Water & wood don't mix

[lester perry]

I built a wood loading platform for my sawmill. It is stained with an oil base stain. I love the results. It is just what I was looking for. Now I have a problem. I can't move it (built in place) now I need to ballast the track. I use wet water and a mix of 80/20 water / elmers glue. If I spray the balast with wet water the new wood platform will look like a pretzel.
Les

 

[60103]

Lester: get a piece of cardboard or plastic. use this as a barrier between the platform and the track.
Or use an eyedropper.

 

[ezdays]

Get some of that blue or purple painter's masking tape and wrap your structure with it. That tape has a low tack and can be removed easily without damaging what it was stuck to. Home Depot, Lowe's and even Wal-Mart carries it.

 

[MasonJar]

Do both - protect the structure AND use an eye-dropper. The dropper is much more accurate and just as fast, if not faster than carefully spraying a mist over everything (whether it needs it or not ).

Andrew

 

[lester perry]

Thanks I would have never thought of using an eye dropper for wet water. That should work I will try to get to it one evening this week and let you know how it works out.

Les

 

[Gary Pfeil]

Hey Lester, since you'll be using an eyedropper to apply your wet water, consider using a 50/50 mix of water and alcohol for your wet water(you can add a bit of india ink, it will weather the ballast nicely) The alcohol has less surface tension than water with detergent and will soak right in with minimal disturbace of your ballast.

 

[lester perry]

Hey Lester, since you'll be using an eyedropper to apply your wet water, consider using a 50/50 mix of water and alcohol for your wet water(you can add a bit of india ink, it will weather the ballast nicely) The alcohol has less surface tension than water with detergent and will soak right in with minimal disturbace of your ballast.

I might give the alcohol a try, As I said before hopefully get to it before this week end and give an update.
Les

 

[jim currie]

we tied cutting the white glue with alcohol (ever clear) on a diorama that were pressed for time on worked like a champ the alcohol works like wet water itself no presoak just run mix on with a small squeeze bottle. use ever clear here because you can buy it cheeper in Mexico that denatured in US.and if your man enough its drinkable

 

[jon-monon]

Bet the glue tastes funny tho Jim sign1

 

[Russ Bellinis]

we tied cutting the white glue with alcohol (ever clear) on a diorama that were pressed for time on worked like a champ the alcohol works like wet water itself no presoak just run mix on with a small squeeze bottle. use ever clear here because you can buy it cheeper in Mexico that denatured in US.and if your man enough its drinkable

Just remember to leave enough alcohol to do what you bought it for. Otherwise a drunk model railroader will have to cross the border again to get more everclear.