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Model Forum / General / Railroads / February 2009A better way to ballast
Since the subject of ballasting came up here, I thought I'd give folks here the privilege of hearing my expert take on this subject (not!). Forgive me if you've heard this from me here before. I think I have a superior way to do ballasting, although it does take a lot longer. The commonly-accepted way to apply ballast is to put the ballast in place, then glue it in place by basically drenching it in dilute glue. I don't like this; it does work to secure the ballast, but it leaves it covered with, well, a layer of glue. What I do is to apply glue (somewhat diluted) to the area I want to ballast, the sides of the track and between the ties. Then I dump ballast over these areas, completely covering them. After the glue dries, I then remove the ballast. How do you do that? you ask. Glad to answer: I vacuum them up, using an inline filter of my own design connected to the vacuum hose, with a piece of nylon hoisery inside to trap the ballast. It usually takes at least two, sometimes more, applications this way to get sufficient ballast down. It does take longer and is more work. But the surface of the ballast is pristine. No worries about gloppy glue showing. Try it; you might like it.  SignaturePersonally, I like Vista, but I probably won't use it. I like it because it generates considerable business for me in consulting and upgrades. As long as there is hardware and software out there that doesn't work, I stay in business. Incidentally, my company motto is "If this stuff worked, you wouldn't need me". - lifted from sci.electronics.repair > Since the subject of ballasting came up here, I thought I'd give folks > here the privilege of hearing my expert take on this subject (not!). [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > > - lifted from sci.electronics.repair thanks for the method John Hubbard > The commonly-accepted way to apply ballast is to put the ballast in > place, then glue it in place by basically drenching it in dilute glue. I > don't like this; it does work to secure the ballast, but it leaves it > covered with, well, a layer of glue. Than you haven't used enough soap... Klaus SignatureModelbane Europas hjemmeside: http://www.modelbaneeuropa.hadsten.dk Modeltog, internet, gratis spambekæmpelse, elektronik og andet: http://home6.inet.tele.dk/moppe On 2/20/2009 7:22 AM Klaus D. Mikkelsen spake thus: >> The commonly-accepted way to apply ballast is to put the ballast in >> place, then glue it in place by basically drenching it in dilute >> glue. I don't like this; it does work to secure the ballast, but it >> leaves it covered with, well, a layer of glue. > > Than you haven't used enough soap... But the more soap you use, the less well the glue bonds ... SignaturePersonally, I like Vista, but I probably won't use it. I like it because it generates considerable business for me in consulting and upgrades. As long as there is hardware and software out there that doesn't work, I stay in business. Incidentally, my company motto is "If this stuff worked, you wouldn't need me". - lifted from sci.electronics.repair > > The commonly-accepted way to apply ballast is to put the ballast in > > place, then glue it in place by basically drenching it in dilute glue. I [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > Klaus > -- Actually there is prototype for everything. A visible layer of glue on the surface of the ballast is actually desirable when modeling Japanese Shinkansen bullet-train trackage. I have noticed that the ballast on those right of ways is glued with some sort of satin-finish adhesive (at least at the stations). This most be done to prevent the high-speed trains from kicking up the ballast. Peteski > Since the subject of ballasting came up here, I thought I'd give folks > here the privilege of hearing my expert take on this subject (not!). [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > > Try it; you might like it. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here's how I ballasted my n scale railroad... http://www.billsrailroad.net/bills-ballasting.html Bill Bill's Railroad Empire N Scale Model Railroad: http://www.billsrailroad.net Brief History of N Scale: http://www.billsrailroad.net/history/n-scale Bill's Store--Books, Trains, and Toys: http://www.billsrailroad.net/bookstore Resources--Links to 1,200 sites: http://www.billsrailroad.net/bills-favorite-links On 2/20/2009 11:07 AM vista bill spake thus: >> What I do is to apply glue (somewhat diluted) to the area I want to >> ballast, the sides of the track and between the ties. Then I dump [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > http://www.billsrailroad.net/bills-ballasting.html Aha; looks like a variation on my method, but with the big difference of ballasting *before* laying track. Interesting. Like they say, there are multitudinous ways to remove the epidermis of a feline ... SignaturePersonally, I like Vista, but I probably won't use it. I like it because it generates considerable business for me in consulting and upgrades. As long as there is hardware and software out there that doesn't work, I stay in business. Incidentally, my company motto is "If this stuff worked, you wouldn't need me". - lifted from sci.electronics.repair |
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