Adrian Rosenlund Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 Greetings one and all, Anyone tell me what colour ballast i should be using for the early/mid 1960s, please? I'm building a layout and looking around online, found some different colours. Although i'm not into super-authenticity, i would like a quite realistic look, and my main interest lies in the aforementioned decade. Merry Christmas, and a happy new year! Adrian Rosenlund Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRealistic Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 Merry Christmas to you too, Adrian!... and welcome. Not an answer, but I think the first thing you'll need to explain is exactly where your layout is to be 'located'. Cheers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivercider Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 Welcome Adrian. As Alan has mentioned the colour of the ballast will vary depending where on the railway network your layout is located. My main early memories are of the Western Region from the 1970s and there were at least five quarries supplying track ballast. As ever the advice would be to study lots of photos from the chosen area that your layout is set in, you may notice that ballast on branch lines for example is of a diferent colour, and quality from that on the nearby main lines. If you let us know where your layout is set I am sure there will be someone on here who can give you some pointers cheers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JZ Posted December 25, 2015 Share Posted December 25, 2015 Another thing to take into account is the age of the ballast, how long it's been down. New ballast would be paler in colour, where older stuff would take on a brown tinge from brake dust, cinders, etc. While it may look nice, correct even, to have a uniform colour, running lines were often relaid at different times and therefore can be different from one side to the other. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Rosenlund Posted December 25, 2015 Author Share Posted December 25, 2015 My general interest is the Midland region, with a specific interest in the Cambrian line (which seems to be moderately popular on this forum). My layout is single track, as some of the Cambrian seems to be (?) Interesting point about the discolouration. It hadn't occured to me, but it seems fairly obvious when you think about it! I'll be looking closely next time i'm perusing photos online. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Rosenlund Posted December 25, 2015 Author Share Posted December 25, 2015 http://plumbloco.smugmug.com/Trains/CambrianCoastLines/i-wztQGQb Just found this. It might be helpful... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JZ Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 Just to add to my previous post. Often there are areas of 'local' re-ballasting. ie, where a few sleepers have been replaced. Maybe with newly relaid track a point may not have been replaced, so this would still have old ballast and vice versa. I have tried to replicate this effect on my Gurney Slade layout.* * See link below. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Controller Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 The most likely source for ballast for the Cambrian would have been Llynclys quarry, near Oswestry. This was supplying limestone ballast to the LMR until the 1990s, when limestone dropped out of favour, and harder rock replaced it for reballasting. Llynclys produced Carboniferous Limestone, which has a light to mid grey colour; it's a fossiliferous rock, and the fossils show as areas of white. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivercider Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 David Ford (DaveF on this forum) has a lot of Cambrian photos on Flickr, there should be plenty of inspiration here https://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf2009/7006643010/in/album-72157629623169032/ cheers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bigbee Line Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 http://plumbloco.smugmug.com/Trains/CambrianCoastLines/i-wztQGQb Just found this. It might be helpful... The track in the picture is 'just right', nicely manicured by the local track gang. The arrangement to my mind is near perfection. I would try and emulate the proportions on the cess and ballast shoulder. Whatever ballast in chosen, it needs to be light and can then be oversprayed with washes of acrylic. A key point to me is the size of the stones, it's not at all lumpy, the cess has a slight coarseness. That's my two cents , Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BG John Posted December 26, 2015 Share Posted December 26, 2015 There are a lot of useful photos here too http://www.archive-images.co.uk/gallery/Archive-Images-of-British-Railways/ Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Rosenlund Posted December 26, 2015 Author Share Posted December 26, 2015 Fantastic. I had a good look around the BR archive. Now feeling nostalgic and a tad homesick after seeing Cleobury Mortimer station in the Shropshire album (i went to school there). Anyone recommend a good manufacturer of ballast? I'm going to follow the Bigbee Line's recommendation, or something that looks like it. On the now related subject of weathering, i find the inks and washes from Citadel Miniatures quite useful. Like acrylics, they can be diluted with water, but are already watery by nature. There may be other similar products, i don't know, but i used to play Warhammer 40K, so i've only ever used them. They've worked superbly on other types of modelling than those they were intended for.... And a Cambrian related moan: Why on earth isn't anyone producing an 00 gauge Manor? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JZ Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Three things I noticed on my travels today. First, Ballast through Sydney gardens in Bath was relaid back in August and it looks weathered in already. Second. While I was 'looped' at Yatton, I noticed the ballast, which only a couple of years before had four distinct shades, is now uniform across the loops and running lines. Thirdly and not ballast related. The S&D bridge over the main line at Oldfield Park has been demolished. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nearholmer Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 http://www.derbysulzers.com/33118cowley92.jpg For the Southern, Meldon was the source from the 1920s, certainly through to the 1980s, and the stone in the train in this photo gives a clear idea of the colour when fresh. Trains of bogie hoppers would be as typical of the 1930s as of the 1980s, although the motive power changed from moguls to Cromptons in the 60s. Kevin Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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