# Artificial Coal



## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

I am using Lionel artificial coal and it fly's all over the place, half of it goes where i don`t want it to go. 
I`m using it for the lionel coaling station, and the coal ramp, and coal loader.
It flows ok, but when i flip the gates on the car on the ramp and the coaling station to completely empty the system, it fly`s everywhere, too light weight i think.
Anybody have a better idea ??
Thanks, WMnut


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## flyboy2610 (Jan 20, 2010)

Maybe some O scale ballast dyed black? Seems it would probably be heavier.


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## BrokeCurmudgeon (Feb 8, 2016)

Try some crushed black obsidian. I used some years ago for an aquarium substrate. It will be heavy and have the same scale size.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

flyboy2610 said:


> Maybe some O scale ballast dyed black? Seems it would probably be heavier.


OK, thanks.


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## mopac (Feb 24, 2011)

Broke, what is obsidian and where do you get it.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

BrokeCurmudgeon said:


> Try some crushed black obsidian. I used some years ago for an aquarium substrate. It will be heavy and have the same scale size.


Interesting, never have heard of that, thanks.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Well, all of the Lionel coal accessories seem to spread the coal around, I tend to doubt you'll get something heavy enough to prevent that from happening unless it's depleted Uranium.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

mopac said:


> Broke, what is obsidian and where do you get it.


I found it on Amazon, crushed and also tumbled, might be worth a try..


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## BrokeCurmudgeon (Feb 8, 2016)

mopac said:


> Broke, what is obsidian and where do you get it.


Obsidian is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed as an extrusive igneous rock. Obsidian is produced when felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. Wikipedia


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> Well, all of the Lionel coal accessories seem to spread the coal around, I tend to doubt you'll get something heavy enough to prevent that from happening unless it's depleted Uranium.


Yes they do, and you may be correct about the weight.


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## BrokeCurmudgeon (Feb 8, 2016)

*crushed obsidian*

https://www.amazon.com/Natural-Crus...ocphy=9029724&hvtargid=pla-366058293249&psc=1


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## pokey_toaster (Nov 4, 2019)

In HO, I use crushed walnut shells I dyed black. I got them from Harbor Freight. They had two grades for abrasive blasting when Black Beauty is too aggressive. I used the finer grade but maybe the more coarse grade would work for O. It's pretty inexpensive, I think about $20 for 25lbs.

Paul


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## Lehigh74 (Sep 25, 2015)

Why not use the real thing? I use Brennans and Conway to make coal loads. I suspect it would work with the coaling station.

http://www.conwaycoal.com/

https://brennansmodelrr.com/products/reading-anthracite-coal


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

pokey_toaster said:


> In HO, I use crushed walnut shells I dyed black. I got them from Harbor Freight. They had two grades for abrasive blasting when Black Beauty is too aggressive. I used the finer grade but maybe the more coarse grade would work for O. It's pretty inexpensive, I think about $20 for 25lbs.
> 
> Paul


Thanks Paul


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

Lehigh74 said:


> Why not use the real thing? I use Brennans and Conway to make coal loads. I suspect it would work with the coaling station.
> 
> http://www.conwaycoal.com/
> 
> https://brennansmodelrr.com/products/reading-anthracite-coal


Sounds good, is it dusty or is it sealed or coated?
Thanks Bob


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## Lehigh74 (Sep 25, 2015)

WMnut said:


> Sounds good, is it dusty or is it sealed or coated?
> Thanks Bob


Brennan coal is a bit cleaner than Conway. Neither one is coated or sealed. Neither one is dusty, but I apply the coal to wet paint to make loads so it doesn’t move around. Can’t say whether or not it would generate dust if you move it around with the coaling station. Here’s a pic showing both brands used for coal loads. Not sure which is which.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

Lehigh74 said:


> Brennan coal is a bit cleaner than Conway. Neither one is coated or sealed. Neither one is dusty, but I apply the coal to wet paint to make loads so it doesn’t move around. Can’t say whether or not it would generate dust if you move it around with the coaling station. Here’s a pic showing both brands used for coal loads. Not sure which is which.
> 
> View attachment 513514


Wow looks great, Conway Coals home page has a notation " This site is no longer providing services at this time "

Brennans coal looks good, thanks.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Real coal does make more dust when you manipulate it with the coal accessories. It's no problem when it's clued into a hopper obviously.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> Real coal does make more dust when you manipulate it with the coal accessories. It's no problem when it's clued into a hopper obviously.


I thought that would happen, with the coaling station, coal ramp, coal loader, and the elevator, i think i will use something else.

Thanks..


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

WMnut said:


> I thought that would happen, with the coaling station, coal ramp, coal loader, and the elevator, i think i will use something else.
> 
> Thanks..


Good call. Coal dust isn't something you want to mess with. You have heard of Black Lung Disease, right? 

I would try some aquarium gravel.


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## pokey_toaster (Nov 4, 2019)

pokey_toaster said:


> In HO, I use crushed walnut shells I dyed black. I got them from Harbor Freight. They had two grades for abrasive blasting when Black Beauty is too aggressive. I used the finer grade but maybe the more coarse grade would work for O. It's pretty inexpensive, I think about $20 for 25lbs.
> 
> Paul


I just looked up how the Lionel coal handling equipment works and I think the walnut shells would make a bigger mess. The equipment I saw was using very large pieces, almost like pea gravel. I'm not very familiar with Lionel but I like that it does stuff.
Paul


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

CTValleyRR said:


> Good call. Coal dust isn't something you want to mess with. You have heard of Black Lung Disease, right?
> 
> I would try some aquarium gravel.


Good idea, thanks.


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## prrfan (Dec 19, 2014)

CTValleyRR said:


> WMnut said:
> 
> 
> > I thought that would happen, with the coaling station, coal ramp, coal loader, and the elevator, i think i will use something else.
> ...


Coal is a messy substance and for that reason I wouldn’t use it in my home. It’s highly doubtful that a few handfuls on a model railroad would lead to Black Lung Disease, however. 

That develops after long term exposure to high levels of coal dust. There was a time when many homes were heated with coal and there were tons of it present in basements. Some old homes still use coal. 

I would be more concerned with the reaction of my wife after I spilled coal on the carpet.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Yep, not worried about it hurting me, just getting me dirty.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

prrfan said:


> Coal is a messy substance and for that reason I wouldn’t use it in my home. It’s highly doubtful that a few handfuls on a model railroad would lead to Black Lung Disease, however.
> 
> That develops after long term exposure to high levels of coal dust. There was a time when many homes were heated with coal and there were tons of it present in basements. Some old homes still use coal.
> 
> I would be more concerned with the reaction of my wife after I spilled coal on the carpet.


Yeah, i get it about the wife thing, and i don`t need the dust, i get enough of dust on the layout from normal activity.
Thanks


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> Yep, not worried about it hurting me, just getting me dirty.


Right, i don`t need that oily finger print on my trains..


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

CTValleyRR said:


> Good call. Coal dust isn't something you want to mess with. You have heard of Black Lung Disease, right?
> 
> I would try some aquarium gravel.


It's also highly explosive if sufficiently dense in the local area. Even rock dust will explode in the right conditions, which is why mining operations treat dust so carefully.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

mesenteria said:


> It's also highly explosive if sufficiently dense in the local area. Even rock dust will explode in the right conditions, which is why mining operations treat dust so carefully.


Yep it is..


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

prrfan said:


> Coal is a messy substance and for that reason I wouldn’t use it in my home. It’s highly doubtful that a few handfuls on a model railroad would lead to Black Lung Disease, however.
> 
> That develops after long term exposure to high levels of coal dust. There was a time when many homes were heated with coal and there were tons of it present in basements. Some old homes still use coal.
> 
> I would be more concerned with the reaction of my wife after I spilled coal on the carpet.


I wasn't implying that it would. Just showing that it's not something innocuous that you want drifting around your layout room.


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

CTValleyRR said:


> I wasn't implying that it would. Just showing that it's not something innocuous that you want drifting around your layout room.


That`s true, the wife would have me sleeping in the tool shed with my trains if that happened.:smilie_daumenneg:


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## Don F (Dec 5, 2015)

At the recent York train meet, Al Zamorski of Millhouse River Studios demonstrated his new rotary coal dump using Brennens real coal. There is no dust, and the coal is large enough and heavy enough to dump without flying all over. The coal is a bit larger then the more common 'Chestnut' coal, but all different sizes of coal were hauled in hoppers. A material I use is Black Beauty sand blast grit, which can be found at building supply places. The fine grit is scale sized for Chestnut. However, there are some different colored bits, and some tubular shaped bits that I remove when making loads.


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## jta552 (Jan 20, 2015)

*Blankety blank Coal*

That is why I sold my coal ramp and loader. Just got tired of the mess.:smilie_daumenneg:


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

Don F said:


> At the recent York train meet, Al Zamorski of Millhouse River Studios demonstrated his new rotary coal dump using Brennens real coal. There is no dust, and the coal is large enough and heavy enough to dump without flying all over. The coal is a bit larger then the more common 'Chestnut' coal, but all different sizes of coal were hauled in hoppers. A material I use is Black Beauty sand blast grit, which can be found at building supply places. The fine grit is scale sized for Chestnut. However, there are some different colored bits, and some tubular shaped bits that I remove when making loads.


Great information here, i always went to the York train show when i lived in Maryland and Delaware, living in Florida is just too far away, and i miss that.
Thanks for your message.
WMnut


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## WMnut (Oct 23, 2019)

jta552 said:


> That is why I sold my coal ramp and loader. Just got tired of the mess.:smilie_daumenneg:


Yeah i get that, thanks


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## Don F (Dec 5, 2015)

WMnut said:


> Great information here, i always went to the York train show when i lived in Maryland and Delaware, living in Florida is just too far away, and i miss that.
> Thanks for your message.
> WMnut


You're welcome. Good luck with your project, what ever material you finally settle on.


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