Hi Folks,

I thought I would share the results of a chance find in Hobbycraft, Basildon the other day. I was in for some bits and bobs for my daughter when I noticed a load of jars filled with decorative stones. As I was mentally scoffing at what I thought was a rather tacky interior design accessory I noticed this...

The jar doesn't have any detail about what the material is but thought i'd take a punt as it looked very much like 4mm coal.  The jar is about the size of a coffee jar and was priced at £3. 

I built a plastikard "shelf" on legs to sit loose in the wagons.  The coal was poured on top of the shelf,removed from the wagon and a masking tape wall stuck around it to enable the coal to sit nicely on the shelf. It was then lightly sprayed with "wet water" then soaked in pva/water mix. As I poured the coal, I placed a magnet inside to allow the load to be lifted out with my shunting hook. 

I am often sceptical of cheap alternatives as they rarely match up but if you want a fine coal substitute I recommend this stuff...worth a try. 

cheers