Green Scene Ballast Spreader OO/EM/P4

[beast66606]

Looks interesting

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYK7EA81l9M

 

See it at the Wigan show

[Kris]

That is very impressive, good for large layouts.

[bcnPete]

Saw this at the 2mm Expo in July and it does do what it says on the tin!

 

For those who wish to apply the ballast dry and then soak it after, you can see the attraction of it - I recall that the owner (John in the demo?) had sold out of them all at the 2mm Expo they were that popular.

[Kris]

Did he have 2mm ones then Pete?

[bcnPete]

From memory I think he did...but his demo might have been 4mm at the show...I guess if it works in 4mm it should work in 2mm, 7mm or any other for that matter.

 

 

EDIT: Looks like it is... http://www.green-scene.co.uk/

[Guest jim s-w]

Looks very wide, will it fit between platforms?

[10800]

Got my P4 one at Manchester after they all sold out at Scaleforum. Max width of box is 45mm, so it won't clear platforms in situ.

[bcnPete]

Got my P4 one at Manchester after they all sold out at Scaleforum. Max width of box is 45mm, so it won't clear platforms in situ.

 

bit of a shame that - for me I prefer to put platforms in prior to ballasting but I guess if you have lots of open space then this comes up trumps...

[Kris]

Thanks for the answer Pete. I guess you might be able to close off part of the hopper exit to cut down the width laid, but that would not resolve the platform issue.

[Brinkly]

Got my P4 one at Manchester after they all sold out at Scaleforum. Max width of box is 45mm, so it won't clear platforms in situ.

 

 

Could you do a demo with it Rod at DRAG one evening? I saw it and nearly got one, but when I returned they had all gone!

[10800]

Could you do a demo with it Rod at DRAG one evening? I saw it and nearly got one, but when I returned they had all gone!

 

Sure Nick, I'll try and remember to bring it.

[Guest jim s-w]

Got my P4 one at Manchester after they all sold out at Scaleforum. Max width of box is 45mm, so it won't clear platforms in situ.

 

Thanks Rod

 

Sometimes someone comes up with a great idea but these ideas need some design thought to transfer to a great product. I like to ballast up to things like platforms and walls but if this fouls the loading gauge then it's pretty useless. If it could be made to fit (from looking at it I can't see any reason why it couldn't it would be spot on.

 

Sadly on my layout so far there would only be 2 though roads I could use it on. I doubt it will fit your viaduct either

 

Cheers

 

Jim

[Re6/6]

It might be possible to order one as separate parts, as my P4 one was assembled for me at the Blackburn show. Perhaps the base plate and the sloping panel could be cut narrower in order to clear platforms etc..prior to assembly.

 

I doubt it will fit your viaduct either

 

Just checked Jim. It will fit! If it works well It will be a great step forward. It looks like it could be a real time saver for us on Balcombe considering all the 'miles' of plain line that we will have to be ballasted! The key to it all seems to be some practice in the speed at which it's pushed along.

 

Perhaps the hopper slot could be made thinner (bit of tape) to allow less ballast to be let through. Worth experimenting with first, I think.

[Brian Indge]

Got my P4 one at Manchester after they all sold out at Scaleforum. Max width of box is 45mm, so it won't clear platforms in situ.

 

Rod,

 

What is the price of this unit please. I have looked at the Greenscene web-site but there is no information listed regarding pricing.

 

Regards,

 

Brian

[Free At Last]

Rod,

 

What is the price of this unit please. I have looked at the Greenscene web-site but there is no information listed regarding pricing.

 

Regards,

 

Brian

 

Half way down this page

[gordon s]

Saw something similar on eBay from Turkey......Looks a little narrower, but no idea if it does the same job.

 

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/?_from=R40&_trksid=p5197.m570.l1311&_nkw=ballast+spreader&_sacat=See-All-Categories

[Captain Kernow]

I saw the early demos of this when he only had the OO ones available, and yes, at first sight it looks like an amazing piece of kit. However, I've yet to actually have a play with one, which I think is the real 'acid test' (as opposed to just watching). I'm not normally convinced that you ever get 'something for nothing' in this world, and I do wonder exactly how much tidying up of bits of loose ballast will be necessary before you can soak it all and apply the glue or Klear.....

 

Will it apply the same amount of ballast, regardless of sleeper depth?

 

In other words, how much time will it really save?

[Mighty]

I purchased one of these a few months back in 'OO' and it produces mixed results. I have to admit it is easier getting the actual ballast down in a rough approximation of where you want it to go - i.e. filling between and to either side of the rails.

 

However, it doesn't work on points, and when you come to do a double track mainline or in a station you still have to go in afterwards with a small amount to fill the gap that it misses. All in all, I'd give it a 7 out of 10. Worth the purchase as it saves time, but for accuracy, you still need the old paintbrush/finger to clean the ballast off the sleepers and into the areas it misses. As I was using particularly fine ballast, it was a little more time consuming to rectify the problems than if I was using some coarser materials I think.

[greenscener]

Our device is not a "copy" of [Admin Edit - others]. I would be more than happy to supply you with one of our baseplates so that you can see the significant differences between them.

If you watch the video of our product you will also see that it clears the ballast off the track considerably better than anyone elses!

BTW do you have one for P4 and EM?

[Richard_S]

At Wigan they were getting the customers to do the demo; I had a go and so did my nephew. Does exactly what it says on the tin - 15 minutes work in 6 seconds.

WFRM now have one in P4 for current use and one in HO(OO) for the next project.

[Glenn_RhB]

A huge necro to say that Green Scenes now have an HOm, TT, EM, P4 and S scale spreaders added to their list. I've tested the HOm one on several different types of track, worked ok on each one, even a 330mm radius curve.