# Track ballast



## Mudcreek1200 (Jan 6, 2016)

New to the forum getting back to my trains now that all the kids are gone.Years ago when I had my layout I could never get the ballast right always looked sloppy no matter what I did.Any help full hints will help a lot. Thanks


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## MacDaddy55 (Aug 19, 2008)

Hey Mudcreek1200, I know what you mean with the sloppiness of the ballasting...I did our first layout free hand and just couldn't get it to look even close to even....I found using a Proses Ballaster and credit card did the trick and a small regular house paint brush to get the access either off the rails, track bed and even the bottom of the cork Roadbed...left a gap between the ground cover and rails/roadbed so there wouldn't be a calamity of colors..it is time consuming to get that even finish... before you even adhere the ballast with diluted Elmers Glue and then spray with diluted dish detergent ergh Wet Water. I use a combo of medium and fine grey ballast as Wisconsin has tons of lime stone grading along the track lines in state. Look at some photos of Yards, Factory Lines, Coaling operations and let your imagination take over. YouTube has some video of ballasting that could help, but just take your time and have fun!! Let us know your progress!!:smilie_daumenpos:


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## thedoc (Oct 15, 2015)

Mudcreek1200 said:


> New to the forum getting back to my trains now that all the kids are gone.Years ago when I had my layout I could never get the ballast right always looked sloppy no matter what I did.Any help full hints will help a lot. Thanks


you could apply the sub-roadbed, let it dry completely, and before you apply the ballast, line the outside edge of the ballast with masking tape. Then after everything is dry pull up the tape and you have a perfectly straight ballast edge. If you leave a section with sloppy ballast, you could have a "ballast crew" at the end of the perfect ballast, as if they were working to clean up the edge of the ballast. Be sure to include a wooden gauge to mark the edge of the ballast.


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## D&J Railroad (Oct 4, 2013)

I use a tooth brush to groom my ballast before applying the wet water and glue mix. I heat the handle of the tooth brush so I can bend it up a bit to make it easier to use.


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*Appling Ballast*



Mudcreek1200 said:


> New to the forum getting back to my trains now that all the kids are gone.Years ago when I had my layout I could never get the ballast right always looked sloppy no matter what I did.Any help full hints will help a lot. Thanks


 Mudcreek: I agree with D&JRR that an old tooth brush makes a good ballast spreading tool.
Some things I do. 1) paint the entire track before ballasting. You can use an airbrush, or even a spray can, to paint the rails,ties, spike details, everything, with a flat dull brown. 2) pour the ballast from the pinched side of a small Dixie cup, onto the center section between the ties only. 3) Now, slowly drag a toothbrush along the tops of the ties, between the rails. Some of the ballast will be pushed over the rails, and fall between the ties on the outside of the rails.
4) run the toothbrush along each rail, with some bristles inside and some outside the rail. This will knock any stray ballast off the tops of the ties, and down between them, where it belongs.
5) Next run some of the brush bristles along the inside web of each rail. This will remove those pesky bits from an area where they can cause derailments. 6) Be especially careful around turnouts. Some new modelers leave turnouts unballasted because of all the problems it can cause. If you do ballast your turnouts, make very sure there are no bits of ballast where they shouldn't be( where they can interfere with the points, and throw bar moving.)

You can use masking tape to get perfectly straight edges, as suggested, if you want to. This would represent an unusually well maintained main line. Santa Fe was known for it's "manicured" roadbed, for example. Most railroad's ballast was not that perfectly straight, especially after it had been in service for a while. Your choice.
7) Mix tap water and alcohol( 1part alcohol to 10 parts water) in a household trigger spray bottle. Set the bottle to its finest spray setting. 8) From a distance of at least TWO FEET, LIGHTLY spray the water on the ballasted track from above. You should try to duplicate a light rain shower. The ballast does not need to be sopping wet, or even close, at this stage. This first spraying is just to get things damp enough to stay in place. 9) Wait a few minutes.
10) Spray again, this time with a bit more water, but still from the same distance. 11) Now drip(an eyedropper works well) one part white glue mixed with 6-8 parts water and one part alcohol onto the ballast, center first, then sides. 12) Let everything dry for several hours. 
Repeat the "drip glue/ spray water" routine two more times, then let everything dry overnight. In the morning you should have a good looking, ballasted, section of track; with the ballast firmly held in place! 13) Run a small screwdriver tip along the inside web of each rail, and check the turnouts for free point movement. If the points don't move well, let some plastic compatible oil(Labele 107) all around the points and throw bar. Gently cut around, and under the throw bar with an Xacto knife & #11 blade. 14) If you want, you can brush paint the sides of the rails your favorite rust color. 15) clean the rail tops with a "Brite Boy abrasive block and alcohol. 16) Run trains and have fun!

Traction Fan


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## John Olson (Jan 14, 2016)

*ballast*

Model Railroader Video Plus has several detailed how-to videos on this subject. It is a paid online subscription service of Kalmbach MR magazine, and also has videos that cover almost any other topic in the hobby...........John

I have no financial or other relationship to Kalmbach publishing. I just find their video series very informative.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Since ballasting track is one of my least favorite parts of the hobby, I have learned to do it rapidly and well. I use a two step process.

First step is to paint the sides of my roadbed with full strength matte medium (you could also use slightly thinned white glue). Using a paper cup bent into a spout, I sprinkle ballast into this adhesive and let it dry for a couple of hours. This gives the edges of the roadbed some tooth to hold the rest of the ballast in place.

When the adhesive is dry, I spread ballast from the paper cup between the rails, smoothing it out and getting it off of the web of the rail with a 1/2" soft bristled brush. Then I go back and do each side of the track, using the brush to shape and flatten the ballast. 

When I'm happy with the shape, I pre-wet it with 35% rubbing alcohol (70% drug store strength diluted 50% with water. I consider this the most critical step. To pre-wet it, I use an old glue container, although any plastic squeeze bottle will work. The trick, though is to use something that will allow the alcohol to just dribble out with very little force. I dribble it directly on the ties to avoid disturbing the ballast. Don't rush. Let natural wicking action and the low surface tension of the alcohol pull the liquid into the ballast. It will gradually soak through the dry ballast and wet it thoroughly. If you do disturb any ballast, gently smooth it back into position. 

Now, go back and apply your adhesive (see below for my receipe). Use the same technique -- dribble it gently on the ties and allow the wicking action to saturate the ballast. Make sure you saturate it fully -- you should see the adhesive showing through the ballast -- but avoid too much, which will wash your ballast away. Again, any ballast that goes astray can be coaxed back into position (just be aware that now that it is covered with adhesive, it will want to stick to whatever you use; I use a silicon pastry knife dipped in the diluted alcohol).

Proceed at a fairly slow pace -- the faster you go, the more you will spread the ballast out and make little dimples in it with your drops of solution. I usually work in 3 foot sections of track, and can usually do 3 sections before my back gives out.

Let it dry. This usually takes a couple of days; don't rush it. If you have any unsightly spots afterwards, apply more ballast, alcohol, and adhesive.

Adhesive recipe: 1 cup of matte medium, four cups of water, and four drops of liquid dish detergent in a 1-1/2 quart (or larger) container. Mix thoroughly (I shake it for about a minute). Allow to stand overnight. Matte medium uses talc as a dulling agent, and this will settle to the bottom of your container. Decant the liquid into a second container and discard the talc gunk. I actually just fill my old glue container from this and leave the talc in the bottom, then just remove it when I'm ready to make another batch. While you don't HAVE to let the talc settle out, you may get white spots on your ballast if you don't.

Note on water: if your tap water is hard or contains iron or copper, or lots of chlorine, consider either filtering it or using distilled water. The more junk dissolved in your water, the less it will want to wick into your ballast. Iron and copper can cause unwanted discoloration.

There are certainly other methods, this is just the one that works best for me. Good luck.


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## Mudcreek1200 (Jan 6, 2016)

thanks for all the help and info I am going to try again doing it maybe this time I will got it right.I have another question does using cork roadbed make it any easier to ballast?


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## MacDaddy55 (Aug 19, 2008)

Well the Cork roadbed raises the track so it will require more ballast than if your weren't using it. Just for deadening sound and securing your track to your tabletop cork is worth it. I do believe a case of Cork Strips runs about 25-30 bucks which will well cover a 4x8 Layout!! Hey let us know how it goes and good luck!:smilie_daumenpos:


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## bluenavigator (Aug 30, 2015)

On 4x8 with 22" radii with 10 9" straight tracks would run about 19 feet. WoodLand Scenics sell foam roadbeds in 24' rolls.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

bluenavigator said:


> On 4x8 with 22" radii with 10 9" straight tracks would run about 19 feet. WoodLand Scenics sell foam roadbeds in 24' rolls.


They also sell it in 24" strips, which I find easier to work with. For larger areas, sheets 24" long and 5" wide are available.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Mudcreek1200 said:


> thanks for all the help and info I am going to try again doing it maybe this time I will got it right.I have another question does using cork roadbed make it any easier to ballast?


Cork as opposed to foam? I wouldn't think so. 

Using any roadbed makes it easier to get the right shape. While it does use a little more ballast, the extra amount isn't huge (not worth considering if you're just trying to save some money), because most of the volume of the ballast "mound" is actually roadbed.


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## NAJ (Feb 19, 2016)

After watching almost all of the videos on YouTube on "how to ballast" it is not as easy as they made it look (at least for me) and I did a terribly lousy job my first time around, had to remove all of the ballast and track and clean it all up.
I will be ballasting again soon but this time built a small section of track on foam board to practice different techniques on to see what works and what doesn't.


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## thedoc (Oct 15, 2015)

When the time comes to ballast my track, I'll probably use ground cork mixed with powdered glue and then sprayed with a water alcohol mixture. One objection I heard, by someone trying to sell me ground stone ballast, is that cork floats, but there is no reason to apply enough water to float the cork ballast. It just seemed like an excuse for not being careful with how much water you put on the ballast.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

So here's my $0.02 on the floating ballast.

I just completed ballasting 4' of track, plus about another 2' of various paths, dirt roads, etc. on a diorama. I used WS products, and didn't have a single grain of the stuff float away.

The key is to pre-wet your ballast. Some advocate "wet" water (water with a couple drops of dishwashing liquid to break the surface tension). I use 35% rubbing alcohol (70% store concentration, diluted 50:50 with water). Use a pipette, ear syringe, old glue bottle, or any other dispenser that will allow you to "flow" the liquid out on to your layout. Very gently dispense the liquid from almost no height -- I actually touch the surface of the ballast. Never, ever, squirt or spray the liquid.

When applying adhesive, you want to saturate it, but not flood it. Too much liquid will float any small particle away.

As Doc said, it's all about how much care you take. I hate ballasting, but I've learned that if I take my time, I only have to do it once. Keep trying, soon you'll be laying it like a pro.


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## HOMatt (Feb 14, 2016)

I'm not looking forward to ballasting my rather large layout. I'm going to do a 4' section away from the layout to make sure I get it right. I'm going to spend a few hours watching videos and then see what method I find the easiest before I start on the real thing.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Many of us ballast the main line different from spur or yard tracks.
The main line wants to look stable and neat with no ballast on
the ties and nice lines along the sides. Depending on the road, the
ballast may be a light gray or perhaps have some darker rocks
mixed in..

The yard and spur tracks often have the ties completely covered,
There are weeds, old ties, rusted rails and misc. junk scattered 
along and between them. The ballast is often dark, possibly
obscured by ashes.

There are several techniques used for ballasting. I find it
easiest to apply the ballast between the rails first, then
follow that with each side. I don't weather the rails until
after it sets so I can flick away any 'floaters' without
marring the paint. I work on about a foot or two of track
finish it, then go on to the next section.

The nice thing about using water soluble glue is that if you
make a mess you can wash it off.

Don


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## deedub35 (Jan 29, 2014)

What do you guys do with ballasting between the point rails? I'm a little fearful about the glue mixture getting the point rails stuck.


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## time warp (Apr 28, 2016)

deedub35 said:


> View attachment 294089
> 
> What do you guys do with ballasting between the point rails? I'm a little fearful about the glue mixture getting the point rails stuck.


 Nice color mix and size on the ballast, deedub. Looks very good.


I don't ballast my own track, I don't figure I'm going to live long enough to warrant setting aside that much time. I do have a great appreciation for the realistic work of others though. :thumbsup:


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## Nikola (Jun 11, 2012)

I wonder about those new ultraviolet light activated (UVA) adhesives.

Wouldn't it be great to mix up a batch of ballast with just enough UVA adhesive, scoop and contour onto your layout, and then hit it with a UV flashlight to set it in place permanently?

Actually, UVA adhesives would be the cat's meow for many hobby-related uses.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

deedub35 said:


> View attachment 294089
> 
> What do you guys do with ballasting between the point rails? I'm a little fearful about the glue mixture getting the point rails stuck.


How do you get it to stay in the vertical position like that? 

Ok, for real, I spread a little ballast in there, but don't glue it down. I keep it completely away from the throwbar, though.

You CAN, however, simply work the points a few times as the adhesive cures. That will keep it from setting up and forming a bond. I tried that, but it's too much work to suit me..


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*My favorite method*

Gave my method earlier. Sorry for the double post. Can't seem to be able to delete the whole thing. Photos show some track I've ballasted.

Traction Fan


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*Ballasting turnouts?*



deedub35 said:


> View attachment 294089
> 
> What do you guys do with ballasting between the point rails? I'm a little fearful about the glue mixture getting the point rails stuck.


deedub;

Many do just what you have done, and leave the moving parts without ballast. Those who do ballast this area are VERY careful not to let any ballast get near the throwbar. This is especially critical on Atlas turnouts, like those you have. The Atlas switch machine is quite weak, compared to a Tortoise, or Peco machine. The Atlas twin-coil machine has barely enough power to move its own throwbar and points. That's why it needs the rivets to allow super free, and somewhat sloppy, movement. It also explains why the points don't always throw all the way. 
This is not to disparage your choice of turnout brand, That is, and ought to be, strictly up to you. The point is that with an Atlas turnout, you have even less margin for error than in some others. You may be wise to leave things as they are. Another possibility would be to slide a sheet of sandpaper under the turnout in all the area EXCEPT directly under the throwbar. The sandpaper could be painted the same color as the ballast. This would give somewhat the appearance of ballasted track without loose ballast migrating into areas where it would cause problems.
If it's not too late, you might want to consider painting your track. That helps it to look more realistic. Just a suggestion. 

regards;

Traction Fan:smilie_daumenpos:

The first two photos show the difference between painted, and unpainted, Atlas HO-scale turnouts. The third photo shows the parts of one of my scratch-built N-scale turnouts. A side benefit of building my own is that I can ballast the ties before the rails go on. This makes ballasting turnouts immensely easier than having to try to get the ballast on, and only where you want it, with a commercial turnout. However, I doubt you would want to go through all the effort to scratch-build all your turnouts, just to make ballasting easier!


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## LateStarter (Mar 12, 2016)

It seems that the steps and methods of ballasting are infinitely various and personal...
I've watched (seemingly) dozens and dozens of videos on it, and aside from a few generic basics, they all vary to a degree in one or two areas (little 'tricks' here and there). But they all end up rendering great results.


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## deedub35 (Jan 29, 2014)

I agree with the painting of the rails. But that doesn't cause conductivity issues? Doesn't the paint come off when cleaning the rails especially with a bright boy?


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## LateStarter (Mar 12, 2016)

Shouldn't be conductivity issues if tops and inside rail heads are wiped clean.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

You paint only the rail sides UNDER the rail head.
Track cleaning is on the rail head and has no
effect on the weathering. The top of the rail should
be cleaned immediately after ballasting and painting.

It is important to protect point/rail electrical contacts from any
ballast or weathering paint.

I like to hold off the painting until after all ballasting
is done. You can flick off the rail side those errant bits of
ballast then paint.

Don


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## traction fan (Oct 5, 2014)

*Cleaning painted rail.*



deedub35 said:


> I agree with the painting of the rails. But that doesn't cause conductivity issues? Doesn't the paint come off when cleaning the rails especially with a bright boy?


deedub35;

No cleaning the tops of the rails with a brite boy will not remove paint from any part of the rails except the tops. The rail tops should be clean and shiny, in order to conduct electricity. Depending on the type of paint used to weather the rails, cleaning with a lot of alcohol might remove a bit of some types of paint. If you use spray paint from a can, alcohol will not bother it.

Traction Fan:smilie_daumenpos:


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

If you paint with an acrylic paint, you can just let it dry for about 5 minutes, then rub a track cleaning block, or even a chunk of Masonite, over the tops of the rails, and it will take any paint slopped on the tops right off.

MicroEngineering's pre-weathered track actually comes with blackened rails, and you have to scrub the product off the rails after installation.


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