# Sand Blasting Medium for Coal Load



## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

I'm wondering if this stuff would work for an HO scale coal load, and for spilled coal around a bunker.

https://www.menards.com/main/search.html?search=sand+blasting+media

It's cheap and easily available at Menards.

Any other thoughts on material to use.

EDIT: I found this excellent thread on this forum. They use Lifelike brand coal which doesn't look like it's available any longer.

http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=16771


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## Lehigh74 (Sep 25, 2015)

I think Don F uses black beauty blast media for his O gauge coal loads. It looks to me like small pieces of coal (pea or chestnut) in O gauge so it might look like egg size for HO. I’ve been using anthracite from Conway and Brennan and like the way it looks. They sell a variety of sizes and one should work for HO. Cost *per pound* for the Conway or Brennan stuff is a lot more than the Menard’s bag, but it is real coal and it does go a long way. Also, if you get the 50-pound bag from Menard’s you would have about 49 pounds of blast media left over.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

What I do is find a picture of what I want the finished product to look like. From there, it's a simple matter to determine if the proposed material has the right texture.

That previous thread is a good read. Take note of the parts about filling the bulk of the volume with foam rather than fake coal, and of embedding metal in it so it can be removed with a magnet.


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## J.C. (Dec 24, 2016)

bit late to jump in on this but two things I would add first if you use black beauty or similar product run it over a strong magnet I did and was surprised the amount of stuff magnet picked up , second if you have a machinery repair or painting shop check with them , might sell you a small amount.


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## Deane Johnson (Sep 19, 2016)

Appreciate the comments and suggestions here. I did buy a package of Woodland Scenics coal to try. I'm working on detailing some hopper cars to use around the Cheyenne Coal Tower.


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## Sawdust (Oct 26, 2010)

I used the black sand you can get at hobby lobby in a plastic bottle used for crafts. Its cheap & goes a long way. I too put a piece of foam shaped like a dome just shy of the top & glue a small amount on top of the load. The Southern car in the back has the sand. I used the Woodland Scenics coal in the Peabody cars because I liked the coarser grade coming out of that side of the crusher.


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## Eilif (Nov 6, 2017)

This week I went to Menards and bought a bag of the black sandblasting stuff. It looks pretty darn good to me and has a nice sheen to it. If it ends up too shiny I'll just hit it with a black wash. Cost me 7 bucks for 50 pounds. 

If anyone near Chicago wants some just PM me and they're welcome to bring a Jar/bag/whatever over and fill'er up gratis.


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## Don F (Dec 5, 2015)

Deane Johnson said:


> I'm wondering if this stuff would work for an HO scale coal load, and for spilled coal around a bunker.
> 
> https://www.menards.com/main/search.html?search=sand+blasting+media
> 
> ...


I am currently working with a HO hobby shop owner to provide him with coal loads using Black Beauty. I use the finest grit available, which scales to be Chestnut coal in O gauge, so it would be about the size of stove coal in HO. I was comparing mine to some loads the shop owner has from another manufacturer, and the size is very similar. It may even be Black beauty, but they appeared dull, as if they were sprayed flat black. I leave mine shiny, as this is a closer representation of Anthracite. Bituminous coal would be a dull black. Unfortunately, I didn't take any pics of the HO loads, but here is an example in O gauge.


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## Eilif (Nov 6, 2017)

That looks great Don.

I'm just about finished making some black beauty coal loads with pieces of foamboard, clay bumps, black craft paint, PVA and black beauty. In that order. Been a fun and easy project to do with my 4 and 7 year olds. 

They're drying now. I'll post pics soon.

It is pretty shiny. I wouldn't want to spray mine completely flat, but I might try a black wash just to dull them a smidge. A bit of black wash with some varnish or PVA mixed in might serve to and stabilize and strengthen the load a bit also.


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## Don F (Dec 5, 2015)

Eilif said:


> That looks great Don.
> 
> I'm just about finished making some black beauty coal loads with pieces of foamboard, clay bumps, black craft paint, PVA and black beauty. In that order. Been a fun and easy project to do with my 4 and 7 year olds.
> 
> ...


Looking forward to seeing your pics. Here is a link to a video I did on how I make my loads.


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## Eilif (Nov 6, 2017)

Nicely done!
You're quite organized and professional. We just put a profile of clay on top of pieces of foamboard, painted black with craft paint and then a coat of PVA. Then I take the glued load and push it face down into a bowl of the "Black Blast" product I bought.

You can see pics of my process and results here:
http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?p=2122545#post2122545

I haven't cleaned the edges yet, but I'm going to use a file like you suggest rather than the sand paper I was originally planning too.


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