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BALLISTING TRACK

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7.5K views 17 replies 12 participants last post by  John J  
#1 ·
ON MLK DAY in honor of his I have a dream speech I worked on my Dream.


First I got a 5 gal bucket of ballast.

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Put it in the mixer to brake up any clumps.

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Add 4 of 5 heaping scoops of Portland Cement or Mortar/stucco mix to the mixer and let mix. Add color if it is too gray for you

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Prepare base and track.


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Using the scoop pour ballast from the 5 gal bucket to cover the track completely like this.


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Custom made spreading tool


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Spread the ballast till the tracks are visible. I make it the width of the right of way. About one inch on each side of the track.

Put a level across the tracks and check for level. If there is a low spot. Rais the ties till the level reads level, Tapping on the brass rail all the time.

This will allow the ballast to sift down into the crack and crannies. Tap the track the whole length of the area you are ballasting.

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In this close up you can see that some of the ballast has settle down into the ties.

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With a paint brush or soft bristled brush, brush the excess ballast from inside and out side or the track. The inside excess ballast I brush/sweep towards the next section I am going to ballast.
The outside I brush away forming a berm on either side of the road right of way

At this point some of the ballast will settle down between the ties. If it seems to much then you can do touch up the same way.



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Next I wet it with a gentle rain from the garden hose.

It will cause more settling.

If it appears that too much has settled for your liking you can touch it up later. Just wait for the ballast to dry before adding touch up

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Discussion starter · #10 ·
Posted By aceinspp on 18 Jan 2011 09:22 AM
Where is your drainage? Did you put the concrete road bed under this track in the cut. Later RJD
All of the NR&W road bed is concrete with back fill. There is an area where I dug a trench for correct a 9% grade. The bottom is solid concrete about max of 4 inches. It had become a raging torent washing away the sides making it more of a depression . I have re rouned the water. In that section I use to have to work on the ballast every two years or so depending on the amount of rain we got.

Drainage is all ways tanken into account when Ballasting. No always does it turn out as planed. I had to add a drain for Carter Canyon after the fact. After disrupting everything I thought it would be a good thing to show ballasting.

Results may vary
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Discussion starter · #11 ·
Posted By Totalwrecker on 18 Jan 2011 10:00 AM
Purty in pink!

If you make berms won't that funnel water down the rails?... better to make drainage ditches. Run ditch past plastic pipe under mountains to drain away.

John

John

Berms was a poor choise of words. The out side area is usually sloped away from the track. There is somewhat of a depression on the sides to carry the water off.

The slope is created with the paint brush when removing excess ballast to expose the rail.
 
Discussion starter · #15 ·
Posted By chaingun on 20 Jan 2011 07:14 AM
Hey JJ,
Look-en - Muy Bueno Amigo!
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I am giving serious thought to concrete road bed on the new layout. Especially sense I "feel" there could be a Big Boy in my, not to distant future.
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Best, Ted

Hey Ted

If you do concrete road bed right, Level it side to side, and set your grades ( if you have any) you really don't have to do it again ever. ( here in the desert that is) You may have to re do ballast every so often depending on the rain. But it sure takes a lot of Maintenance out of the equation and leaves more time for running.
 
Discussion starter · #16 ·
Here is pic's of todays work. I replaced some track to make a curve a little more wider as the cars were catching on rocks.


Drill a 1/4 inch hole with rotohammer

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Insert Blue Anchor

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Bend a piced of re bar wire around a screw like so

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Screw it in the anchor

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Bend wire over ties like so.

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More Ballasting different color


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Do you see the light at the end of the tunnel?
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