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Time to start thinking about ballasting my layout.

Back in the 70's when I modeled in HO I ballasted by mixing Weldwood powdered wood glue with the ballast and then fixing it in place with a light spray of water.  It worked great and was fast.

Pretty much everyone these days uses the Elmers glue and water or alcohol with an eyedropper method.  I have over 600' of Gargraves track to ballast and that seems like a lot of eyedropper squeezes!

Anyone tried the powdered glue method lately?  Weldwood isn't made anymore due to formaldehyde but I found another similar glue to try.

Using Gargraves phantom stainless with wood ties and Ross switches.

Thanks

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@Scott R posted:

No need for an eye dropper with Elmer’s.  I use a half used bottle and simply mix with water and a drop of dish detergent in the same Elmer’s bottle.  Easy enough to flow the 50:50 mix on to the ballast.   Simple and fast

I also do what ScottR outlines above.   It works great using a 1/2 empty bottle of Elmer's as the applicator.   I typically add more rubbing alcohol, and also have added India Ink and other pigments (Craft Paints in Burnt Umber) to tint the ballast.    I am around 30% ballasted at this point, and I would estimate I have between 400 and 500 feet of wood tie track in total.  In my case I sift all my own ballast out of granite mix I got at a local yard, and tend to mix in some smaller quantities of other ballasts I have accumulated over the decades.   The granite can tend to have a "cold blue" tint to it, hence my experimenting with tinting the glue mix.

After the first few sections of "test ballasting",  I also ended up putting down an initial application of about 75% glue/25% water/alcohol/dish detergent then applying the ballast over it.   Had too many sections coming loose, and I felt like I was drenching the track and ties with too much water that was taking a long time to dry out.

So I run a ribbon of 75% glue down each side, and then squeeze drops of it between the ties not too precise, then apply the ballast mix over that.   Once that's complete and I have brushed any granite off the rails and ties, I go in do final 50/50 application.   My Ross and Gargraves is installed on top of MidWest Cork Road Bed.

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Here are the results of my ballast experiment using Gargrave phantom track with wood ties and Midwest cork roadbed.  I mixed 1 part powdered glue to 4 parts Brennan's Better Ballast in an old Tupperware container and shook and stirred to mix thoroughly.  I spread it out with a brush and profiled it then sprayed with water with a little dish detergent mixed in.  I think it looks great and took no time at all.  Every particle on that board is stuck down, you can turn the board over and shake it and nothing falls off.

I'll do most of my 800' of track this way, but still probably use the Elmers glue method around turnouts to be able to dissolve it later if needed.

The glue is from CSH hardware in Cedarburg Wisconsin and it's about $25 for a 5 pound tub.  That should be enough to do much of the layout and it's possible that a higher ratio of ballast to glue would Screenshot_20250113-060814work fine, reducing glue use further.  The glue dries to a clear matte finish.  I'll weather the track over it.



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Last edited by Dougklink

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