cheap ballast

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bigsteel

Call me Mr.Tinkertrain
Dec 12, 2006
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Cincinnati,Ohio
Does anyone know where i can get some cheap ballast?im starting to gather supplies for my new layout and i dont want to pay 9.00 bucks a canister for woodland scenics stuff.id end up having 200 bucks in just ballast ad im cheap as heck :D .i was thinking masonry sand but im not sure about size of the grains.so could someone post a pic of there ballast so i can get an idea of size.thanks for any help and maybe this could be a sticky someday for cheap ballast! :wave: thanks.--josh
 
I think sand would work fine. Is masonery sand available in colors beside white? I think I would wash it thoroughly to make sure there is no salt or other corrosives in it, and when it is dry, run a magnet through it to make sure any iron is removed.
 
isnt sand a littlefine or is there really coarse stuff?and i think masonry sand comes in a few colors.and i thought that iron would be a problem but i guess ill just check it with a magnet.
 
In ho scale 1/8 inch is just a little less than 1 foot. If you look at the medium grit Woodland Scenics ballast material that they reccomend for ho scale, it is closer to 8-10 inches for each rock. The fine ballast that Woodland Scenics reccomends for n scale is a better choice for ho ballast. I think the sand will work great for ballast as far as size goes.
 
Russ Bellinis said:
Kitty litter would need to be crushed and sifted to make it fine enough for ballast. As it comes out of the bag the pieces are probably about 12 scale inches in diameter.
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Sifted, yes. Crushed, no. Tidy Cats brand, as an example, runs from about 12 scale inches down to about 2 scale inches, and it is already a nice grey color. As cheap as it is, crushing the larger stuff wouldn't be neccesary.

Somewhere, I saw a thread that claimed some of the commercial ballast (Woodland Senics brand, I think it was) was nothing more than repackaged kitty litter, and purported to offer proof. I just wish I could remember where I saw it.
 
Kitty litter, before the cat gets to it, not after. sign1
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i don't want a layout smelling like mint! LOL

ill try the builders sand since it sounds like it will be perfect for the amount ill need ans some left over, and as a guide if 1/8=12in then i should get sand about 1/16in? if so sounds like i got some shopping to do! also do i just glue it down like reg. ballast? anyway sounds like sand is cheap and plentiful LOL.--josh
 
Torpedo said:
Kitty litter, before the cat gets to it, not after. sign1
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I was looking at the bucket the other say thinking the same thing. The stuff I have is real fine but I'm sure it's made of clay and i don't want to have to sift out the blue crystals.
 
I am a COMPLETE newb but I got an idea about the magnet and iron thing.
Put the sand in a bowl and put a few magnets in there and twirl the borl and let the magnet move all around inside the sand.
It will be easier i think to find iron in there.
 
im gonna check out home depot today,if they got iron fre sand ill get ti and try it out.and if i cant find it there ill try a local hardware store on my street.--josh
 
bigsteel said:
im gonna check out home depot today,if they got iron fre sand ill get ti and try it out.and if i cant find it there ill try a local hardware store on my street.--josh
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Got my masonary sand at Home Depot and checked it with a magnet. It's clean. Remember, you can sift it as fine as you want. I have four or five different grades ranging from ballast for N scale, to course (right out of the bag) that I can use for N scale talus. I just used several different strainers and screens to get what I wanted. The finest grade came from using a piece of plastic sun screen which you can also find at Home Depot.
 
J. Steffen said:
Does it come in different colors besides tan/light?
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No, the color ranges from medium tan to specks of black, but I'm going to use an india ink wash to darken it. I would imagine that you could use a paint wash plus an india ink wash to change the color. The play sand came in a light tan, but the grains were too consistent and so was the color so I opted for the masonry sand.
 
If you go to a building supply yard you should be able to find several sizes of sand. There is also the very fine grit sold by paint stores for adding traction to floor paint. Then there is the sand sold to make sand texture on drywall, if you can still find it. Basically, if you look around you should be able to find all sorts of cheap sand for ballast.
 
alright headen out tomorrow and going to see what home depot has,and if they oonly have light sand ill just do what Ezdays does and give it a wash.and ill probably sift it with some metal screen with 1/16in holes for my size ballast and good size ranges.and play sand ill probably use as my sandbars in my river.well looks like you guys save me about 150.00 bucks!--josh
 
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