02-13-2011, 05:13 PM
Randy, if it worked well mixing alcohol in with the glue, it'll work even better if you pre-wet the ballast. 
As for matte medium versus white glue, I've used both and the results seem identical. The main difference is the cost, with 8oz. of matte medium (around here at least) going for almost as much as a gallon of white glue. Neither will dry shiny if the ballast is sufficiently pre-wetted, and I can detect absolutely no difference between the two as far as noise transmission is concerned. Ditto for the proportions you use when mixing with water - mixed in similar proportions, the performance is the same.
One possible difference which I haven't explored is the removeability of ballast secured with matte medium. With white glue, you need only re-wet (preferably with "wet" water) the area, let it soak for a bit, then start scraping and lifting track.
If you get into applying ballast and scenic materials where there's any appreciable depth to the application, cost quickly becomes a major concern. For the area alongside the track, shown below, the rip-rap, sub-ballast, cinders, and ballast is over 1" deep in some places.
![[Image: 2007-01-10037.jpg]](http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/doctorwayne/Latest%20Photos/2007-01-10037.jpg)
To properly secure it all, the area was saturated with wet water, followed by copious quantities of white glue mixture - I just kept adding more until it finally began seeping from the bottom of the piled material. When it dried, after at least a week, the area was solidly bonded together, allowing direct use of a shop vac when dust removal is necessary. The material looks loose mainly due to the ample pre-wetting. Failure to sufficiently pre-wet and/or apply enough glue/matte medium mixture results in a solid crust forming atop loose material. It may look good, but any contact heavier than a hard stare will break the crust, necessitating removal and replacement.
Matte medium has many uses, but, in my opinion, isn't the best choice for this job.
If painting the rails is tedious, it's probably because you're using a brush that's too small, requiring frequent reloading. I find that a fairly stiff 1/2" or 3/4" brush works well. The stiff bristles allow you to work the paint around the spike detail , while the larger size means fewer trips back to the paint bottle. I use PollyScale, and generally do between 8'-15' at a time (about five minutes doing both sides of both rails - turnouts do take longer). By that time, the paint has dried to the touch, but is still easy to wipe off the railtops using a dry rag wrapped over my fingertips. You shouldn't run trains for at least 24 hours after finishing, to allow the paint to fully harden.
Wayne
As for matte medium versus white glue, I've used both and the results seem identical. The main difference is the cost, with 8oz. of matte medium (around here at least) going for almost as much as a gallon of white glue. Neither will dry shiny if the ballast is sufficiently pre-wetted, and I can detect absolutely no difference between the two as far as noise transmission is concerned. Ditto for the proportions you use when mixing with water - mixed in similar proportions, the performance is the same.
One possible difference which I haven't explored is the removeability of ballast secured with matte medium. With white glue, you need only re-wet (preferably with "wet" water) the area, let it soak for a bit, then start scraping and lifting track.
If you get into applying ballast and scenic materials where there's any appreciable depth to the application, cost quickly becomes a major concern. For the area alongside the track, shown below, the rip-rap, sub-ballast, cinders, and ballast is over 1" deep in some places.
To properly secure it all, the area was saturated with wet water, followed by copious quantities of white glue mixture - I just kept adding more until it finally began seeping from the bottom of the piled material. When it dried, after at least a week, the area was solidly bonded together, allowing direct use of a shop vac when dust removal is necessary. The material looks loose mainly due to the ample pre-wetting. Failure to sufficiently pre-wet and/or apply enough glue/matte medium mixture results in a solid crust forming atop loose material. It may look good, but any contact heavier than a hard stare will break the crust, necessitating removal and replacement.
Matte medium has many uses, but, in my opinion, isn't the best choice for this job.
If painting the rails is tedious, it's probably because you're using a brush that's too small, requiring frequent reloading. I find that a fairly stiff 1/2" or 3/4" brush works well. The stiff bristles allow you to work the paint around the spike detail , while the larger size means fewer trips back to the paint bottle. I use PollyScale, and generally do between 8'-15' at a time (about five minutes doing both sides of both rails - turnouts do take longer). By that time, the paint has dried to the touch, but is still easy to wipe off the railtops using a dry rag wrapped over my fingertips. You shouldn't run trains for at least 24 hours after finishing, to allow the paint to fully harden.
Wayne