On 11/9/2014 8:11 PM, thommack@yahoo.com [CBQ] wrote:
Now that winter has
arrived I have time to get back to my long forsaken layout. I
would like to start ballasting both my main line and Savanna
yard. I have track charts listing ballast but am more interested
in finding out what any Q modelers might suggest as a good match
for ballast on the C&I. My layout starts at Oregon and ends
at Savanna. So I would like to know what brand and color other
C&I modelers have used for their main lines and also for
yards, especially Savanna.
I had asked Mike Spoor this question when I saw his layout. He used
gray Highball ballast and I bought enough to do mine based in Mike's
suggestion. As Dave Lotz mentioned, he also sells ballast and that
maybe a better match than the Highball.
I use a mix of cinders and some dirt for my yard tracks and a mix of
cinders and some ballast for siding tracks. Looking at CB&Q in
Color Vol 3 the regular cycle of high water on the K line also
seemed to encourage a lot of vegetation growth and I am trying to
incorporate that as I slowly work at ballasting. I like using the
static grass tufts that one gets from Scenic Express to add some
height to the vegetation in yards and sidings. The Noch brand ones
do not look at as natural as what Scenic Express sells. One has to
be careful not to go overboard as the bottom of the gear mechanism
of most HO switchers will get caught on "high" grass and stop
moving. If you have a static grass gun, you can make your own tufts.
However, I have not mastered that skill.
I've attached a picture that Stephen Priest (the new managing editor
of RMC) took a few years ago on my layout that illustrates what I am
trying to do. It is prior to adding static grass tufts.
Bill Hirt
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Posted by: Bill Hirt <whirt@sbcglobal.net>
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My Model Railroad 1.jpg
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