# Ballasting



## MercerMike (Nov 23, 2017)

Hello guys, me again, things are progressing right along, thanks to all of your help! I have a question on Ballast for my n scale track. I am interested in learning some of the various techniques. I have been to YouTube and a few other sites and saw some good ideas to try. I especially like the video from Midwest Model RR as he used a dry adhesive. You just mix the resin with the ballast, spred it around, spray it with water. wipe off the track with a rag and the next day after it is dried, ballast remains in place. I emailed them for details and it seems this product was no longer available but he said that DAP Weldwood Plastic Resin Glue would be the next best thing. Has anybody tried this? Am interested in hearing ballasting techniques of others. As always, any help will be appreciated and Thank you.


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## tr1 (Mar 9, 2013)

*Fixing ballast to cork roadbed.*

Another method for ballast glue, is to use white glue with a little bit of dish soap to break up the surface tension. The glue water mixture is applied with an eye dropper.It takes a little time and it works OK.
Regards,tr1


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

The white glue/detergent is easy to use and readily
available at groceries, drug stores and big box stores.

Don


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

MercerMike said:


> Hello guys, me again, things are progressing right along, thanks to all of your help! I have a question on Ballast for my n scale track. I am interested in learning some of the various techniques. I have been to YouTube and a few other sites and saw some good ideas to try. I especially like the video from Midwest Model RR as he used a dry adhesive. You just mix the resin with the ballast, spred it around, spray it with water. wipe off the track with a rag and the next day after it is dried, ballast remains in place. I emailed them for details and it seems this product was no longer available but he said that DAP Weldwood Plastic Resin Glue would be the next best thing. Has anybody tried this? Am interested in hearing ballasting techniques of others. As always, any help will be appreciated and Thank you.


MercerMike;

I have used the dry adhesive (Weldwood) method. It works well enough, but the adhesive is expensive, and smells a little bit. I frankly, prefer to use dilute white glue.

To lay the ballast on my N-scale track, I use a 5oz. Dixie cup bent inward to form a pouring spout. I pour a line of ballast along the center of the track, then run an old toothbrush along this line. it spreads the ballast out quite nicely, including pushing some from inside the rails to the area outside them. I run the toothbrush along each rail spanning the rail with the bristles of the toothbrush. This distributes the ballast, both between the rails, and outside them. The ballast is swept off the tops of the ties and into the spaces between them.

I use an artist's brush to form the final shape of the ballast, and clean any ballast out of the rail web, where it would cause problems. Be particularly careful around turnouts. Make sure there are no ballast grains in the throwbar area. 

To start the gluing down process, I first spray tap water mixed with a bit of alcohol from a household pump spray bottle held 12"-18 " above the track. This first spray is very light. I want to get the ballast, and track, damp, but not really wet at this point. The idea is to hold the ballast lightly in place. Next, I dribble drops of diluted white (Elmer's) glue onto the ballast about a drop per inch of track. The glue is mixed with two parts glue, one part alcohol, and four parts water. Then I spray water over everything again, this time a little heavier. Now I want the ballast to get wet, but not wet enough to be "eroded" out of place, and dripping off the sides of the track. I let everything dry overnight. The next day I check the ballast to see how well it is glued in place. It's usually necessary to repeat the water spray, glue drop, water spray, process at least one more time, sometimes several. The end product will be ballast that is quite firmly attached to the layout.

Good luck, have fun;

Traction Fan:smilie_daumenpos:


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## Overkast (Jan 16, 2015)

I use a similar method to Traction Fan, but I try to stay away from alcohol because if it hits any surface paint it will make that paint run and dye into unwanted areas (even ballast sometimes if there's paint under the ballast).

So I first spray with a fine mist of tap water + a drop or 2 of dish soap mixed. Then when wet, I'll use a dropper of 50/50 water + white glue mix, with a drop or 2 of dish soap mixed.

The key is in the initial spray steps, and making sure you have a spray bottle that truly gives off a fine mist spray. Too many spay bottles claim a fine mist, but then the water starts to bead up on the head and before you know it, it is dripping heavy drops of water all over your layout beneath you. After testing a few spray bottles, I found these little beauties worked perfectly: https://www.amazon.com/Birch-Portable-Mister-Personal-Beauty/dp/B01MR2D9BQ/


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