracks when you are making changes, you can re-use the ballast, usually with a simple application of water. I have several short pieces of ballasted track in my junk box that were removed from a layout over 25 years ago. The ballast is still glued in place around the ties and is difficult to remove. If you can get past the initial expense of the glue, I think you will find this is a great system for applying ballast. Experiment on scrap pieces of track using different mixtures of glue/ballast and water/alcohol/detergent until you're happy with the result. Darrell, stickily quiet...for now
QUOTE: Originally posted by Medina1128 Keep track of your wife's hairspray. The kind that comes in a pump bottle. When she's done with it, snag it. It sprays a finer mist than commercial pump bottles. Just make sure you get it good and clean. One trip through the dishwasher should do it. Make sure you do this when she's NOT at home. Wives take a dim view of anything other than dirty dishes going in there. In a previous life (drag racing), I found that the dishwasher was a good way to clean carburetor parts and valve covers, but a sure way to spend a couple of days arguing. But, that's a different story.
QUOTE: Originally posted by selector If you are uninterrupted, you can ballast 30 feet in about four hours (it speeds up as you get better). After you're sure the ballast is dry, run a car through the area and clear the flange-way. If the car bucks and rises under your hand, you are feeling what your loco will have to go over, too. Run the car back and forth until it is smooth. Then vacuum.
QUOTE: Originally posted by Trainnut1250 Jarrell, I take a sharp no.11 blade and flick off the unwanted ballast. Then I vacuum the heck out of it. The pieces that look like they didn't get glue maybe glued down but you cant tell until it is all dry...If not they will be vacuumed up. If the coverage is bad you can always re-apply more ballast. It took me a couple of weeks working late at night pretty steady to do my 16X4 layout. One not so funny side note. The old layoyut was Marklin three rail. The track has studs in the center for power pick up. The ballast glue effectively insulated everyone of those studs. The track looked great but not a thing would run. It was the biggest mistake I made on the railroad. I had to go back and scrape each stud by hand (probably more than a thousand total). Markiln guys (all two of you) pay attention. Don't do this!!!!
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com
QUOTE: Originally posted by Trainnut1250 Jarrell, 3. I use wet water (detergent in water) or alcohol as a wetting agent. Spray the agent up in the air and let it FALL on the ballast and roadbed like light fog or very gentle rain.. You don't want to disturb the beautiful job you did laying it out. If you spray direcly at it, the ballast will go flying everywhere. When things are wet, I go back in with the glue and soak the heck out of things (with the exception of turnouts). It will take days for the glue to dry. This is normal.
73
Bruce in the Peg