Gibbon, Cozad & Western - "The 100th Meridian Line"

[mu26aeh]

I know a lot don't like it but I used the Proses (under other names/distributors as well) ballast spreaders for much of my layout and it helped speed things along.  It goes on a little bit heavier but a couple swipes of brush and it levels out nicely.  Test out how far a spoonful goes to check for coverage, or if you get to end of track or turnout so you don't have ballast everywhere, as there's no way to shut the bottom.

[Scottl]

The grout recipe sounds complicated.

I lay down a generous paint layer and dust on the different grouts, either with a small mesh strainer or my fingers.  I use 2-3 colours, depending on what I want.  A quick spritz of water mist makes sure the grout gets caught up in the paint.  The advantage is you get textural and color variation because the grout is not saturated or coated in matte medium (which changes the color from my experience).  I also use a lot less grout an the paint carries the day.

Just a thought to fuel experiments.

[DKS]

Soil color is good, but I'm assuming it's just a color test (it's otherwise too flat).

Ballasting might go a little better if you first remove the rough edge along the top of the cork slope--then it won't create the small gaps on the slope below.

[C855B]

Soil color is good, but I'm assuming it's just a color test (it's otherwise too flat). ...

Flat works for where the focus is at the moment, an area that is occasionally graded. The photo doesn't capture the relief all that well, anyway. Also, think Southwestern desert sandy soils. Good point on the cork edge... easy 'nuff.

The grout recipe sounds complicated. ...

Hmm. It only sounds complicated. It went very fast. What do you think about making the grout paste a little thinner in consistency and applying liberally (instead of paint), then sifting the other color(s) followed by a water mist? I'm not concerned about using a lot of grout in the process, I'm more concerned with using it up fast enough to where it doesn't go bad in storage!

[Philip H]

On my last layout I put down I sanded grout and misted in wet water to saturation. Once that was done I sprayed on dilute white glue and then added ground foam. Let it dry and then brushed on more dilute white glue before adding static grass. I never had any issues with the grout coming up - and saturating with wet water started it setting up before the glue went into the mix. Of course I too it down about a year Peter to move so ymmv.

[Scottl]

Hmm. It only sounds complicated. It went very fast. What do you think about making the grout paste a little thinner in consistency and applying liberally (instead of paint), then sifting the other color(s) followed by a water mist? I'm not concerned about using a lot of grout in the process, I'm more concerned with using it up fast enough to where it doesn't go bad in storage!

That could work, that is the best part of experiments, you can afford to make mistakes.  I'm just not a big fan of the uniform application of anything scenic.  It never looks right to me, but that might just be my perspective.

[lashedup]

Grout is great, but be mindful that if it goes on thicker than 1/16 or more, it gets very hard and brittle.  If you need to plant trees in it, you may end up with chunks that come up. Which may be great if you are looking for asphalt that is cracking or chunking apart in larger pieces. Sprinkling it on thin as a top coat isn’t an issue.

[C855B]

That's a good point, but does highlight what I'm trying to do using the acrylic medium as a base, which is to interfere with the portland cement bond. Obviously I'm after the texture and color of the grout, but not its structural qualities. Essentially the idea is a polymer-modified grout, heavy on the "modified". Since we're still experimenting, an interesting test would be full-strength with the medium and see what wins - acrylic, or portland.

But in the end a surface dusting is fine, too, as long as it can be made to be durable. Techniques of past experience have wanted to decompose or come loose, sort of making a dusty mess.

Failing this, backup plan is heavy-bodied artists' acrylics for color, flexible structure and workability, some grout content for texture. Cost per inch² and color blending are factors here.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

When it comes to the unsanded stuff, a dusting is perfectly sufficient for the effect.

You can even brush it on.

[GaryHinshaw]

Great to see this topic coming up now.  I like the colour of the track quite a lot.  For ballasting, you might wish to consider making two passes, if you can stand the repetition.   On TBC, I make two passes to get the over-tie ballast between the rails just right (a feature so characteristic of current UP practice in SoCal).  But in the course of doing so, I make cursory work of the outer profile in the first pass.  In the photo below, the left half of the front track has had its first pass and you can see plenty of bare spots.  The right half shows the result after the second pass (pre-weathering).  With a first coat in place, the finished shoulder is much easier to manage because the loose ballast can "grip" to the first coat pretty well.  (You can also see how much darker the ballast is after a second soak of matte medium.)

[C855B]

Thank you! Yes, much improved. That may even go faster in the not trying to get the profile perfect on the first pass. The "dirt" tests went super-fast, but the ballasting was "Oy! And how many feet do I have to do?" Also thankful I don't have to fill the middle of the 'W'.

Your and Scott's comments about the matte medium color-shifting things makes me want to look for a brand with less tendency to do that. Obviously the white pigment content in the medium is what makes it "matte", but there has to something in acrylic media between matte and clear gloss.

Oh... the test with the full-strength medium and grout mix was a total bust. Not only did I make concrete that most definitely didn't look like any soil, but bubbles from the stirring did not dissipate, and they cracked in drying. So now I have a couple of cracked, cratered globs on the test block.

[GaryHinshaw]

Yea, the second pass goes at least twice as fast as the first one, and b/c you don't have to achieve perfection on the first pass, I'd be willing to bet that the whole process takes about the same amount of time (save for the extra drying time required for two soaks).  It's very much like applying two coats of paint: the second coat is much easier and more satisfying. 

Thank you for following up on the grout test.  I'm following with interest, and I'll be curious to hear if you have any new adhesive discoveries.  I'm going to be trying Scott's dusting over wet paint before too long.  I'm not too concerned with the ballast darkening, because it will be darker still (like the right track in this shot) when I'm done weathering it, but I want my soil to be very light and parched.

[lashedup]

Just wanted to say Gary, that ballast looks great over those ties. Also interested to see how you tackle the western drought look...

[C855B]

A little bit of research into acrylic artists' media, and let me tell you - the variety of consistencies and properties is absolutely overwhelming! I'm going to order a couple of sampler kits from Blick today or tomorrow while the holiday sale is still on and see what kind of trouble I can get into.

[Sokramiketes]

Both Gary and Mike's photos highlight an issue with the 45 degree angle cut into Midwest cork roadbed.  It is crumbly and makes itself visible through the ballast layer in patches.

I find it much easier to cut the edge at a 90 degree angle and let the ballast create the profile.  Then, you can let the ballast fall out of a small paper cup, and have less brushing to do.  I tend to ballast without any brush... let the ballast fall out of a paper cup as you sweep it in the direction of the track.  Then use your finger to knock it off the ties, also in a sweeping motion along direction of the track.  It forms naturally this way with the angle of repose you need.