Fellow TB members, I am looking for a couple of things, first, some color shots that provide a good sense of the ballast color used by the MR in the west. Second, if anyone has already done the work, who sells it in HO, (ie AZ Rock) and what is the item number. Thanks, Michael
Well, it depends on what era you model. If you model the 70's, it is likely a severely-fouled, dirty ballast.
By the late 1970's, they'd cut almost all the section gangs. So nobody was doing any ballast cleaning, ditching or brush cutting. Well into the early 1970's, there was major track work, including steel, ties and ballasting. Fouling can happen fast. It's still there, holding the ties. Just not draining properly and.... Michael- Are you looking for west of Snoqualmie Pass? Through your area modeled? There was a lot of what they classified as "gravel" and "processed gravel." As the Ragnar Pit was just east of Cedar Falls, probably from there. Might be worth a hike come better weather. Maybe you can even gather some of the real stuff! Boxcab E50
Ken, in my haste to put out this request, I totally forgot I am the proud owner of William Stauss' book, "The Milwaukee Road In Color", Volume 5, Pacific Extension 1941-1961. It is chock full of color shots, many by famed photographer Warren Wing. Wing has numerous shots of the Olympian Hiawatha going through Maple Valley that clearly show you are correct, it appears to be a gravel based ballast. Thanks. MRH
Glad you have an answer in available reference material! I do have slides that would show what you want. But no way to scan. If only I could figure out how to repair a PrimeFilm 1800u.......... Boxcab E50
You mean they really had ballast? Most of the late MILW track I saw was just two rails in the weeds or mud. There is a photo in the Hyde Milwaukee book showing a SD9 and train with no rails or ballast in sight.
Yes. All Milw tracks, systemwide, had sufficient ballast. Chicago did not budget monies out to do maintenance. They did not keep personnel, nor did they have enough equipment to do needed work. Depending on where you are looking, ballast can foul quickly. Such as in eastern Washington. Where winds blow in topsoil from nearby agriculture. Then all it takes to germinate the seeds also contained, is one rain storm. Once that happens, it's all down hill. So there needs to at very least be cleaning, aligning and other drainage kept functioning. Done on a regular basis. On the Milw, all you'd need to do, is take a shovel and stab it into that dirt. You'd immediately hit ballast. When the rails were lifted, and that dirt was disturbed it was there and showed right away. The transcon main did not look that way. Just some, not all, branch lines. Boxcab E50
