Just got the Dec issue, and looked at the cover. "Realistic winter scenery"....
When I was a teenager, I had a 4x8 layout in my bedroom, O-27. At some point, I made it a winter scene. Snow provided by my mom's laundry detergent flakes.
A word to the wise: don't do that. When i took it down, I remember spitting soap-tasted bubbles for *days*.
and until I read your posting I had entirely forgotten about laundry detergent soap flakes, which my mom also used. Do they even still make them? Going to Google Images, I see that I remember her having Ivory, Lux, and Duz.
Dave Nelson
My wife uses some sort of disolvable pads. There are about 2/3 the width of an index card.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
whitrothSnow provided by my mom's laundry detergent flakes.
Glad your mom didn't reach for the old-fashioned standby!
Flakes by Edmund, on Flickr
Cheers, Ed
OMG
snjroyOMG
There were articles and what Gerry Leone calls "kinks" (hints and tips) in the early days, using asbestos for MR. I had friends in college, whose summer jobs in the early 70's was applying asbestos to pipes.
Asbestos was pretty much a miracle material when first used. The lung hazards take a long time to develop, so it seemed like the perfect thing to keep you safe from fire. It could easily be made into many forms. It was cheap. ANd it really did have some amazing insulating properties. Everything from steam/hot water pipes in your house to locomotive boilers were insulated with asbestos.
Stuff like those flakes, and the powered form to mix with cement, are the really dangerous kinds - it easily fragments into the tiny slivers that get inhaled and penetrate the lung tissue.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
As I do this house remodel, my wife is concerned about asbestos and lead paint.
I tell her that since the house was built in 1988 that is not a concern, but she still worries.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Asbestos!
As a lad in the UK most of the boys (at one time or another. Sometimes two or three times) received a 'Chemist Set' for Christmas. By the middle of January the piece of asbestos had broken and was mostly dust. A few inhalations.
Not affected me though. I say. It's not affected me though. I say. It's not affected me though. I say. It's not --------------.
I am looking at a way to have a snow scene at Sovereign Street.
David
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought
NorthBritI am looking at a way to have a snow scene at Sovereign Street.
I'd enjoy making part of the layout a snow scene, but later when I get tired of snow, I'd want an easy way to clean it up. I'm afraid the snow would either be permanent, or lots of things will get ruined during the cleanup.
If anyone discovers a way to make it temporary and easily changed, I hope the secret will be shared.
Overmod, I must have missed those threads.
York1 John
I've done a bunch of temporary snow scenes over the years, used cooking flour to act as snow. Relatively cheap, nice and fine, and cleans up with a vacuum cleaner. I've used a small brush to apply snow to trucks and chasis of rolling stock. Six of my snow scenes have appeared on the cover model magazines.
Bob Boudreau
CANADA
Visit my model railroad photography website: http://sites.google.com/site/railphotog/
I use the WS snow. As Selector's picture show, it does a great job and is easy to clean up.
I used to set up a Christmas layout in the living room for our family Christmas Eve get together, but haven't in years.
Mike.
My You Tube
LastspikemikeRather than flour you might get better results using talcum powder.
Probably not a good choice.
There have been numerous reports of health hazards with talcum powder. Why risk your lungs? Plus, clean up work could easily put more powder floating in the air. Also, it would seem that any fine powder sprinkled on the layout could find its way into the gear lubrication on your locomotives.
My opinion only, YMMV.
SeeYou190 As I do this house remodel, my wife is concerned about asbestos and lead paint. I tell her that since the house was built in 1988 that is not a concern, but she still worries. -Kevin
Having actually read a good portion of the original asbestos litigation transcripts, and having been a home inspector, and a commercial construction project manager, tell the wife Sheldon said that your house is safe from both lead and asbestos.
There is no known or proven case of ANY person in North America being harmed by asbestos used in a residence by simply living in that house. It was used in lots of products, but in houses, only the pipe insulation was truely dangerous.
In most products, asbestos and lead are like sugar in a cake, they can't get out on their own. Even construction work is not likely to release much if any asbestos assuming it is even present.
By the mid 70's it was gone from stuff like floor tile, floor tile ashesive, fiber cement shingles (that's what they are really called, they are NOT "asbestos" shingles). Asbestos was just used as a fire proof binder for the portland cement they are made of.
Lead in paint, often only in glossy oil based trim enamel before 1978. And then only harmful if in disrepair......don't eat the paint chips, clean the house, you will be fine.
Sheldon