Ballasting on a Budget

[@GrannyGooseOnYouTube]

Awesome idea!!!!! my husband is continually in shock over my little "expenditures" for my railway, and I've barely gotten started! Tips like this are much appreciated!!!

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thank you for your brilliant comment! My partner experiences the same shock from time to time. It's partly the reason I'm always on the lookout for cheaper ways of doing things.

[@realworldambience9728]

I'm just getting started with this great hobby, so every piece of advice I can get is of great use. The tips you give can really save a significant amount of money and the results are superb. Thank you very appreciated

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thank you for your kind feedback. My aim from the beginning was to offer tips and tricks from a more budget conscious perspective, so it's great to see folks are gaining some ideas and inspiration from the videos I publish.

[@davecrosson5018]

Thank you so much! I got my bag of fine pumice from Oderings yesterday and have filtered it into 3 sizes. Looking forward to getting started on ballasting my tracks on a budget! Great tips! From a fellow kiwi :D

[@nicholaslongford-solopage4476]

This is the most informative helpful video I've seen as a beginner

[@modelrailroadadventureswit6347]

I’m going to have to check pumice out. Never thought of that. Another product that looks great if you can find them is asphalt shingle granules. I found a hobby shop that was selling pound bags as a fun raiser for a club layout. I bought some and sieved them to get different sizes and put them on my layout in all areas except the mains. I ended up buying all they had :D

[@beverett6256]

Woodland Scenics ballast is made from ground Walnut shells

[@MRR_Shadowolf]

Great tip on alternative ballast, will check it out. Subbed and catching up on your videos!

[@robinred1851]

No doubt the pumice looks much much better. Great video. The method is nothing new but the pumice is great. Greetings from the Čech Republic 🇨🇿.

[@eugeniomarins2936]

Great video! I will look for something similar to pomice here in Brazil. I will also try to use a sort of ceramic cat litter to do cheap cargo...

[@fircombehallrailwayoogauge1430]

Cracking video - a job I am not looking forward to doing! Your explanations and advice is very clear, thank you!

[@ianjeffery4773]

Great tip. Maybe the larger grains could be used for hopper wagon loads.

[@jedlahaye4765]

Very good tutorial, I have used sifted sandpit sand and added a very light grey paint, dried out and applied the same way, pumice sounds great, thankyou from Wairoa in New Zealand

[@BobBob-yu1nk]

Bro take a siv down to the railway and try sift out some ballast it works perfect, we're in the manawatu

[@klaus9909]

Love it. Especially here in NZ you have to look where you spent your buck.

[@mysticrailroad]

just discovered this channel. subscribed. brilliant. you ROCK Sir.

[@markosolowey5887]

excellent idea for alternative ballast will look into this idea thanks for sharing all the best Marko.

[@uptownphotography]

Great idea. Home they sell it here in the US at Lowes or Home Depot stores....Thanks for the video.

[@LNER1946]

What a great idea for ballast, will look in the UK and see how much for a bag of pumice. Glynn

[@hirsutusi5536]

What's wrong with saying Kilogram?

[@yanikalol5853]

Awesome!!! I really liked it! Sure I’m gonna use this tecnique for my dioramas! Thank you for showing!!

[@ausfoodgarden]

It doesn't appear as though Bunnings or Ikea in Australia have it although I only did a quick check. Enfield Produce in NSW sell 5kg bags for $11 so maybe other garden/produce stores have it. I only checked there as I occasionally buy other items for the garden from them.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

I had a feeling Bunnings Australia might not sell it or sell a variation. Definitely try the garden centres.

[@nevillemadden394]

@@StationRoadModelRailway Hydroponics Stores/Suppliers. AUSPERL have it. www.ausperl.com/product/pumice-25l/

[@fredbentley4944]

I don't know if I have seen pumice in local hardware stores here but I will look for it. Great video. Thanks for great tips !!

[@joevalentine2048]

Ah yes pumice is cheaper but does it come in the many varieties of colors that Woodland Scenics does? I use a gray blend which is a mix of light and dark gray and add additional dark gray to it. It also can be toned down or not by mixing India ink in your alcohol spray for areas that are subject to oil or grease deposits. Also there are very very light colors if your ballast comes from an area with limestone rich rock. Cheaper still is sanded grout which already has a glue additive in it Just a thought

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

All valid points, thanks for your comments/suggestions.

[@clivecobbold6815]

Hi mate great idea mate I will look for it in B&Q here in the UK and try it on my layout clive

[@nevillemadden394]

Great Video! That looks like a good money-saying idea using the Crushed Pumice, in preference to Actual Ballast Products. I was considering crushing Fine Aquarium (Fish Tank) Gravel, and using that, as I'm designing a N Guage/Scale Layout; but using Sieved Crushed Pumice seems a better option. I imagine I'll have to Crush It to become a Suitable Size for N Guage/Scale. ( I use both Terms Guage/Scale, as I will be using 1:148 and/or 1:150, and 1:160 Scale Models & Scenery/Accessories, in different locations: Whereas, 'Guage' actually refers to the Tracks & Trains, not the rest of a Layout, and Scale actually refers to Models/Accessories etc, and Scaled Sizes/Distances on a Layout). Note about Ballast Products: Woodlands Scenic Ballast actually comes in a Variation of Colours and it's Colourfast, and can also be Recoloured using Woodland Scenics Pigment Dyes. Apparently, it is Not made of Real Rock as some people believe. Be Cautious using it around anyone with Food Allergies ( in particular, Nut Allergies). It must be made of some type of Tree Nut By-Products, as it has a Warning that states ..... ALLERGY CAUTION: Contains tree nut by-products. Check out the Suppliers Website before using Real Model Railway Ballast Products. Here's one of W.S. Ballast Products that I randomly selected on their Website. Scroll Down and Click on the FAQ Tab: It has Answers to Questions asking if it is Real Rock, and about Recolouring it. woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/item/BAL-LG

[@dkaustin98]

I have also heard that Woodland Scenics is colored crushed walnut shells. It can float in your adhesives. Hence the wetter water or denatured alcohol to help the glue soak in better. Now pumice is known to float too. Large patches have been found floating in the ocean near volcanic activity. I suppose you can color your pumice using colored grout with glue already in the grout. Cat litter is not a good idea if you have a cat or end up with a cat in the future. You may find some unwanted surprises on your layout left by the cat.

[@cdjhyoung]

Cat litter is a clay product and is likely to turn to mud when wetted before gluing. The pumac floats in the ocean because rocks of it are full of gas that is embedded as the lava that it comes from is ejected from the volcano. The pumac he is using is not likely to have this embedded gas to make it float.

[@medwaymodelrailway7129]

Great update enjoyed it very much .Hope there more.

[@riogrande5761]

What is your cheap solution for cinder Ballast typical of the D&RGW in the 70's?

[@alanswallow9033]

Like the idea of the pumice. I used sieved sand but it has too many translucent pieces in the mix so I went to the Wilson’s Road railway crossing to borrow a few lumps of Kiwi Rails ballast to check size and colour and ended up with 2 jars of Woodlands scenic’s medium ballast1 brown & 1 grey and put it down 50/50 mix ! if I could do it again I would try 2 grey to 1 brown I liked your 3 wire fence idea.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

As you know, real ballast comes in so many sizes and colours, even here in NZ the ballast varies depending on region and how frequent re-ballasting occurs. Driving up the Kaikora coast recently, I noticed how new and clean the track ballast is, post quake rebuilding, and very little traffic use, so essentially grey. Whereas the track ballast here in Christchurch is basically a brown/oxide colour.

[@glennwood1119]

here in the US I go to my local pet supply store and get ground up walnut shell lizard litter which I think woodland senic uses.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

It's great to see all the comments coming in, and in particular on Facebook. There's been a number of other alternative ballast products mentioned that I'd like to share here. These include chinchilla dust, calcisand, and even cat litter... brilliant stuff guys!

[@DonaldVandal]

What scale would you say the pumice is? I'm modeling in o scale.

[@geobrower3069]

Great idea, love it! Cheers from Canada

[@ajknaup3530]

Has anyone tried using sand as part of your ballast mix?

[@cowfeet1]

Great idea. Ikea have a 3l / 2kg bag here in Denmark for 35 DKR (4 GBP) . I'm going to ballast for the first in a couple of weeks on a little christmas layout and will try using pumise :-)

[@billbarnes8192]

Washed play sand for kids sand box works as well, comes in a fifty pound bag, I sifted mine separating the larger sizes for other uses

[@jamesschrom317]

Very nicely done! I have read somewhere that the Woodland Scenics Ballasts are made out of crushed walnut shells.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thanks for your kind comment. That's interesting to hear crushed walnut shells are the source of Woodland Scenics ballast, I wouldn't have guessed that.

[@nevillemadden394]

I just saw your Mention of Walnut Shells. I actually mentioned Nut By-Products further up.

[@joshuakeller1969]

Shouldn't the right part of the sifted pumiced be compared with the woodland ballast for the right price comparison?

[@dbmartin60]

I work A rock crusher, I use what we call manufactured sand,using A series of test sieves I get all different sizes of ballast and fines for ballasting and landscaping.

[@dbmartin60]

also the commercially available "ballast looks like crap,The ballast I make looks just like real ballast.

[@kargandarr]

It would also work as programming track. Also, nylons on one of the sieves would help filter out the most fine of the granules.

[@AndyCrawford_NorfolkWestern]

I use “leveling sand”, just mixed grade decomposed granite for installing paver stones in the back yard. I screen it just as you do, and use unsanded grout to manipulate color. This works great, for whiter shades of ballast. But I’m really happy to have found this alternate base medium, as it will give me a material that more appropriate for brown shades and likely better for less maintained trackage. It will also likely let me do less airbrushing in certain applications. But the “leveling sand” is worth trying also, depending on your vision for a particular scene. Thanks for sharing, just found ya and am enjoying your channel. Happy Holidays!

[@ewoodrailway]

Great "how to" video, thanks for sharing

[@timothyahernRoxyCat]

Absolutely delightful.

[@michaelchristensen6884]

Do you check the granules for anything metallic so it will not be picked up by the locomotive if it breaks loose?

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

I go on the basis there are no metals within pumice, but I guess it couldn't be fully counted out. However, I do go through a thorough gluing process when ballasting, then once dry I scrub the track with a toothbrush and hoover up the debris, this pretty much ensures no loose bits getting into loco mechanisms.

[@stephenater9687]

Might check poultry grit also. Dirt cheap here in the states and comes in different sizes. Cheers!

[@tsu8003]

A cheap way to ballast large areas such as marshalling yards is to buy a sheet of foam card and rip the top card off to expose the hard foam underneath. It looks like ballast and can be painted and you can then sprinkle ballast over it in far less quantity than if you just used ballast on it's own. An A1 sheet is really cheap and it is easy to cut and shape too. It is particularly useful for the Kato N gauge preballasted track as it is about the same thickness.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

That sounds like an intriguing idea, I think I have some foam card lurking around somewhere, I'll give it a go. Thanks for the tip.

[@markandrews2883]

the pumice mix is what scenic textures uses to make their ballast

[@dibley1973]

I'm struggling to find this cheap in the UK. Ikea (which someone suggested) don't appear to have the pumace in stock. Any one know of any where else selling it at a decent price? I can only finger 500g for £4 is.... . I bought some "6mm and less" limestone from an aggregate supplier but by the time I sieved it, I had loads of really large "rocks" ideal for a 00 gauge quarry but very little track ballast size suitably graded limestone.

[@timgriswold5522]

What size mesh screens are being used to sort the material?

[@stevef9530]

Good solution if you’re in NZ, but I can’t find anything similar in UK. Just tiny expensive amounts for people with bonsai trees or aquariums. Thanks anyway!

[@garden-Railway]

Anyone found this product in uk?

[@craigcanterbury7233]

Have to do this for my Ho scale diorama thanks so much brother best regards USA 🇺🇸

[@christophersitton953]

Does your pumice bag say what the mix grade is? We can get 1-2, 1-4 and 1-7 in the kiwi sourced product in Oz. I'm wondering what grade your example product would be closest to?

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Hi Christopher, apologies for the late response. The product I buy doesn't indicate a grade as specific as that, there's just two grades available - fine or coarse, and fine is the one I use. www.bunnings.co.nz/egmont-pumice-5l_p0167620

[@georgethomas7814]

Try Blending some of your pumice mix with the woodlands stuff...... Cork or slightly lifted track can be shown as features and does not need to be all over a kiwi layout.... Australian and UK use different rock and when new they appear much lighter. After a year or so depending on track use there can be much more weed growth in New Zealand. Also I would of put the grass edging down first and then covered the edges with Ballast making sure to leave the odd pile at the side. Additionally mixing some grass into the ballast on sidings can create a very typical rarely used appearance. These are features again seen most commonly in New Zealand rarely in other countries or Modelling. PLEASEE CONTINUE WITH THESE THEY ARE BRILLIANT. One final thought I have seen buffers modelled by others. Here they are very basic in some areas. Box of sleeper rail filled with pumice and a bit of grass mix. For the other end concrete block sitting over the track and more weeds, plenty of those on Kiwi Rail.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thank you for your in-depth comments and feedback, all valid suggestions. In terms of modelling British Railways, I don't reference anything from NZR as they're nothing like BR and can't really be compared at all. You'll also find track ballast in the UK varied considerably depending on the location/region. With regards to method, I prefer to ballast first where static grass is to be applied. I've found when static grass is applied first, the subsequent drenching of 50/50 glue solution for the ballasting process dissolves the static grass glue and tends to flatten the grass fibres. But as they say, there's always more than one way to model a scene.

[@charlietrain]

Just make sure what you use has no metal or iron particles that can get picked up by the motors of your models.

[@dotbmp]

i'd imagine if its glued proper nothing "should" be coming up. but a good point to be aware of!

[@eukaryon]

Pumice is available in many sizes. What grain size are you using? There are several measures of grain size. See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grain_size

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

The product I buy doesn't indicate a specific granule size, there's just two grades available - fine or coarse, and fine is the one I use. www.bunnings.co.nz/egmont-pumice-5l_p0167620

[@hawikau1654]

I use play-sand at about $4 per 50lb bag from our local Lowes.

[@1BCamden]

looks great, can you provide a finished

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

I'll be showing the finished result in my next video which I'll be posting this coming weekend.

[@1BCamden]

Thanks, much appreciated, looks like a great option. Currently searching around South Australia for this stuff, no luck yet.

[@davidgregory1668]

Will look into the pumice idea,cheers David from Palmy North NZ.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Hi David and Palmy Nth. Great to hear from a fellow kiwi. You should be able to pick a bag from Bunnings and if the result is not what you're after, you can alway use the pumice on the garden.

[@TonySmith-cd7jo]

I almost never buy specific model making products, if you look, around there is often products that do exactly the same thing and in many cases does it better. For example I use d limonene instead of styrene solvent type glues, its safer, smells of oranges, and is less aggressive on thin styrene.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

I'm very much the same, if there's an alternative out there, I'll use it. There's going to more up-coming videos from my channel that will involve the use of alternative materials and equipment, so stay tuned.

[@TonySmith-cd7jo]

@@StationRoadModelRailway I look forward to that. thanks.

[@ricardojuricic9027]

Hi nice video!! Looking at photo of 2nd part I'd say that ballast with sumice looks more like railroad's ballast; got a track 50 mts in front of home remade new 2 years ago. They brought the tiers, then the rails, screwed them down, all 'in situ', then brought the gravel and made the railroadbed; eventually got a machine come along the track lifting the roadbed shifting the gravel around and setting the roadbed in place; eventually rails were soldered. Took months to accomplish it. No trains in the meantime. The other product seems too sandish colour ... I don't know though maybe in desert areas or near sand dunes might have that ballast colour. When you mention dollars, us it US dlrs or NZ dlrs. If the latter, what's the exchange rate? By K G do you mean kilograms? Thanks tons! Best regards from Buenos Aires, Argentina Cheers Saludos Richard

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Hi Richard, thanks for your comments, very interesting. Yes, when referencing dollars, I'm referring to NZD. $1 NZD is approx $0.65 USD. And KG or kg is kilograms. We're all metric here in NZ.

[@ricardojuricic9027]

@@StationRoadModelRailway re weight measures believe in UK, US and maybe somewherelse they weigh in pounds and ounces; whilest the great majority do so in kilograms and metric measurements. Thanks again! Cheers

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Yes, the US almost entirely uses imperial measurements and the UK is mostly imperial with a bit of metric, for example they use the A4, A3, A2 and so on paper size system like NZ.

[@Yellow_iron_and_spanners]

I live in New Zealand

[@jamesbrookes6298]

Hi. A very informative video thanks very much. Im goin to try that pomice on my newly being built N gauge layout. I need to ask you if you can help?. Roughly what size gravel is it that in the bag you had there i know its of difrant grain size but just to give me an idea of what size gravle i will need for an N gaug layout if you can help me with that please. Thanks for any help. ...jim.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thanks James for your feedback. The granule sizes do vary and I'd say they would work for N scale too. It all depends on the sieve size used to separate the varying granule sizes. However, you may find you'll end up with more wasted gravel compared to what is use for OO scale.

[@jamesbrookes6298]

@@StationRoadModelRailway ok thanks for your reply. But can you tell me the mm size of the grit that was on the bag just so i have some sort of idea of what size to look for as im looking to buy some. Many thanks. ...Jim.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

@@jamesbrookes6298 It ranges from 0.1/0.2mm dust to approx 3mm granules but I couldn't give you the percentage of sizes, the bulk of the granules might be between 0.5 and 1mm but that's a very rough guess.

[@jamesbrookes6298]

@@StationRoadModelRailway Hi again. Thank you for gettin back to me with the sizes. Thats a big help now i know what size to look for & i can sieve out the size i cant use. I came across your videos by accident & im glad i did as your tutorials are very good I have subscribed. Thanks again for your help its much appreciated best regards. Jim.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

@@jamesbrookes6298 Thank you James for your kind feedback and I hope the N scale ballasting goes well. Cheers, Julian

[@StalkeraBg]

Awesome! Thanks, guess i found my final diorama inspiration in here. Ha, this video was recommended on main page after i was thinking of trying to make a 200x200cm train diorama after the WW2 Forest Ambush idea. Just a tiny question: can this be swapped for limestone ? Cat litter costs next* to nothing and is an actual grinded limestone in the local supermarket . (Which fits the mountain region ill be depicting)

[@2H80vids]

I've heard of plenty people using cat litter, chinchilla sand, all sorts of pet shop supplies. If the price is right and you like the effect, go for it. It may, or may not, be appropriate for the particular area you're modelling but remember that the real railways bring in ballast to worksites, sometimes from hundreds of miles away, so being "region specific" wouldn't always be important. As with *all* aspects of railway modelling, go with what *you* think looks good. Apart from anything else, with the cheaper alternatives, it's got to be worth trying; if it looks awful, give it to someone with a cat / chinchilla / parrot / kimodo dragon (delete as appropriate😁) Cheers for now, Dougie.

[@DJaquithFL]

My thoughts here. That cheap (pumice) ballast looks more like kitty litter or since I live in Florida dingy looking cheap common ground sand. Color it really depends upon where and how aged you're trying to make the model, in the US ballast doesn't look like that and is more grey; light gray (new) to dingy gray to black (really old). And let's face it the ballast gets dingier looking quickly over time. Also some areas don't use "wood" sleepers anymore and have switched to bright gray concrete. In any case no subgrade (underlayment) looks really cheap.

[@bobbiemitch]

Woodland Scenics - Somewhere on the bottle there should be a warning about the product coming from nut bearing trees. The ballast is light as it is made from hulls from nuts. Word is it is from walnut shells, but I can not confirm it. A better price comparison would be by volume, not weight.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Hi Robert, comparison by volume is a good point. So the pumice bag is 5 litres and the Woodland Scenics bottle is 0.945 litres (we'll just make it 1L), so WS is $21/L and the pumice would be $1.90/L.

[@gregwarner3753]

Note - ballast made from some nut trees like almonds may trigger allergies in sensitive individuals. Coarse sand for concrete may do for really realistic ballast.

[@filip78channel15]

Hi, nice video. What paint did you use for the timber? Thanks.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thank you. I just use house acrylic paints for baseboard sealing. This is usually my own mix of a grey acrylic with some white undercoat or ceiling paint - these being quite matte in finish.

[@richardray6827]

Thanks for another great video but surely it should be titled pay 1/10 for ballast, not ten times less. Sorry to be pedantic but it makes no sense. Always enjoy your videos. Keep up the great work.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Thanks for your mixed feedback, it is appreciated either way. A small few have made comment on the title but considering it is my most viewed video at nearly 60K, the current title appears to be doing its job.

[@MosriteCharlie]

You could also look at kitty litter but you must secure it down for obvious reasons if you have a cat.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Our cat is well behaved and wouldn't consider using the layout as a litter box. It's the neighbours cats I would be concerned about😲

[@DavidSmith-lk3yf]

Available from ikea in the uk. Looking forward to more of your how to videos.

[@IamRobotMonkey]

Cheers David!

[@robstrains8711]

Excellent idea the issue with hobbies and cost of products is they inflate the price and new people to the hobby will pay it because of lack of knowledge. Just look at sound decoders they cost pennies to make and they charge around £100 for them.

[@glennwood1119]

Also at one time I thought about using cat litter till I found out that it collects moisture.

[@Rosetheromani]

Bunnings in Australia do not stock it :(

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Gees, it’s usually the other way around where NZ doesn’t stock things.

[@Rosetheromani]

@@StationRoadModelRailway Still googling looks like it might be available in hydroponic shops and cactus specialists.

[@nevillemadden394]

@@Rosetheromani Yep! AUSPERL have it. www.ausperl.com/product/pumice-25l/

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

@@nevillemadden394 That looks like the stuff, and I see it's sourced from NZ.

[@nevillemadden394]

@@StationRoadModelRailway It's actually available in both NZ and Australia, but yes, I have a feeling that the original source is NZ .

[@genej43]

WS ballast is ground up nut shells.

[@NYandAtlantic]

I’m using old coffee grinds

[@daveblaedow8419]

Do you model N scale or HO?

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Station Road is OO Gauge (UK). Many moons ago I did model N gauge at a club I belonged to, but wouldn't consider it now simply because I'm getting older and would struggle with the tiny detailing required for N gauge. I've never modeled HO scale (Europe, USA)

[@roady1710]

So see if I can figure this out your ballast about 8 inches of track and just about 20 minutes so let's say your layout is 100 maybe 150 feet attract in about a year's time I'll have it all ballast not sure I want to take on that project

[@glenaetitmus2106]

There is another alternative to overpriced brands. I have been using fine white terrarium sand (grain size 0,6 - 0.8 mm), available in most garden centres / pet stores at around 7,50 euros ( 6,50GBP or 12,50 NZD) for a 5kg bag; this gives a very realistic ballast when modelling in HO or OO. To this I dry mix fine pigment powders, available in most fine art supply stores, use sparingly as this will darken a tone once moisture has been added, you can always airbrush a little extra grime later. There is practically no limit to the variation of tones and colours using this method, however be careful it's best to go lightly..!

[@edwardbarnes2702]

What a great idea, anyone know if you can obtain it in the UK thanks a Eddie.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Looks like some viewers have found a similar product at ikea. I did a quick google search in the UK thinking it would be available at B&Q but no such luck. You could try you local garden centre as it’s primary use is to help with drainage for plants.

[@neiloflongbeck5705]

There are some sources in the UK but prices for finely ground pumice is around the £6 for 500g. Pumice not being naturally available in the UK.

[@JohnHill-qo3hb]

Woodland Scenics Ballast... ground up walnut shells.

[@chr1sda1sey]

Have you thought about trying chinchilla sand?

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Somebody mentioned chinchilla sand on Facebook, which I had no idea existed (not owning a chinchilla of course). I might investigate at the local pet shop in terms of price and see how it stacks up. Kitty litter was another suggested material, but I imagine it would need further crushing to get the granule size down.

[@nevillemadden394]

@@StationRoadModelRailway ... Don't use Kitty Litter. When you Wet It, it will Expand and stick together. It can also give of Ammonia Type Odours when wet (and this might even happen if the Humidity is Very Moist).

[@gerlandkent6377]

thank, you for you're video.

[@peterkelford]

2:39 they cost about £13/£14 pounds...

[@GarlandKent-y6k]

[thank, you for youre great helpful video]

[@jamesemerson3414]

The ballast is crushed walnut shells.

[@edwardbarnes2702]

Can only reply open, I can Assure you brief time they where here, couple of local stores dragged them into this century, now subscriber. 🤓

[@barnfulloftrains]

Great Ideal

[@edwardbarnes2702]

Hiya thanks for very prompt reply! see the link re appears to be Bunnings there and Australia? which as think correct me if I’m wrong came to the UK and purchased our chain of HomeBase stores total rubbish company here and to be honest not improved, no where in the market for today’s diy, the ownership which suddenly went downhill for some finance reasons went wrong. will have to investigate further! Regards Eddie 🤓

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Yes, Bunnings is an Australian DIY chain that has multiple stores in NZ. Bunnings is very good here in NZ (second favourite store to the model shop) but not sure about whether they bought out HomeBase in the UK. The other major DIY player in NZ is Mitre10 which also sells similar products but different brands (and slightly more expensive). Maybe it's a plenty in NZ because we have numerous volcanoes.

[@davidstorm8879]

no you canot get it in the uk

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Hi David, I seen the struggles folks have had in the UK trying to find a similar product. This has spurred me to investigate how I can get this product into the UK so watch this space.

[@jimbobwhale]

You forgot the most important bit buddy. To show us the end result once it had dried so we could all make the comparison!! LOL

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

Hi Jim, thanks for your comment. You’ll find the end result in the part 2 video. I’ll add link in this video, which I should have done☺️

[@normanrowe2831]

Used in pot plants! Hmmmmmmmm. Nice.

[@mrmatt2466]

They are actually £10 exactly 😂 good job

[@IamRobotMonkey]

Great stuff. Thanks for this. Subbed.

[@maltnz]

Unless you already have them, the price of the sieves adds considerably to cost. On a small layout Woodland Scenics could be cheaper.

[@StationRoadModelRailway]

I'm not sure where you buy your sieves from, but I can purchase a set of 3 from the 2 Dollar Shop here in NZ for $2. I'm sure there would be equivalent stores/retailers around the world offering similar, if not even cheaper prices.

[@geoffbirkinshaw8466]

High prices charged by specialist hobby firms is not "peculiar" (6m.43s). it's just sheer greedy profiteering. Keep up the good work to thwart these rip-off merchants.

[@ianryan5727]

The pumice looks better. Cheers. :)

[@dempstertrains8690]

Excellent video please review dempster trains and subscribe

[@taxisss]

Chinchilla sand is cheeper

[@RECHARGED77]

*Click* Noice.

[@Steinstra-vj7wl]

Looks way dirty. To much that is.