Hello. Question: How to glue ballast rocks between sleepers at turnout area without glueing wings and mooving rod, which can reduce turnout switching functionality? Explanation: During usual procedure of placing ballast and PVA soaking - PVA can penetrate into wing joints and between wings and sleepers and can block them. Which working robust sequence or technology chain must be applied? --- Vadim
Vad- You have learned the lesson that I learned the hard way, the hard way. It obviously would have been better to have asked the question first before doing it. BUT, never, never, put any ballast or glue anywhere near the actual moving or contact parts of a turnout. To fix- If glue was water based, spray with water to soften it and then, very gently, use an Exacto knife or razor blade (without cutting your hands) to cut through the bond created by the glue. Scrape off as much as you can. As to ballast near the moving area, the best advice I can give is to not ballast it. If you feel compulsed to do so, use a pair of tweezers to insert the ballast between the ties, spray down with alcohol (vodka works nicely) to break the surface tension and use a very tiny amount of diluted white glue to cover the ballast between the ties. For all track- before it dries and becomes a pain in the rear end to remove, make sure there are no pieces of ballast that are resting ON the ties or against the inside of each rail. If there are, remove them with tweezers before they dry. If not, the next time you run a train, the wheels will hit the ambient pieces of ballast and cause a break in electrical contact of engines and/or tenders or derailment of same or of cars being pulled by the engines. I have made all of the mistakes mentioned above and I would wager that 98% of the people here have done it at least once.
Vadim, Prior to installing the switches on my 'German'layout, I sanded off a little bid of the cork road bed at the splace where movable parts of the switch are. I glued down the ballast. When dry, I did install the switch and did ballast the remaining parts of track. With my US switch puzzle I have handlayed track. Here you can ballast the wooden ties, glue down the track work when dry and add ballast arround printed circuit board ties.
Frank, what an absolutely brilliant idea. I'll have to try that on my lower deck. Sadly, the switches on the upper deck are already laid.
One way to get the ballast look is to use a sand textured paint in a spray can, spray it on the roadbed before laying the track, you can ballast after but keep the grains away from the moving parts, the sand ballast will tie in the grainy look, helps to have the same color of spray paint as the ballast, if not use a grimy black to tie it in. r
I start early in the day and put in the ballast in and around the switches, then drop little drops of deluted white glue with a few drops of soap in it, (the soap makes the glue run). After an hour or two, I go back to each switch and clean out all the ballast which is in the way of the moving switch parts. I then work the switch to make sure it works OK. I keep going back every hour or two all day long and keep working the switches. By evening, the glue is fairly dry and the switches are not sticking. Next morning, I again check each switch to make sure it has not stuck and again clean out around all the moving parts with a knife. Then I test the track and switches with one of my worst engines to see if it keeps picking up current and does not derail. I have been very sucessful with this method and have done dozens of switches and have not ruined any yet. I am using Peco code 55 electro-frog switches.
Thanks to all! During my thinking about it I invent another idea: Make separate mix with ballast rocks and glue (consistence - like cement with white glue or latex Caulk in Alcohol, or acrylic penetrative base coat... ), and then place it gently by small flat skrew or tweezers between sleepers of turnout. All glue will be at fixed state with rocks, and will not penetrate inside turnout's joints. ---- Vadim
Glueing ballast and turnouts is nothing to be afraid of once you know the right tool for the job. I use a medical syringue (for insulin) with a very small needle tip to apply home made scenic cement. All the parts for this is readily available at my local drug store and is very cheap. The needle tip I use for turnouts is "25g 1". It is veeeeery small as evidenced by the 2nd attached picture. I can safely place each micro-drop of glue exactly where I want it. There is so little glue down that it does not run where it must not go. I've had great success with this stuff :tb-tongue:
I use the n scale Arizona Rock fine ballast but only enough so that the switch doesn't look unballasted(?) and most importantly I use lubricating oil between the points and all moving parts so that the glue does not get an opportunity to wick up and coat what I don't want to have glue on. This has worked great. Now the vodka thing sounds like I should test that out. I'm not sure about how much to pour in my glass, I mean on the track....... Brian
I heard of an interesting method I plan to try using the old fashioned packing tape( the kind with brown paper that you have to wet). You put a strip of that under the turnout moving parts and add ballast with out brusing it away (over fill) wet it and then press down and let it dry over night... then vacume. No glue above the ties at all. Sounds interesting! I wish I could remember who told me that one.
