I was checking on a section of track that I ballasted yesterday and I found that the glue had only penetrated the top 1/8" of ballast. The rest that was underneath it was loose. How do I fix this? Am I just using too much ballast and not enough glue? I admit that I think I should be using less ballast, but when I do use less, it doesn’t seem to cover the cork. Should I wet the cork and track with water with a tiny bit of glue, say maybe 5:1 water to glue before spreading the ballast and then thoroughly wet the ballast and driibble on 1:1 water to glue mix?
Thanks,
Reed
When I lay down ballast, I always pre-soak it with a spray of rubbing alcohol or water with a few drops of liquid dishwashing detergent in it (wet water) before applying the glue, and then spray again after the glue is applied to insure that the glue soaks all the way down. I also add a few drops of dishwashing detergent to the 50/50 white glue mix, which I pour on from an old Elmer’s Glue bottle with the screw-down orange cap. If you use rubbing alcohol instead of wet water for the pre-soak and after spray, it dries much faster than water. I use an old spray bottle that originally contained Simple Green, Shower Shine, or a similar pump sprayer to apply the rubbing alcohol.
It sounds like you’re not using enough thinned glue on your ballast. When I ballast, I wet the surface thoroughly with a spray bottle with a 50/50 mix of 91% rubbing alcohol and water. Spray the heck out of the surface, and add the glue. My glue mix is a 60% white glue, 30% water and 10% alcohol mix, added to an Elmers glue bottle. Dribble this on the pre-wetted surface until you see glue puddling everywhere. The glue will be dry by the next day, and the ballast should be rock hard.
Tip of the day: coat all switch moving parts with a plastic-compatible oil to keep them from getting glued down during ballasting!
That’s exactly how I do it too. One time I did not wet down the ballast enough before applying the glue, and I had the same problem you did. Now, I make sure it’s soaked enough, and things work out just fine.
—jps
Hey, great tip on the plastic compatible oil on the switch points. I’m just about to start the ballast process and was wondering how to protect these areas from stray glue and ballast.
My opinion is why worry about it. As long as it is sealed on the top and sides it won’t be going anywhere and will be easier to take up if you decide to change things.