Lajos, yes me thinks you tipped the wine glass one too many times before you wrote about your glue. ) I also use alcohol in a spray bottle to wet my ballast. I just use it straight and begin misting from a distance and as the ballast begins to become wet I move the spray bottle closer. In that way the ballast is not blown all over the place after tediously brushing it to the desired contours. I recall once Jeff Merrill mentioning that the whole ballasted area really looks drowned when completed. And the part about 'not' touching the area until completely dry is vitally important. 'Don't touch it' until completely dry is the best advice I can give regarding good looking ballasting. I think a lot of Z scalers, (at least I am one of them) tend to be impatient for results and we want to get it done right now. Unfortunately we need to be patient and let our handiwork cure, dry, or set up, before we move on to the next stage. I don't like that saying......."Rome wasn't built in a day"
Mike, Get the scenery down next to the track first. Well at least the dirt. The dirt was there before the ballast. Then weeds and grass will grow into the ballast.
Mike, Get the scenery down next to the track first. Well at least the dirt. The dirt was there before the ballast. Then weeds and grass will grow into the ballast. Paint the wood bottom with "dirt" colored paint and sprinkle on your "3D" dirt onto the wet paint along with some grass if you want. Let dry and then you vacuum the loose stuff up. You can spray this with hair spray to hold stuff down even better and sprinkle more ground covering onto the wet hairspray. Let dry and vacuum again. Repeat as you like and seal with more hairspray at the end. The hairspray will hold everything down. But mask off what you don't want glued down (like switch points and track). You can add more scenery after the ballast.
Mike, check your Private messages (top right of forum). I can send you down the photo sequence from the Ztrack magazine article. Full, large, color images. All below is good. I use soap now and have for the glue anyway. I tell you why. I have had 2 incidences over the years where the white glue (Elmers name brand), a PVA based glue, 'curdled' from alcohol introduction. So I went back to the long known dishwashing soap. You don't need 100% isopropyl. Just like the dishwashing soap a few drops of soap in a pint or a teaspoon or so of isopropyl is all I have ever used and ever read about. Svein-Martin, my friend, it breaks the surface tension. This additive is called a 'surfactant' (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surfactant). Note, store isopropal is 70% isopropyl, 30% water. It's just important to spray with a true atomizer bottle. The ultra-dry ballast can easily blow around if too close and make small crators if the mist is more heavy. It will come out great tho. After you get it noticebly damp, flow on the diluted white glue. Like Loren says, about 1 part water to 3 glue + a few drops of soap. Or 1: water 2: glue. Just make sure you really shake it up to mix it all. The glue takes time to disolve and will eventually settle out if you leave it sitting for a while. NOTE: use distilled water, especially if you have hard water. This also minimizes surface tension and hard water stains on the rail or dark areas. I'll tell you how I flow it on: use a condiment bottle (the bottle with a center or better, offset cylinder spout tip. The offset is better as it is closer to the edge and easier to control as the bottle does not have to be tipped over as far to get started. And, the bottle is farther up off the road bed, less change of getting your finger or the bottle in it. Now, after making sure the glue is disolved by shaking again, put your finger on the tip of the bottle, tilt it over until it touches the rail. lift your finger off the end but don't take it off the top of the rail. Squeez and slowly run the bottle down the rail. If the ballast was moist enough, this diluted glue should easily flow into it, not slowly dissolve into to. Make sure there is a flood of the white glue between the rails and all the way to the edges of the ballast. DO NOT WORRY: you won't see it in the morning ! In a few hours, most all that flooding will be completely gone and, in warmer dry climates like San Diego, 12 hours or more and you can really work on it. Make sure it completely dries before moving the module (twisting, flexing the roadbed) as it will loosen it. After it completely dries, it will survive numerous travels and shows ! .
Thanks for your input Guyz I really thought the years I have been gone somebody would find a Faster/Better/Easy way of doing Ballast lol....... Jeff I sent you a pm Thanks I will try it this way.
Took a sample of the AZ Cajon Pass Sand and Gravel to get it paint matched so I can start getting the base color down I also started to ballast the tunnel area so I can glue the top of the mountain down.
Man that looks great so far! I've spent so many days at that spot it's almost sad if it wasn't so much fun. :tb-biggrin: I think you are doing a great job! :thumbs_up:
Thanks Eddie yes it's a great place to hangout thinking of asking a few of the ZoCal Boyz to take a few Mods to the Pass and do some running with the 9Volt controllers :thumbs_up: Here's some New pic's got all the base color down trying to getting ready for a Show with Lindley
Mike, You are planning on covering the blue foam with something like masonite, correct? It will help protect the foam and will look good painted black. I may come up to the Palos Verdes show for Saturday, but no modules. I was waiting for confirmation. Your layout looks great so far. Have you been able to run any trains through yet?
You might find this of use. It was back when NS and CSX was giving back money and hours they owed the BNSF and UP. Almost every train had CSX & NS power. Pretty cool. It's a little bit of a different angle. http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=141297 http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=80586
Guess my visit on Friday must have inspired you to do some work. I have NOT received any confirmation for the PV show. Mary Barstow has given up the coordination to another person and although I have contacted him, I have not heard from him. We will see what develops and I will keep everyone informed via the ZoCal YAHOO! site as things develop. Lindley
Hi Ed Thanks for asking I will get some New pic's up this week I still have lot's to do but I did get some of the ground cover down waiting on a order from A.R.& M. and need to take another trip to the Pass for more dirt
