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Louisiana Southern Pacific
Picture of Louisiana Southern Pacific
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George,
I use Atlas Track and yes it will work with Gargraves I have seen it and it looks just as good. Thanksfor the compliment.


This wiil not beat me I wiil find out why Confused

Louisiana Southern Pacific
TCA, Atlas O Golden Spike Club

http://drews-train-layout.blogspot.com/
 
Posts: 240 | Location: LaPlace,LA/Mobile AL | Registered:: November 01, 2006Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
George S
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quote:
Originally posted by Hot Water:
George,

Don't know why you think that different brands of track need different ballast brands. We have used the Woodland Scenic course ballast on the modular layout with Gargraves and Ross track/switches with great success. I, therefor used the same ballast on my Atlas O home layout. Once the rails are weathered, I don't think you could tell the difference.


You have a point, but what I was getting at is that Gargraves tie width is almost twice as large as Atlas and Fastrack tie width. Old Lionel tubular track ties are even larger. I believe the relationship in size between the ballast and the tie is important. Gargraves can accept the larger size of chicken grit, but it does not look right for Atlas. I think smaller ballast (like Woodland Scenics coarse) can be used on both as you said. To my taste, the larger ties need a little larger ballast.

George
 
Posts: 651 | Location: Wadsworth, IL | Registered:: February 12, 2008Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
LTCJimOScale
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Speaking of ballast and switches, what are some do's and don'ts when dealing with this topic? I am using dark grey and black rubber ballast. I just want to make sure I don't mess up my switches. Thanks

quote:
Originally posted by bobdavisnpf:
I am a big fan of rubber ballast. The stuff I use is a bit oversized, but I think it's been a good fit to the scale of the GG flex track and Ross switches.

Here you can see how nice it looks in the scene...


Here is an up-close look... if the wheels were scale and the track was 2-rail then the ballast size dould look out of place... but to my eye, I'm already making the scale-look compromises appropriate to this ballast's look.


Looking for the quietest possible track, I used rubber ballast with latex for the bonding agent instead of white glue. Works superbly. The later sections include foam roadbed as well, another big improvement when used with a flexible ballasting system. I used to have a web-tutorial with video on laying rubber ballast... maybe it's time to revive it...
 
Posts: 103 | Location: Clarksville, TN | Registered:: March 06, 2006Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
bobdavisnpf
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I started out avoiding ballast in the area of the switch points. On my Grandpa's layout, cleaning the ballast out of the switch points and finding ballast bits choking the loco gears was fairly common, and hard ballast broke a few locos. Since I'm using rubber ballast, I've found it really doesn't matter.

Another good reason to avoid the switches is for relocation: when you relocate your switches, the ballast may or may not come up clean, may have a tendency to ruin the switches, and loose bits can get into the switch workings. With hard ballast, you just soak it for a few hours or days and the white glue softens up enough to keep damage to a minimum. With rubber ballast, again, it isn't much of an issue because it's flexible.

Same thing with track, especially using GG flex track. Re-aligning trackways several inches is a breeze, since the ballast flexes I don't have to deal with it at all. I just use a butterknife or paint scraper under the ballast/track/roadbed to loosen it off the layout table, push & sove this way and that, then screw it in place for a few months til I'm confident the track will stay put in its new alignment.


Cheers,
Bob
http://npfrailway.com/default.aspx
"Hauling Glory to the Dead Beat since 1996"
 
Posts: 1819 | Location: Stampede Pass, WA | Registered:: October 22, 2005Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
stevin
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quote:
Originally posted by Jim Policastro:
Quote:
"This should be a quick one...." George S

George,
You should know that we can make any question a full-fledged discussion! Big Grin Big Grin Big Grin

That's what makes the scenery forum fun!!!

I've been using WS coarse as the basic ballast, but I sift a small amount of medium or fine over the top just before bonding. It seems to soften the appearance a little. A grain of coarse ballast approaches 1/16 inch which is a scale 3", a bit big by itself!




I don't worry too much about matching ballast colors. Here you can see a transition from gray to almost black as the mainline enters my city (under the front of the engine).

Real railroads used whatever color of rock came out of the quarry last. Seldom were they exactly the same color from one carload to another. Moreover, weathered ballast will look different from freshly ballasted track.

I think variation in ballast color can make a railroad look bigger, too. Anything that gives you some variation in your mainline can make it look longer.

The siding in the foreground is ballasted with fine sand which better simulates a less well maintained roadbed.

My pet peeve is mixing almost white ballast with black for a mottled salt and pepper effect - never realistic or attractive. A mix of several colors like Jim193 describes above, on the other hand, is very realistic.



By the way, Vulcan, nice pic and really neat chain railing.

Jim
Is that the Lionel PW 44 ton switcher, If so my grandfather gave me when I was a kid the red lehigh valley version. That engine has alot of nostalgic value to me and I would like to get another. I really like the way yours looks.
 
Posts: 1116 | Location: Charlottesvile, VA | Registered:: April 29, 2008Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Jim Policastro
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stevin,
That engine is a combination of a Lionel PW 44 ton switcher shell mounted on an Atlas SW diesel switcher mechanism with a couple of GG-1 pantographs. It's equipped with TMCC.

It's a totally free-lanced design that is supposed to be some sort of semi-steeplecab electric. It's what happens when you get really bored on a rainy day and start picking through your parts boxes!

Jim


http://cnyrrjim.com/
 
Posts: 1999 | Location: Schenectady NY | Registered:: March 15, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
CSX Al
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I have used fine stones I find along the shore of the Niagara River in front of my house. I have also used some small stones that show up at the end of my driveway at the end of winter. You can also get some people have used roofing granules or you can go to a quarry in your area and get quarry fines which I have done also and the place I went to let me fill up a 5 lb. bucket at no charge! Problem with the roofing granules is that all the stones are the same size. I find that there needs to be a mix of sizes to look like the prototype does. For commercial stuff, Brennan's is some of the best looking I have ever seen and a nice mix of sizes.




CSX Al
Gotta' run - got a layout to build

You can checkout photos, track plan of the layout and model photos & other projects at:
http://home.earthlink.net/~csxal/

or how to's at: http://token3rail.blogspot.com/
 
Posts: 2544 | Location: Niagara Falls, NY | Registered:: June 03, 2004Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
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