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jbvb
Fireman
USA
1914 Posts |
 Posted - 06/04/2012 : 2:28:19 PM
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| Re: Gatorboard - note that another forum member had to rebuild part of his layout without it after he turned out to have a formaldehyde sensitivity. Whether that would matter for the duration of an op session probably varies with ventilation and the length of the session. |
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Tabooma County Rwy
Fireman
USA
4203 Posts |
Posted - 06/04/2012 : 2:54:03 PM
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Rick, your parking lot looks awesome - I'll have to try that grout method. I noticed several boxes of the stuff (for about a buck a box) at the local Habit for Humanity store here - I'll have to go back and snag some.
Re: carpet runners... Here's a different idea: I purchased some "stall mats" from the local farm and garden supply store, and used them in the shop area of my garage. They are black, 3/4" thick, very dense rubber, either 4x6 or 5x7 (feet) sized. These are much denser than the 2x2 rubber pads that you can buy at the big box stores. They are quite heavy. I cut them with a utility knife (not easy), then covered them with some cheap sheet vinyl. This stuff makes standing for long periods of time in my shop very easy on the back.
Al Carter |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1107 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2012 : 08:00:44 AM
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Thanks for the comments,guys...the floor covering issue must first past muster with the HTRR Chancellor of the Exchequer/Vice President of Decorating before anything else....I like the stall mat idea, especially with the vinyl runner since rubber mats are allegedly a source of static electricity that can zap decoders. The vinyl would negate that possibility.
Can't remember if I ever posted one previously (and am too lazy to go back and look), so here's a shot of the grout...in this case, it's Midnight Black, which I use to model cinders in the yards and sidings:
I buy this particular brand in the tile section of the local Lowes store and use their Raven (a dark gray) color for asphalt. Application is via a small, plastic Dixie cup, which is gently shaken (not stirred) over the area to be covered. As mentioned previously, if applied in a light enough layer, the stuff is almost self leveling. Here I used the tan or buff colored version to model an aggregate roof:
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Dutchman
Administrator
USA
23277 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2012 : 08:34:49 AM
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Rick,
Those photos around the REA building are terrific.
Once you shake the grout out, do you drench it with diluted white glue to adhere it? |
Bruce
Modeling the railroads of the Jersey Highlands in HO and the logging railroads of Pennsylvania in HOn3 |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1107 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2012 : 3:46:09 PM
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The short answer is "yes", Bruce...diluted white glue makes the grout concrete-hard when it's dry. But there's a wrinkle or two that I have learned working with it. First, I use 70% isopropyl alcohol as my wetting agent; second, I apply it using a hair spray pump bottle since the resulting stream is extremely light, which doesn't disturb the grout's smooth surface. The diluted white glue (40% glue, 60% water with a couple of drops of liquid soap) is then directly dribbled onto the thoroughly soaked grout, holding the bottle tip as close as possible to the surface in order to minimize displacing or "pushing" the grout around.
It's hard to see in the above picture, but I screwed up the roof covering by applying the alcohol using an eyedropper; despite being close to the surface, every drop from the eyedropper put a crater in the grout, which wasn't noticable until after everything was dry. Fixing the boo-boo was apple pie easy: just give the roof another light coating of grout to smooth things up, then use the spray bottle instead of the eyedropper to get everything wet. |
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Dutchman
Administrator
USA
23277 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2012 : 3:48:44 PM
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| Thanks for the tips, Rick. |
Bruce
Modeling the railroads of the Jersey Highlands in HO and the logging railroads of Pennsylvania in HOn3 |
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nhguy
Fireman
USA
3689 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2012 : 01:49:48 AM
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| It looks marvelous darling!(Fernado/Billy Crystal) That midnight black is something I'm definitely interested in using myself for cinders. (Brainstorming-and for me that's dangerous) Have you tried mixing in a little tan, gray and rust colored grout to see if it would resemble cinders more? I may have to try that. |
Bill Shanaman
Superintendent, New Haven RR in the 1948 to 1952 era
PMRA President 2013-14, OpSIG Member
NCE User Since 1999
Sugar City, Colorado |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1107 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2012 : 07:37:05 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by nhguy
It looks marvelous darling!(Fernado/Billy Crystal) That midnight black is something I'm definitely interested in using myself for cinders. (Brainstorming-and for me that's dangerous) Have you tried mixing in a little tan, gray and rust colored grout to see if it would resemble cinders more? I may have to try that.
Your comment got me thinking....and futzing. Although I prefer my cinders "straight up", a little ballast mixology might prove beneficial.
Hmmm....Midnight Black, Sand Beige, and Slate Grey...stirred, not shaken:
Granted, that may not be exactly what you're looking for, but the mix shown in the photo was roughly about 70% black and 15% each of beige and grey...personally, I think it's too light but then again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. One other aspect you may want to ponder: the grains are very SMALL, which may or may not suit your sense of scale. On my layout, the viewer's eye is approximately 100 scale feet away from the track; what would real ballast look like from 100 real feet away? |
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vzjtothalo
Section Hand
USA
90 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2012 : 08:54:50 AM
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Rick:
Perhaps an A&II wash would darken it down just a scoche/smidge to darken it down just enough?
John |
John Loesch
For God so loved the world, he did not send a committee.... |
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hunter48820
Fireman
6029 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2012 : 11:49:48 AM
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Thanks for the grout info, Rick. Most helpful and I'm getting close to working on the engine servicing facilities and was trying to figure out just what to use for ground cover. Looks like Raven or a mixture of Raven and Midnight will be the perfect color that I've been looking for!!
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Best, Andy Keeney
Look out for #1, but don't step in #2! |
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MarkF
Engineer
USA
9329 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2012 : 3:30:22 PM
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Interesting color. Guys, I have seen this in person and will attest to what Rick is doing here. It just looks fabulous. I've always thought that much of our ballast, cinders and gravel roadways was 'over scale' and too much texture. This stuff is perfect, in HO scale anyway. And because it is so fine, mixing colors appears much more natural as well.
Rick, from the picture, that color you have there might be perfect for ballasting industrial trackage, such as what you are doing in Market Street. That would never be 'ballasted', unless of course it is a new spur, but somewhat maintained. That color you have, along with dirt and some occassional greenery such as sparse grass here and there would be perfect is some of the sidings! |
Mark
See my homepage at http://home.comcast.net/~prrndiv/
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nhguy
Fireman
USA
3689 Posts |
Posted - 06/08/2012 : 02:39:57 AM
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| That is certainly closer. But I was thinking..(again very dangerous).. How about a 85% black, 5% beige, 2.5 % gray and 2.5% rust (a red brick color)? That would give you an almost black mixture with less light colors in it. Since cinders are mostly black you might even go less with the lighter colors and just add a pinch of them to get a good cinder color mix. It sure looks the right size. |
Bill Shanaman
Superintendent, New Haven RR in the 1948 to 1952 era
PMRA President 2013-14, OpSIG Member
NCE User Since 1999
Sugar City, Colorado |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1107 Posts |
Posted - 06/08/2012 : 07:04:22 AM
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Because the granules are so small and equally sized, mixing is very easy; like paint, you're going to have to come up with a way of consistently putting the right amounts into the mix. I ended up "cutting" what you see above with even more black but there's still quite a stark contrast between the black and grey. I don't have any rust flavor; you're going to have to check the store for that one, Bill!
s
John...the A/I wash is a good idea, but the white glue makes this stuff pretty hard, which means it doesn't soak in, but instead lies on the surface and evaporates. For the parking lots, I found that chalk works pretty good for darkening areas.
Hmmmm.....an idea: instead of mixing the colors together, put down a base layer of black, then apply a couple of randomly dispersed pinches of each color to "highlight"......
We're both navigating dangerous territory here, Bill....LOL |
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MarkF
Engineer
USA
9329 Posts |
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Harsco
Fireman
USA
1107 Posts |
Posted - 06/08/2012 : 4:21:42 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by MarkF
Sounds like more 'futzing' is in order here! 
Sounds like a challenge to me....here goes!
OK, expanding on the previous idea, I sprinkled a base coat of Midnight Black on, then applied a VERY LIGHT pinch of tan, followed by a VERY LIGHT pinch of gray:
Not much to look at...bear in mind everything is still dry. Notice how the grout doesn't stick annoyingly to the rails, ties, and spikes? Anyway, I took my fluffy "ballasting brush" and lightly tamped the mix:
Viola! Now it looks a little better...
Being candid, it's darn near impossible to discern any visible difference between the tan and grey grout particles due to their size...
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Harrisburg Terminal Railroad (HTRR)
