Can you make your own scenic cement using white glue and isopropyl alcohol?
Diluting white glue with isopropyl alcohol alone usually leads to clumping of the glue. I have had success with a mixture of glue:water:alcohol in a ratio of 1:3:2. It works well for scenery and ballast.
Joe
George In Midcoast Maine, 'bout halfway up the Rockland branch
Many modelers get better results with matte medium. Dilute it between 2:1 and 4:1 with water to get the consistency you want.
--Steven Otte, Model Railroader senior associate editorsotte@kalmbach.com
G Paine50:50 white glue and water works well also
IMO, the old standard is still the best. Experience has taught me that adding alcohol to white glue makes it lumpy. I fill an old glue bottle just under half with white glue, I use Elmers, (but NOT the school glue variety as it doesnt dry as strong) then I add a drop of Dawn and fill with water. It's cheap, readily available, and works great.
I use white glue and water, too, roughly a half and half mix. Matte medium with water works, too, but it's more expensive and I don't find it in any way superior to white glue. In fact, if you need to remove ballast in order to lift or move track, you'll need to use alcohol to undo the bond.Whether you're ballasting or adding ground cover, the key to getting a good bond is sufficiently pre-wetting the arranged material, be it ballast or ground foam. I use tap water with a few drops of dish detergent, but if your water is especially hard, use distilled water (that from a dehumidifier works well as long as the collection bucket is clean) or, a more expensive alternative, alcohol. A good quality sprayer is essential for applying the wetting agent. Be generous when applying it.Here are some photos of a recent ballasting job:
Ballast applied:
Ballast groomed:
Ballast wetted:
Glue applied:
A couple of days later, after fully hardened, track back in service:
Wayne
My medium of choice is Mod-Podge. I have never used the Woodland Scenics stuff so can't compare but I did buy a $30 bottle of matte medium and saw no difference in this stuff. Mod-Podge comes in many varieties so be sure you get the matte finish.
I use the same techniques as Wayne with one exception. After the track is painted and the area vacuumed, I'll use a fairly wide brush, 5/16 or 3/8 (8-10mm) and brush the beveled edges of the cork with Mod-Podge full strength. I might wet the area lightly with wet water to get the cement to flow a little better.
Then I sprinkle ballast lightly on the glued edges and allow it to set, 24 hours.
For the final ballast gluing I dilute the Mod-Podge about 4 parts distilled water to 1 part Mod-Podge with maybe a tablespoon of alcohol. The alcohol doesn't affect the Mod-Podge like it does Elmer's.
I then go back with Wayne's method. To me this gives me a more pronounced edge and saves on ballast since it doesn't flow off the edge of the cork. It adds one more step but ballasting should never be rushed anyway.
http://www.amazon.com/Podge-CS11302-Original-16-Ounce-Finish/dp/B001IKES5O
Good luck, Ed
he asked about Scenic cement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is matt medium deluted. 1 part matt to about 6 parts water for Liquitex is about what they use but I find 1 to 4 works better.
rrebellhe asked about Scenic cement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yes, he certainly did.
Actually, he asked about making your own, and since it wasn't capitalised, he appears to be looking for a substitute:
pathman Can you make your own scenic cement using white glue and isopropyl alcohol?
gmpullmanAfter the track is painted and the area vacuumed, I'll use a fairly wide brush, 5/16 or 3/8 (8-10mm) and brush the beveled edges of the cork with Mod-Podge full strength.
I use that method where the surrounding area drops off more steeply, as it helps to hold the subsequently-applied material from slipping:
RR_MelAbove all the most important thing is your tools, using a good quality fine mist sprayer to apply the glue is very important! Good sprayer, no redos.
I used a sprayer once for applying the glue mixture when ballasting, but never again: it ruined the sprayer, put too much glue where it wasn't wanted, and not enough where it was needed. Instead, I use a dropper-type plastic bottle, like this one:
I am actually ballasting the last miles of tracks on my layout. I use white glue diluted with water 50:50. As a wetting agent I much prefer to use isopropyl alcohol diluted in water in the proportion 2 to 10 instead of dish soap in the water. With the former formula, I never leave any traces of the wetting agent on nearby scenery like roads and it appears to me that the setting time for the glue is a lot faster.
Guy
Modeling CNR in the 50's
You can use either white glue or matte medium mixed with water.
But the key is to spray the area with isopropyl alcohol first, then apply the mix.
The pre-treatment with isopropyl alcohol makes it a lot easier to disperse the mix evenly.
Rich
Alton Junction
Rich,
I recently experimented with both isopropyl alcohol and a mix of 20% isopro alcohol and 80% water. I found the later formula much more effective and, of course, 80% more economical.
I use Elmer’s glue mixed with water and a drop of soap to ease surface tension. I mix it pretty thin and them drip it on with a paintbrush. Wildly spraying glue everywhere just seems wrong. If you get it all over a structure, especially the windows you may never get it off. I just made a rock garden as landscaping for a restaurant and spraying glue would have been a giant mess for such a small area with exact boundaries.
I use the water/white glue/dish soap mixture for ground covers.
I use silicone caulk for glueing larger items down.
I use Fabri-Tac to attach items that need a strong hold and sets up fast; like the side of a mountain.
For ballast I use the water/white glue/dish soap mixture with a couple of drops of India Ink. This removes the sheen and slightly darkens the ballast.
I use straight white glue applied with an acid brush on the side of cork roadbed to keep the ballast from sliding off.
After applying the ballast and smoothing with a soft paint brush, I gently tap the rails with the paint brush handle to settle the ballast. Then I flood the ballast with the water/white glue/dish soap/India ink solution, using the drip method. The ballast settles down around the ties for a nice smooth look.
I sometimes use the ballast glue mixture on ground cover to slightly darken some areas.
South Penn
Guy Papillon Rich, I recently experimented with both isopropyl alcohol and a mix of 20% isopro alcohol and 80% water. I found the later formula much more effective and, of course, 80% more economical.
Lone Wolf and Santa Fe I use Elmer’s glue mixed with water and a drop of soap to ease surface tension. I mix it pretty thin and them drip it on with a paintbrush. Wildly spraying glue everywhere just seems wrong.
I use Elmer’s glue mixed with water and a drop of soap to ease surface tension. I mix it pretty thin and them drip it on with a paintbrush. Wildly spraying glue everywhere just seems wrong.
I apply the glue/water mix with an eye dropper but only after spraying the affected area with isopropyl alcohol. To protect the surrounding area, I hold a piece of cardboard right behind the area to be sprayed to contain the alcohol mist.
richhotrain Guy Papillon Rich, I recently experimented with both isopropyl alcohol and a mix of 20% isopro alcohol and 80% water. I found the later formula much more effective and, of course, 80% more economical. To each his own, but I think that adding alcohol to the mix is a waste of money. Water works just fine. I only use isopropyl alcohol to mist the area before applying the glue/water mix. Rich
To each his own, but I think that adding alcohol to the mix is a waste of money. Water works just fine. I only use isopropyl alcohol to mist the area before applying the glue/water mix.
Once again, it seems that my English writing is not up to the task. I wanted to write that the glue mixture is 50% white glue, 50% water. The 20% isopropyl alcoho, 80% water mix is to wet the ballast before applying the glue/water mix.
I use white glue for ballast and scenery material. 1/3rd glue, the rest water I also use 70% alcohol for a wetting agent. Dries nice and hard overnight.
Guy PapillonOnce again, it seems that my English writing is not up to the task....
Don't worry, Guy: Rich is the only one who didn't get it.
Perhaps he's drinking the alcohol instead of spraying it.
doctorwayne Guy Papillon Once again, it seems that my English writing is not up to the task.... Perhaps he's drinking the alcohol instead of spraying it. Wayne
Guy Papillon Once again, it seems that my English writing is not up to the task....
You don't drink the alcohol?
Scenic Cement = Matte Medium.
Jay
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