I'm 55 and I am finally coming to plan and build my first and possibly only layout. It's a simple Bredon style on a 7ft X 4ft board from Peco's trackplans book; heavy on scenics, light, as possible on the overly technical stuff! But your How To vids are absolutely brilliant for showing a complete novice railway modeller like me, how to get on and start building my railway. Thank you indeed for sharing your knowledge in a friendly and highly informative way. I really enjoy your beautiful layout.
One more techinique you might add, especially where you don't want ballast by the points, simply paint the cork roadbed. I took some ballast I was to be using to Home Depot (here in the US, but any paint store can do this), and after picking some likely color sample cards, sprinkled ballast on them, picked the particular sample cards that best matched the two colors of ballast I would be using, and had the store mix a quart (approximately a litre) of each in latex flat paint. After ballasting, if there were any "holidays" they just didn't show. But especially around points I could minimize the amount of ballast being used and still look good.
Just in midst of laying own an n gauge track at the ripe old age of 70! Your confident, informative and pleasant style of presentation is exceptional? I was a barrister for 40 years and know something about presenting a case in court! Keep up the good work!
So life like it even has that sound where each wheel hits the gap between the two sections much like i hear when a train crosses the kingsferry bridge near where i live :). I have to say your attention to detail is amazing throughout!
Thanks for showing how to ballast a point. So few people show this process. I will keep this for future reference when I start to ballast my own layout Thanks for sharing. Randy
Thanks for this. I paint the glue on the sides of the track and put ballast on and then leave it. No need to pull it off of the tops of the ties as there is no glue there. I even tape off the road bed where I don't want ballast and it gives a good line. Then in the morning (next day or when ever you get back to the layout) yoi can brush the loose ballast up on the rail and basically spread it. Adding more where it needs it and then I wet the area with wet water and with a very small bottle I drip very delute glue on the track and around the turnouts. The extra ballast will fall out over the taped area and make it look softer as the real RR would look.
I’ve been ballasting track today but left out the points for another day , basically through being a tad worried. But I definitely like your way . Thank you .
You make it look easy! I'm really not looking forward to this job but this does give me a bit more confidence to give it a go. One thing I wondered - would it be easier to water down the pva, so that it will flow into the sleeper gaps on its own? Might cut down the risk of getting glue on switch rails. Anyway thanks again for the vid, really helpful.
note if your ballasting points keep the glue away from the control rods only do the sides,the sleepers, behind the points, and the frogs keep the glue 1 cm (2 feet in the International system 1 Centimeter is the Brit system) away from the points or they will be welded shut and you have to start from scratch with a new turnout. if ballast gets near the points or in the flangeways use a micro brush to remove it or vacuum it out. when your done assemble a MOW train in the yard and have one car with a cleaning block underneath to remove grit from the railheads.
i like the finish very much, and of course there is no right or wrong way this is art after all. I do find however from watching a few vids now on ballasting model rails, in my opinion, i prefer the ones where they apply the ballast dry, distribute it into the sleppers etc with a dry paint brush - then with a syrindge drop watered down wood glue into the ballast. but thats just what is appealing to me. everyone has there own way and i enjoyed your techniques also. wish i had the space for 00 im N
good job mate.there are alot of people out there that are unsure how to do this but not any more. the curve in the new point is certainly not as noticeable as the last and its amazing how much difference a change this small makes to a layout. what are you doing with the gap in the base board in front of that point?
Really finding your techniques for everything interesting. i'm hoping to start my railway soon as my baseboard is on order, so within the next couple of weeks starts the fun. What do you use underneath the track as it looks slightly higher than the rest of the board?
Hi Richard. What do you recommend to stop glue getting into the blades while spraying PVA? Actually While I am thinking about it, what do you recommend to get glue out of the blades to restore electrical contact on a DC layout?Many thanks
An excellent video. like the "speeded up" bit on what would otherwise be a long drawn out process. did you find you had any problems with ballast falling in the hole where you store the stock under the board?
You're braver than me...I would have to leave quite a gap around the tie bar. Wouldn't want ballast dropping down into the point motor. But your railway does look great.
And again an outstanding tut! Camera's always on the right spot, clear explanations & pleasant sonorous voice! It's prob. the best of ur vidz so far... 1c more I'm on t edge of my seat waitin' 4 the next one. =) Little drop of bitterness: After the new point (heading tow. the tunnel) where it is attached to the existing track it's little "bumpy" as u can see on the first drive by lookin' at the upper back of the waggons. Might be because of the connection to the already curved track!? ^^
Fantastic tutorials these. I watched your other ballasting video earlier and would like to ask, why the different technique? Because of the moving parts?
Time to learn how to hand build your own points? Before Concrete sleepered points, points were designed to fit the available space, so unlike the model world they didn't have small, medium & large. Each point was therefore a unique item. A handbuilt point of 5ft radius takes me 2 hours to build and costs around £4-£5 in parts (2020 prices). I don't use any complex tools , only copperclad sleeper strip and code 75 Bullhead rail, (from SMP Marcway in Sheffield) a fine, angled tip Antex XS25 modellers soldering iron. A couple of large but very fine files. 3 roll gauges (to hold rail in place while I solder it), and a number of my own "Tracksetta" tools as I make points between 5ft radii & 7ft 6in radii for exhibition layouts. Lastly a mini-drill with carbonundrum discs to cut the rail (NEVER use "rail cutting snipers" these items are blunt when you buy them and simply pinch the rail end). Building you own points basically means you can make any size you like, as per the real world, and save a fortune !
Do you have to use the brush to put the glue in first (like you did in this video), or can you use the technique you used in your original ballasting video?
I must thin my glue a lot more than I see on the videos as the glue I use just is sucked up and does not stay on top. The dry ballast is like rock though. This is good and saves money. Woodland Scenic is good but thin Elmers glue is as good and is less money. I even sypray it and clean the sprayer good after.
Had a go today...waiting for it to dry...had an idea about how to get less glue on the sleepers etc when using neat pva...I used the little glue pipet you get with flat pack furniture to pop a dab in an then spread with a brush!
Hi! I´m thinking about to get Peco code75 for my layout.I see here that you too have this tracks.Are you happy with this Peco tracks?I know myself that Peco code75 has very high quality on the rail.Any suggestment?
H. L. Wyatt Hello, I am fascinated by your superb weathering of rolling stock and scenery, I know that it would be a fiddly job in doing rails and points but rails even when new are rusty as are the chairs, the point check rails and wing rails are both not weathered, otherwise your layout is just great.
I usually paint the base plate grey, take some clear double sided sticky tape there, leaving a gap for the moving sleeper of course, put the turnout into position and sprinkle ballast on the tape. Faster, easier, safer. Fair to say though I have N gaube so the gaps between the sleepers are smaller and the ballast is finer. Might deliver not that satisfying results in 00.
Harry Hasek Some was recycled from the previous layout, other parts were bought new from homebase. I don't know how much the whole thing cost as construction has taken 5 years so far and i'm still going.
now i did some ballasting over my switch went back next day to try it out and the frog was goofed up on it worked great with out ballast crappy after took it all up and then dry switch reconnected and it was fine have you had that issue at all? im using atlas code 100 . love your how to vids as well help me out a lot !
+Richard Kwiatkowski I've had the switch get stuck sometimes after the glue has dried but never had a frog fail. The main thing to be careful of is getting glue on the rails. As long as the rails are clean and free from excess glue the switch should work as it did before ballasting.
Rather than using a track rubber to clean the top of the track, try a piece of hardboard, matt side down, does not leave fine scratch marks that pick up dirt.
I paint the roadbed in the same colour as the rest of the ballast, but I never ever ballast near the moving parts of the points, not a lot of people do.
when you are painting on the glue, do you use diluted glue, or just use it straight? and all of your videos have been a huge help to me, im just getting started in the hobby, and wanted to thank you for making these videos
I'm 55 and I am finally coming to plan and build my first and possibly only layout. It's a simple Bredon style on a 7ft X 4ft board from Peco's trackplans book; heavy on scenics, light, as possible on the overly technical stuff! But your How To vids are absolutely brilliant for showing a complete novice railway modeller like me, how to get on and start building my railway. Thank you indeed for sharing your knowledge in a friendly and highly informative way. I really enjoy your beautiful layout.
One more techinique you might add, especially where you don't want ballast by the points, simply paint the cork roadbed. I took some ballast I was to be using to Home Depot (here in the US, but any paint store can do this), and after picking some likely color sample cards, sprinkled ballast on them, picked the particular sample cards that best matched the two colors of ballast I would be using, and had the store mix a quart (approximately a litre) of each in latex flat paint. After ballasting, if there were any "holidays" they just didn't show. But especially around points I could minimize the amount of ballast being used and still look good.
Just getting started in the hobby but this video is exceptional. Your narrative of actions being taken is very easy to follow.
blaiseduff Is your layout DCC?
Isaac Swartz g
Thank you for taking the time in preparing this video. It was well done and I learned a lot from watching.
Just in midst of laying own an n gauge track at the ripe old age of 70! Your confident, informative and pleasant style of presentation is exceptional? I was a barrister for 40 years and know something about presenting a case in court! Keep up the good work!
Just starting again after a few decades break. That was so well done and helpful. Thank-you.
So life like it even has that sound where each wheel hits the gap between the two sections much like i hear when a train crosses the kingsferry bridge near where i live :). I have to say your attention to detail is amazing throughout!
Thanks for showing how to ballast a point. So few people show this process. I will keep this for future reference when I start to ballast my own layout Thanks for sharing. Randy
Thanks for this. I paint the glue on the sides of the track and put ballast on and then leave it. No need to pull it off of the tops of the ties as there is no glue there. I even tape off the road bed where I don't want ballast and it gives a good line. Then in the morning (next day or when ever you get back to the layout) yoi can brush the loose ballast up on the rail and basically spread it. Adding more where it needs it and then I wet the area with wet water and with a very small bottle I drip very delute glue on the track and around the turnouts. The extra ballast will fall out over the taped area and make it look softer as the real RR would look.
This was the best thing I could have ever found for my model Railway thank goddess I'm just starting to lay track
Good video Richard. I'll certainly remember your techniques of track laying. Thanks 👍
Some great ideas in this video and the production quality is excellent. Well done.
I’ve been ballasting track today but left out the points for another day , basically through being a tad worried. But I definitely like your way . Thank you .
Excellant video, just ready to start the ballasting now. Thank you.
You make it look easy! I'm really not looking forward to this job but this does give me a bit more confidence to give it a go. One thing I wondered - would it be easier to water down the pva, so that it will flow into the sleeper gaps on its own? Might cut down the risk of getting glue on switch rails. Anyway thanks again for the vid, really helpful.
Yeah, most people use a 50-50mix of PCs and water, with a drop of washing up liquid too
Excellent video I'm now ready to try on my layout an l of a layout 12' x 12'. this series has been very helpful to me but i am in my second childhood.
note if your ballasting points keep the glue away from the control rods only do the sides,the sleepers, behind the points, and the frogs keep the glue 1 cm (2 feet in the International system 1 Centimeter is the Brit system) away from the points or they will be welded shut and you have to start from scratch with a new turnout. if ballast gets near the points or in the flangeways use a micro brush to remove it or vacuum it out. when your done assemble a MOW train in the yard and have one car with a cleaning block underneath to remove grit from the railheads.
i like the finish very much, and of course there is no right or wrong way this is art after all. I do find however from watching a few vids now on ballasting model rails, in my opinion, i prefer the ones where they apply the ballast dry, distribute it into the sleppers etc with a dry paint brush - then with a syrindge drop watered down wood glue into the ballast. but thats just what is appealing to me. everyone has there own way and i enjoyed your techniques also. wish i had the space for 00 im N
Totally agree with your remark about the mainline point, tight turns bug me too.
I have just nearly completed my n gauge railroad. and you have been very helpful. are you considering putting a video of your final layout.
I spotted some lineside fencing you have used, what brand is it? Great vid, very helpful!
good job mate.there are alot of people out there that are unsure how to do this but not any more.
the curve in the new point is certainly not as noticeable as the last and its amazing how much difference a change this small makes to a layout.
what are you doing with the gap in the base board in front of that point?
Really finding your techniques for everything interesting. i'm hoping to start my railway soon as my baseboard is on order, so within the next couple of weeks starts the fun. What do you use underneath the track as it looks slightly higher than the rest of the board?
This video is a great help to me so thanks for making it, can you tell me what tools I need to start ballasting and when I can get them ?
Brilliant video, i will be using the tutorial, do you use just PVA glue? not glue and water?
Hi Richard. What do you recommend to stop glue getting into the blades while spraying PVA? Actually While I am thinking about it, what do you recommend to get glue out of the blades to restore electrical contact on a DC layout?Many thanks
An excellent video. like the "speeded up" bit on what would otherwise be a long drawn out process. did you find you had any problems with ballast falling in the hole where you store the stock under the board?
You're braver than me...I would have to leave quite a gap around the tie bar. Wouldn't want ballast dropping down into the point motor. But your railway does look great.
is the ballast blend the right color or is it just what you like ? I wanted to do a blend of buff and lite brown and a little of the grey
I have just ordered new tracks Peco code75.I´m glad that you are happy with yours tracks from Peco.I shall use Tortoise motor for my new turnouts.
And again an outstanding tut! Camera's always on the right spot, clear explanations & pleasant sonorous voice! It's prob. the best of ur vidz so far...
1c more I'm on t edge of my seat waitin' 4 the next one. =)
Little drop of bitterness: After the new point (heading tow. the tunnel) where it is attached to the existing track it's little "bumpy" as u can see on the first drive by lookin' at the upper back of the waggons.
Might be because of the connection to the already curved track!? ^^
Brilliant how to! Shall be using it for my c&l finescale points
On the railway cribs with stretcher bars should have no ballast 50mm below the stretcher bar so the points move freely in snow conditions
Very good this video. Do you have a video with the painting of the lines? Thanks.
Extremely good job of ballasting!
Thanks for sharing this, Ive always dreaded ballasting points!
Fantastic tutorials these. I watched your other ballasting video earlier and would like to ask, why the different technique? Because of the moving parts?
Time to learn how to hand build your own points? Before Concrete sleepered points, points were designed to fit the available space, so unlike the model world they didn't have small, medium & large. Each point was therefore a unique item. A handbuilt point of 5ft radius takes me 2 hours to build and costs around £4-£5 in parts (2020 prices). I don't use any complex tools , only copperclad sleeper strip and code 75 Bullhead rail, (from SMP Marcway in Sheffield) a fine, angled tip Antex XS25 modellers soldering iron. A couple of large but very fine files. 3 roll gauges (to hold rail in place while I solder it), and a number of my own "Tracksetta" tools as I make points between 5ft radii & 7ft 6in radii for exhibition layouts. Lastly a mini-drill with carbonundrum discs to cut the rail (NEVER use "rail cutting snipers" these items are blunt when you buy them and simply pinch the rail end). Building you own points basically means you can make any size you like, as per the real world, and save a fortune !
Did you gravel the point before you added in the point motor??
Do you have to use the brush to put the glue in first (like you did in this video), or can you use the technique you used in your original ballasting video?
Excuse me, could you please tell me what the product name of the glue you used was and where can I get it from as it seems to do the job very nicely.
It will just be normal PVA wood/paper glue ,you can buy it from any DIY shop .
I must thin my glue a lot more than I see on the videos as the glue I use just is sucked up and does not stay on top. The dry ballast is like rock though. This is good and saves money. Woodland Scenic is good but thin Elmers glue is as good and is less money. I even sypray it and clean the sprayer good after.
Had a go today...waiting for it to dry...had an idea about how to get less glue on the sleepers etc when using neat pva...I used the little glue pipet you get with flat pack furniture to pop a dab in an then spread with a brush!
Very nice....liked the remnants of the Kay-dee couplings at 15:03
Hi... I'm just starting my ballasting. What make & colour is the ballast you are using? I like to look it gives.
looks really gd, what ballast do u use?
How did you take up the track when it has a pin in it? Every time I've tried to do it I've broken a sleeper
Hi!
I´m thinking about to get Peco code75 for my layout.I see here that you too have this tracks.Are you happy with this Peco tracks?I know myself that Peco code75 has very high quality on the rail.Any suggestment?
Just done 1 point as a try out, yep bloody scary.Richard 🇳🇿
Which grade of ballast do you use? Fine or Medium?
H. L. Wyatt
Hello, I am fascinated by your superb weathering of rolling stock and scenery, I know that it would be a fiddly job in doing rails and points but rails even when new are rusty as are the chairs, the point check rails and wing rails are both not weathered, otherwise your layout is just great.
Great alternative to spraying loose ballast with glue mix. I'll give your method a try.
hey railroader! cool video and thx for showing HOW TO stuf fon youtube. how do you weather the rails without weathering the hole ballast? thx dude
I solder wiring to it, but I don't solder it together as the track needs room to expand and contract as the temperature changes.
hey, thanks for the advice what 'ballast is that and where did you get it from?
Great video well done. How ling did it take you to do it?
do you have a video on making hills and tunnels?
also on building stations?
Great vid, helps a lot of first timers, cheers.
How Far Should The Ballast Go out to from the outside rail to make it look realistic. And Also Nice Tutorials
love all your videos great work
Requires a bit of patience and understanding how the switch works. Thanks for showing.
Might be an idea to trim the ends of the tie bar to remove the 'nodules' on the ends for better realism.
That was great! The fast motion was very cool.
another epic video , youre channel has actually got some of the best vids on youtube :D
I usually paint the base plate grey, take some clear double sided sticky tape there, leaving a gap for the moving sleeper of course, put the turnout into position and sprinkle ballast on the tape. Faster, easier, safer. Fair to say though I have N gaube so the gaps between the sleepers are smaller and the ballast is finer. Might deliver not that satisfying results in 00.
Is that the King's Ferry bridge onto Isle of Sheppey?
Would you ballast a Peco double slip by the same method? I leave mine severely alone!
where did you get the wood for you layout table, did you buy it new or is it recycled,? if so how much did it cost you for the whole thing?
Harry Hasek Some was recycled from the previous layout, other parts were bought new from homebase. I don't know how much the whole thing cost as construction has taken 5 years so far and i'm still going.
now i did some ballasting over my switch went back next day to try it out and the frog was goofed up on it worked great with out ballast crappy after took it all up and then dry switch reconnected and it was fine have you had that issue at all? im using atlas code 100 . love your how to vids as well help me out a lot !
+Richard Kwiatkowski I've had the switch get stuck sometimes after the glue has dried but never had a frog fail. The main thing to be careful of is getting glue on the rails. As long as the rails are clean and free from excess glue the switch should work as it did before ballasting.
Do i have to use the syringe method or will my ballast be stuck down with just the painting PVA method
Yes, cab lights can be turned off and on by the dcc controller.
Thanks, I put a thin piece of cork under the track to give a slightly raised profile.
Mine is about 20mm, but it does change in a few places.
Did any ballast fall through the hole underneath the mechinism at 04:40?
P.S. It is goo to see that you are back! When is the next video?
The automatic captions are hilarious!! :)
great video
how often do you clean your track
:)
I think you need to use a little bit more glue. Some parts will go a little bit green, but weathering will fix that.
good video I am new to the hobby and I'm in the middle of buying all parts to build the hornby track mat
Rather than using a track rubber to clean the top of the track, try a piece of hardboard, matt side down, does not leave fine scratch marks that pick up dirt.
A very good and informative video very well done and videoed.
how did u get the glue off the rails and would it bother the loco if left on rails
A superb turorial as always, Liked and Faved 5*
Are you using flextrack or set track?
That's a very nice passenger train.
Hi, what ballast colour and size are you using please ? Thanks v much
Great vid once again!
What was your hoover called?
Hi nice vid but it actually makes me wonder how big ur layout is?
I paint the roadbed in the same colour as the rest of the ballast, but I never ever ballast near the moving parts of the points, not a lot of people do.
That was a good video :) How come you didn't change the point and test the train coming from the other track?
streamleazefishhouse The glue hadn't set and I didn't want to disturb it too much while it was drying so I only did a couple of passes.
can you do this method of ballasting to straights and curves?
when you are painting on the glue, do you use diluted glue, or just use it straight?
and all of your videos have been a huge help to me, im just getting started in the hobby, and wanted to thank you for making these videos
I use it straight when brushing it on.
ok, thanks
Another great video and good tips
hello
What brand of track you use? Peco or something else, and what the rail height?
I used peco code 100 streamline track and points.
EverardJunction Thank you.
nice Howto tips. I will use this method when I do Mine. Thanks for shearing
What is the brand and size of the ballast used?
Excellent video - well done
I am surprised you didn't cut the ends off the throw rod and trim the two long sleepers back. Good video though. It is the scary bit for many.
Theres an option in sony vegas that allows you to speed up clips of film. I use that rather than time lapse.
@ 4:30 could you paint it the same colour as the ballast?
Just pva glue when i'm using the brush. I water it down when using the dropper.