Down on Beaverbrook: Non sanded tile grout…
I’ll just put this out there, this product is cheap and readily available, in a variety of colours and should find a home in all modellers arsenal…
I’m talking about, as the title suggests, non sanded tile grout. The track here is no more complicated than Peco code 83 (left) and 70 (right) ballasted in Woodland Scenics fine grey ballast (please excuse the poorly painted right hand side of each rail, this is a side on view and not one I can ever get, and these rails are close to the back so I can’t easily paint the back side of them).
The ‘mud’ from the road is the grout. It is applied carefully, like ballast. Dry. Tamped down with a finger, it can be pushed around with a brush but the smooth surface left by your finger is what we’re after. Apply Woodland Scenics scenic cement (other glues available) and it goes really dark, but dries almost as pale as the dry colour. Repeat the process a few times to build up, the result looks super.
That collection of dirt adjacent to a paved crossings feels like an almost universal scenery detail on a Canadian and probably US railroad. But it’s a funny detail: as familiar as it is in real life I seldom see it done in model form and, seemingly, everyone has a railway crossing on their model layout.
As Chris suggests, a very common feature but not often modelled. That said, this ‘wonder’ product was one introduced to me by him! He used it to great effect on H0 Coy and later 0n30 Victoria. It inspired me to try it out on a short test piece, this is the first layout to see me use it in anger. I will be looking to source a darker brown and a dark grey too, because I’d like to try it on a British layout. I think it would work well in goods yards, and around diesel stabling points. It is relatively easy to control, and for that alone it is worth a try. Until next time, more soon…
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Interesting - what is it specifically about non-sanded/unsanded grout that works better for this purpose? Is it finer?
ReplyDeleteI'd been thinking about attempting something similar using a mix of black and anthracite grout to model the cinder/ash surfaces I recall noticing underfoot at steam loco yards (eg places like Steamtown Carnforth), and a mix of "chocolate" and "mud" for the darker, damp, loamy soil we find in many parts of the UK. Maybe small sprinklings of sandy-coloured grout around gradients on industrial tracks? I'm not sure if it will work, but experimenting is half the fun, right?
The non sanded grout is very very fine like plaster, or flour. Theoretically it would adhere and set hard with a spray of water but I suspect it’s texture would mean you had a hard crust and it wouldn’t set underneath. The eye dropper of glue helps but changes how you had it tamped down so hence the multiple layers…
DeleteI’d suggest it would work well, better than ‘clay’ like Nevard uses, why not try a test piece?
Thanks, James - will do
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