gregh
electronics, computers and scratchbuilding
A number of my recent experiments may be of interest....
1. Ballast
I have always used 5mm gravel mixed 6:1 with cement for ballasting.
See my old topic here....
https://www.gscalecentral.net/index.php?topic=38178.msg38178#msg38178
It works reasonably well `on the ground`, just needing minor repairing every few years.
But when I`ve used it on raised `baseboards` it breaks up in `clumps` very quickly.
This is my latest idea – I placed plastic mesh (roof gutter leaf guard) under the track before laying the ballast. We`ll see if it lasts any better.
2. Gravel and grass
I use decomposed granite for the (full size) walkways around my railway. It`s a brownish colour and mostly `stones` only about 3mm diameter or less.
I`ve tried mixing this with cheap water-based fence paint. Amazingly if `sets` quite hard after a couple of days. I`ve used brown paint to represent gravel beside a tarred road and green paint for `grass` or `weeds`. It looks a bit bright when first done but tones down within a few days.
This pic shows the `weeds` between the tracks
3. Roads
Way back when? I used an old camping foam `mattress` as a road at Lilyvale. It was laid on a slurry of sand/cement.
It was an expensive mattress leftover from my youthful camping days, and has lasted really well as a road – no scuffs or holes. Then later, for an extension to the road, I bought a similar, cheaper mattress for just a few dollars, but it hasn`t lasted at all – shows you get what you pay for. Recently we replaced the lino tiles in our laundry – these were self-adhesive types and came off easily. So I`ve tried gluing them upside down onto the rubber road. I used the method above to make the gravel verges and some grass in front of the houses.
Now to wait for a few years to see how it all lasts.
1. Ballast
I have always used 5mm gravel mixed 6:1 with cement for ballasting.
See my old topic here....
https://www.gscalecentral.net/index.php?topic=38178.msg38178#msg38178
It works reasonably well `on the ground`, just needing minor repairing every few years.
But when I`ve used it on raised `baseboards` it breaks up in `clumps` very quickly.
This is my latest idea – I placed plastic mesh (roof gutter leaf guard) under the track before laying the ballast. We`ll see if it lasts any better.
2. Gravel and grass
I use decomposed granite for the (full size) walkways around my railway. It`s a brownish colour and mostly `stones` only about 3mm diameter or less.
I`ve tried mixing this with cheap water-based fence paint. Amazingly if `sets` quite hard after a couple of days. I`ve used brown paint to represent gravel beside a tarred road and green paint for `grass` or `weeds`. It looks a bit bright when first done but tones down within a few days.
This pic shows the `weeds` between the tracks
3. Roads
Way back when? I used an old camping foam `mattress` as a road at Lilyvale. It was laid on a slurry of sand/cement.
It was an expensive mattress leftover from my youthful camping days, and has lasted really well as a road – no scuffs or holes. Then later, for an extension to the road, I bought a similar, cheaper mattress for just a few dollars, but it hasn`t lasted at all – shows you get what you pay for. Recently we replaced the lino tiles in our laundry – these were self-adhesive types and came off easily. So I`ve tried gluing them upside down onto the rubber road. I used the method above to make the gravel verges and some grass in front of the houses.
Now to wait for a few years to see how it all lasts.
