More Ballasting of Tracks and Turnouts

/ Layout, Trackwork / By

Not having ballasted a layout before, I delayed that part of track work until I really had to do it. As mentioned in my previous post Track Ballast, Streets and Ground Cover, I started with the team tracks. Most of them were straight and not difficult to do. When I came to the crossovers, it got a bit harder, but still I gained confidence in my process. The ballasting worked out to my satisfaction – until I hit the turnouts. How could I ballast the turnouts without wrecking the raison d’être for my layout? 

Starting a thread on Turnout Ballasting on the Model Railroader Community website was helpful. Several hard-core modelers pointed me to some more sources with interesting techniques and tricks. While some modelers have suggested to use alternate methods that would avoid liquid glue altogether, this was not an option for me. I was able to use the same method and process for ballasting turnouts as for straight or curved track. The difference is that ballasting turnouts has to be a continuously monitored and tightly controlled process. Plus, it takes far more time than for ordinary track to create a perfect ballasted track bed. While it is okay to walk away after adding the glue to a straight or curved section of track and to come back after 12 hours when the ballast has hardened, this is not advisable for turnouts.

Lessons Learned

Here’s a summary of what I learned and what has worked for me: 

  • Work in small batches – do one turnout at a time and finish it before proceeding to the next one. If something goes wrong, if your switch gets tacky and no longer moves, you need to focus all your attention on that problem and you can’t deal with multiple issues on your layout at the same time.  
  • Work carefully, use proper tools and start with the shoulder on one side, then the other side of the turnout, and only at the end deal with the most delicate parts of the switch. 
  • Perhaps even more critical than controlling the flow of PVA glue is the controlling of the isopropyl alcohol as it acts as a fluxing agent to the glue. The smaller the amount of isopropyl alcohol and diluted PVA glue that your tools can apply, the better. 
  • Step in immediately when glue spreads where it shouldn’t. Use a cotton swab and a micro brush to absorb glue and to clean ties and rails that should stay dry. 
  • Always follow the sequence ballast-alcohol-glue. When you need to add more ballast, wait until the current cycle is complete and the glue has dried before adding more ballast. 
  • Instead of the ballast-alcohol-glue sequence you can use a simpler method to add ballast between the ties under the points: carefully apply a little glue with a micro-brush and then spread ballast on top. This will create a thin layer of ballast that is sufficient for this part of the turnout. If more ballast is needed you can repeat the process. 

Tips and Tricks

  • Leave the switch in a centered position so that the points do not touch the stock rails. This will lower the chance of a point getting glued to its stock rail. Verify periodically that the points still move without resistance. 
  • Use painter’s tape to cover the critical parts while adding the ballast and isopropyl alcohol. Cover the throw-bar and the hinges of the point rails. When done with the that part, and before adding glue, remove the tape so that you are fully aware where your glue spreads.
  • While a spray bottle is okay for wetting ballast with isopropyl alcohol under a longer section of track, you preferably should not use it for turnouts. I started with a simple syringe but switched to a pipette (as suggested by Cody Grivno in his MRV Plus video on ballasting turnouts) for both alcohol and glue. 
  • Clean up the web of the rails from glued ballast after having added the glue. Remove all ballast between guard and wing rails and the frog immediately by using a tooth pick or even a small screwdriver. I usually use my thumbnail to verify that the inside web of the rails are clean.  
  • Lubricating the throw-bar and the point rails with an oil or graphite also helped avoiding sticky turnouts. I used both Labelle 108 and Kadee Greas-em in small amounts. 

Acknowledgments

I did not try other less intrusive methods for ballasting turnouts as suggested by some contributors of the MR post. For instance, I considered the use of texture spray-paint a last resort if the liquid glue method would have completely failed – but that was not the case. Nevertheless, I’m grateful to the MR community who helped me with their advice. After all, ballasting the turnouts was much easier than I originally assumed. I did not have major accidents and all my turnouts still are functional. However, it took me far more time than I anticipated.