09.28.09 HOW TO BALLAST HO TRACK by Al Mayo aka Big Pimpin

[DjRuff617]

Dude thanks for this video. I'm heading out to buy a brush tomorrow and then it's on!!!

[mushyyy98]

@ 7:55 that would look good as a road if the ballast was a bit darker

[swheads]

Man, you are awesome. Thanks for the rockin' vids.

[almostlate]

Heeellll!!!! I love yo videos!

[megachristopher01]

nice backround music :)

[atsfft103]

One person was retarded and got ballast EVERYWHERE!

[Boss302fan]

Nice job.  Excellent delivery. Made it entertaining and informative

[emcamev]

Is That Eminem In The Background?

[AdamPBussey]

i have ballasted between the points



[AdamPBussey]

will it work for my railway

[AdamPBussey]

it's a gangster railway modeler

[82zkartracer]

Im new to railroading and i was wondering about how many is a couple of capfuls? Also Al i was wondering if u go to the York TCA because if u do i would like to meet up and learn some tips.

[4202EJW]

Don't be retarded and do that! Hahaha my favorite word nice vid!

[YTisawsum]

is there a substitute for the alcohol? and if not how many caps for 500mls?

[bucksnorthern]

@YTisawsum You could use dish detergent, it works fine.

[BigAl0305]

Great job! This helped a lot! Just one question. Does the alcohol water/mix effect the track at all? Thanks

[dark1rida]

lol 2:23 "Coz santa clause aint black" in the music

[ratchet666clank4]

Is it the same way for N scale?

[slverdeplayer]

Does the water alchohal mix affect the rails when you spray it on?

[puzzler19]

see. even pimps can have model trains. nothin wrong with that.

[meskippymehappy]

hey Al... You are using "Poland spring" bottle to ballast it.... :) Did i mentioned that I'm from Poland (Europe) :) Nice :D

[rvasquez6089]

^coolest black guy ever

[skinnyman9205]

where can I buy the alchohol ?? 

[paulknowles100]

hey when u ballast ur track how far can u go on the points can u glue the ballast around the points

[troyreal1]

is that actually fine ballast ur using? or is it like medium ballast in that container?

[paulknowles100]

hey i like ur style m8 on 1 of ur vids ur weathered ur track can u still ballast the track its am nwe 2 all off it cheers paul

[paulknowles100]

hi ur vid is helping me out how did u get into model railroads paul

[MonsterRailroad]

@paulknowles100 One day after I bought the house I walked down into my empty basement and decided to turn it into an empire. The first empire I thought of was real arcade games and I bought two. Then I changed my mind and it became MODEL TRAINS. It was that saimple.

[awsem1o1]

Al, do you put your scenery cover directley on top of the plywood? or on a sheet of foam?.Nice layout!

[MonsterRailroad]

@awsem1o1 I go directly on the plywood. There is NO need for foam or anything. I simply painted the waferboard (plywood) a dark tan color and then applied the scenery stuff.

[AAPOLICE]

what alcohol do u mix with the water

[1206kam]

A thug into model railroading. What next??

[AlexCrazyabouttrains]

Hi. Nice vid. How have you done this connector for 2 sections on 5:52?

[bongosorongo]

Hey Al, thanks a lot!! Your ballasting video is the best out there and it has helped me a lot, specially by showing how to cover the turnouts.

[colliecandle]

great humour! I laughed at 'retarded ballast laying'!!!! One of the best and down to earth railway modellers I have yet seen with a great sense of humour. 5 *****

Informative and funny

[sparkypeeps]

omg, that was great, thanks

[tpe18509]

thanks for posting this it should help me a lot with my layout!

[KaTzaNdSTuFf]

I know I'm asking waaay too many questions but I have another. What brand of trains do you use? I want to use Bachmann but all they seem to have is E-Z Track which I hate because they try to make it look realistic but it just looks like crap. If I spray painted the track it would just come out wrong. And if you wanna make a bridge...well you can't because it has fake plastic gravel and thats not on a bridge...

[thepiper84]

You're the man!!! your layout looks fab.

[KaTzaNdSTuFf]

Is makin a moodel railroad costly?

[atsfupsp09]

Al do you have text

[MonsterRailroad]

@atsfupsp09 No i do not have text. Email me

[gtasandman]

@MonsterRailroad no my firnd cant be like black pepole cant do this stuf

[gtasandman]

@MonsterRailroad o yea i forgot to say good vids

[intercomjohnjohn]

Mike Tyson is a model railroader? Who would have thunk it?

[PRRK4Lover]

hey al, what kinda fraction of the water spray is alcohol? like 1/50th?

[mrmistercharles]

what kind of alcohol? and whats the percentage of water and alcohol?

[scrag2841]

@Sprocket1959 - Alcohol helps to break what is called "water tension" of the water/glue mix. Water tension refers to the waters ability to hold itself togethor as Big Al demonstrated with the two piles of ballast. The water/glue mix on the one pile that wasn't sprayed held its "shape" (for lack of a better word) while the glue just melted into the pile that was sprayed. The alcohol is what breaks the water tension and allows the glue to melt into the ballast. Another trick is dish soap.

[scrag2841]

@ WhyAyeMann: Big Al is using simple rubbing alcohol (availalble at Walmart) and it is not a very powerful cleaner, as such it will not "attack" the rails and will evaporate leaving nothing behind.

[WhyAyeMann]

wouldnt the water alchohol mix damage the rails?

[Sprocket1959]

Nice work Al. Question: What's the purpose of the alcohol?

[curtisjamesf]

this guy is the best dawg to chill with rail roads he is so dang good at it no wat im sayin

[danielhermanwendel90]

Thanks you just solved a big problem for me. Thanks

[missymonroe72]

I need a advice ... i had replaced plastic catwalks for photoetched on PD and Plastic covered hoppers (Walthers). Glue with CA - Super glue. Glue very well first, but soon or later (a month) metal catwalks turn to bend. I dont know why. Temperature changes ?. How to glue permanently ?. Thanks a lot.

[matanuialive2010]

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSUUUUUUUUUUU­UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUP

[Graffas]

Thanks Al! You know how to make it and also how to show it.

[JcnoProductions]

Thats awesome, nice one man.

[vp4d]

coolest guy to ever ever build a model railroad right here!

[MonsterRailroad]

@vp4d LOL Thanks dawg!

[igmuska]

Great job, looks easier than torturing my sore back, sprinkling ballast with a teaspoon while hunched over my track as well as being cheaper than buying all those expensive commercial products

[TheRealBizzee]

Nice video man... Jay-Z in the background working on your layout. I do the same. lol Layout looks awesome.

[hoppercar]

wow, great tips, and great video, thanks for the good help my man !!!!

[c30super7]

A+++++++++++++ Nice and clear

[bartybum]

you look like doctor turk from scrubs

[patouses555]

perfect video, man! you use code 100 - rails? or code 83?

[parosite]

cool vid !! im new to all this so this is probably a stupid question but here goes.....what is the brown stuff ya lay the track on before its ballasted?

[bartybum]

@parosite that is not a stupid question. its cork, i think

[chefjavier]

I never used water and alcohol but now I will use it! It makes sense! :)

[JacobLego]

Cool fence

[madman4049]

Awesome video as always man. I had no idea about ballasting till I saw this and it makes perfect sense. Thanks

[train1321]

hey al a cheaper way to do the fence use tooth picks for the poles and silver spray painted screen glue to the tooth picks i did it that way and it looked goood

[legolucario217]

my layout looked crap, but after i used this technique, it looked much, much better!!

[usuck329]

i loled when he sed "dont be retarded and do this" and he poored the ballast all over the track

[apc006]

I was wondering how to do that thanks

[garibagio]

Thanks for the post. I enjoyed you showing WHY to spray by trying to glue dry ballast..a picture was worth a thousand words!

[grjls]

thats insane

[1extremeguy]

i tried this on a poorly ballasted module i made at a model railroadind class and it made it look a lot better

[trainmonster100]

yo Al can you make a vid on balisting yard tracks thanks.

[SaclunchGsus]

@MonsterRailroad Do you run trains very often? Or are you stuck like me... slaving on the layout all day. Thanks again for posting. My ballast bunched lightly not as bad as your demo. I will try the mix.

[MonsterRailroad]

Shit i run them all the time but I NEVER record it.  I love to run my trains!

[PRRK4Lover]

like alvintrain wrote, what is the mix for the alcohol and water? thanks man

[MonsterRailroad]

Its the only way to do it dawg. Trust me

[akkandian]

great tips on ballest al i didnt think of doin it that way i was jus gonna use the glue by its self lol that wouldnt have looked good at all lol.also u still doin rail cars 4 people that would like u 2 do them ?

[MonsterRailroad]

soon. soon.  :)

[mjet401bnsf]

i use to use kitty litter

[alvintrain]

Yo

Hey nice video. In the alcohol mix with the water how much do u put in of each??And how long does then glue it take to dry??

Thanks alot

Alvin

[SaclunchGsus]

A couple of caps to that bottle. The bottle looks likt 1 liter. I am guessing it take about 12 - 16 hours to completely dry. All guestimates though man.

[ZetanCrisp]

Hi Al thanks for doing these videos. What did you use for the sandy coloured ground cover is it Woodland scenics?

[MonsterRailroad]

Yes I only use earth blend as the first layer and then go over it with Yellow, then go back over it with brown blend in areas I want. I make sure the layers are a little bit thick

[jwamsey]

Did u get those fences from BLMA models. Also when I ballast track will the ballast get into my engine. Just want to know before I ballast.

[MonsterRailroad]

The fence is by Microart and cost $28

The ballast will not get into an engine. just be sure to glue it down as I show

[LordLunchboxable]

i have an N Gauge track, would you do the same sort of thing with that? just on a smaller scale?

[LordLunchboxable]

And a kick ass vid Al :P

[MonsterRailroad]

Thanks!!

Yes you would do the same thing just smaller scale ballast and smaller brush. Cute N scale. LOL

[LordLunchboxable]

cheers buddy! im gunna do that!! thanks again man

[Frijdoos]

Hey men, great explannation off trackballast. Very cool track you have, my compliments. Just wonder dasn't make the water/alcohol the tracks rusty or something like that. I didn't see covering the track only crossingpoints.

But the working is very clear i think i use this methode for my dutch railroadtrack.

See railz Rotterdam for example

Greatings from holland.

Koen Frijlink, Tiel

[yourmaker13]

i run o scale and i was wondering when u would spray that stuff on the track wouldnt it make the track bad and the trains wouldnt work right going over it?

[NSrailfan1]

woops nvm isopropyl is the same

[NSrailfan1]

hey, i was wondering how much alchohol you put in the water? and also would isopropyl alchohol work?

[BNSFME]

he said a few caps

[TheDannytho]

pura vida men que exelente trabajo has hecho en tu maqueta hacete un video de como hicistes los fondos de pared o como podria simularlos para darle esa profudidad, soy de Costa Rica Centroamerica-

[falko73]

Whats Up Big Al great video..excelent..where do you get those metal fences??? they very real!!! 5*

[MonsterRailroad]

I just did a video a few days ago about doing scenery which shows you how I do it. Check it out in my channel

[elementskatebarding]

ok dude i really need you to answer this question al do you mean rubbing alchohol? thanx

[MonsterRailroad]

No I only use RUM alcohol. I make sure my scale people have enough alcohol on their land to keep everything drunk.

Yes of course I mean rubbing alcohol.

[elementskatebarding]

ty =)

[RailFanRick]

Always a blast to watch your videos Al, get a laugh everytime but seriously,,appreciate this one cause it really helped my ballasting out!

[trainspotter11]

you have a fantastic model railway

[norfolksouthern8941]

great job my man ! can you tell me what jay-z songs you play in your video i think there is three different songs thankskeep up the great work and videos

[MonsterRailroad]

I do not know the names of the song but I was playing his new album. It WAS in my CD player but that is OUT fast! It is a WACK CD. I am disappointed in Jay for this garbage he released. Do not even buy it. The HOT album I just got is Raekwan "Made for Cuban Linx 2" It is H to the IzzO Tee

[foxrivermotorman]

A good tip also is to paint your roadbed for what ever color your are ballasting your tracks with. A friend showed me this and it works.

[MonsterRailroad]

Very good idea!!! I didnt think of that either. Good tip!

[CMRSclub]

Great video Al!! we are working on balasting our mainline and were 2months in it and not done hahaha

[thetrainman407]

hey al, i tried your method in my yard, it works awesome! im going to be reballesting my whole layout over this next month thanks to you! thanks man, your the best!

[thetrainman407]

thanks for this video al! does this method only apply for actual ballest for track? or will it apply to other rocks like substrates? also i saw on your switch point of you got some glue on the rails. will this afffect the electrical flow if that happens? thanks for this video al!

[TheLastRailfan]

hey al whats the ratio you use for the alchohol in the bottle thanks

[MonsterRailroad]

No ratio man. just pour some in. enough so the water has a slight alcohol smell. listen man you can put in a lot or a little really.

[colinroxanduknowit]

Any suggestions on how to make track look more realistic that has the base attached, like with adding ballast or painting or what. On my 4x8 layout i currently have Power Lock Track, but will be converting over eventually.

[MonsterRailroad]

No I do not. some people like the look of the Kato one but I do not mess with any of that crap. The only way I could think of to make it look more realistic is to rip it up and put down regular track. :) good luck

[BrandinT26]

Good shit...I wish I had seen this video before I ballast my track but I found a way to do it. Keep up the great videos.

[swanman1975]

cool stuff as usual!! I see I'm not the only one that uses my trash bins to keep all my scrap stuff in when I'm working on the layout!.

[northlander30]

lol man I made that mistake on the first layout I every built! Buying chain link fence for the price they want is ridiculous! I started building my own from .20 though brass wire and wedding vale material. Total cost for a yard of material and brass rod about 4 bucks Canadian! Try and make it yourself it is pretty easy. Great vid!

[keytonsgangsta]

hey al i cant get u on facebook

[MonsterRailroad]

Use the facebook link with parkerlegend at the end and I am there

[MonsterRailroad]

Well I am not selling it but I am looking for a car so I figured i will throw it out there. You see it is all materiallistic items and none of it means anything to me. When my butt dies all this will be spread out to other model railroaders. I am not attached to ANYTHING I own. So if someone had a ncie car for trade I would definitely consider it.

[atsfupsp09]

nice i'll use that on my layout, lol

[madgasters]

Big Al, Good video thanks, But how did you weather your track before you did the ballast.

Thanks Paul

[MonsterRailroad]

Weathering track is simple. look at one of my previous HOW TO PAINT TRACK. It is all done in two steps. Spray paint the track with rail brown then go over the top of the rails with a paper towel. Done!

[brtchida]

ahahhahaha  don't be retarded!!! lmafo!! love it!! haha

[motorcitymatt]

Al that was Hilarious, I about spit up my beer, watching the precision and not being sloppy..

[TrainGuy18]

I just use Woodland scenics scienic cemment and Spray till every things soaked. Cool I use to live in CT

[brickbuilder711]

Awesome work, Al! This is a great concept, not only do I really like the fence, the ballast looks great and ideal for my future FEC layout. For that layout I might use PECO c100 concrete track, since the ties are high giving the rails a higher up feel to it.

[brewera71]

its nice

[imthepatton]

what happens if you get a little on the track will it effect the trains or how the train gets power from the track? thanks for the how to you rock man.

[MonsterRailroad]

If you get some Glue/water mix on the track after it dries, You just take the bright boy and rub down the track. If not YES it will affect the electrical conduct to the engines. but it is simple to rub the track tops.

[imthepatton]

ok thanks im looking to extending my layout a good 5ft. and after i do that i want to ballast it using these techniques you showed. i dont have any train videos accept me showing my engines because my camera is broken but when it gets fixed i will make more videos.

[UnionPacificRules]

Holy shit AL! lol ur crazy man...id be so pissed if i dumped all that ballast! LMFAO

Coolvideo though! this will hlp me with my extention! lol

[MonsterRailroad]

It was easily cleaned up with a vacuum, But yea I am a crazy dude

[Zebinator]

Al, where did you get that wired fence from? I've had a hard time finding that.

[UPfan001]

ive seen them from walthers and BLMA, if this helps

[MonsterRailroad]

Unfortunately BLMA does not sell any with this quality. the quality is superior to ANY other sellers and that is why they are raping us by charging $29. the company is called MICRON ART item #93405, prepared to be raped! :)

[UPfan001]

wow that is a rip off!!! i thought the walthers one wasnt too bad.

[Zebinator]

Laughing MY ASS OFF AL!!! HHAHAHAHA! Don't be retarded! Too dam funny!!

[MonsterRailroad]

Hey some people act retarded, its a fact. So i had to throw a shot at the retarded people who do dumb shit.

[rockguitarist946]

great video, al!!! lol, once i get my layout wired and all, im gonna be up until midnight running trains XD

[bluejacketsman86]

THANK YOU AL!!!!!! I NEEDED THIS!!!!!

[teekaho]

sorry about the three posts but site wouldnt let me post all at once. Teekaho

[MonsterRailroad]

Its aight man. Yo the funny thing you mentioned is that is old school for me. SHIT I actually soldered my own fences. Look in the video I made two days ago with SCENERY. Right next to the Fire Station there is a full length fence. that was hand made by me using window screen from Walmart. I cut the strips to what i felt was wide enough and cut them VERTICALLY. Then I bought wire that I straightened out and SOLDERED all together. I still have lots left too! But I wanted REALLY REAL FENCES

[teekaho]

by leaving the points on the bottom of tooth picks they will stick right into ur styro foam board right where u want them and guess what they look as good and real as urs do but cost me,,,gee free window screen that some one threw out (one piece last a life time) and a box of tooth picks say .50c not bad. ought to try it same result just different price.nice talking with u.Teekaho

[MonsterRailroad]

Thanks for the heads up though!. I do appreciate it. I have tried alot of the cheap ways. i still do in fact! I go cheap as often as I can but I couldnt make security fence with barbed wire realistic as what i bought so I had to buy it. Check out the scenery video and look at the fence next to the Fire Station. That is hand built by me with window Screens.

[teekaho]

what I do is get a hold of some old window screen (clean it if u want to) then cut it into 1 inch strips any length that u need and then get silver spray paint and paint it. then find some tooth picks clip the points off on one side paint them also silver glue them to the sceen at about half or one inch intervals.

[teekaho]

hey Al I been watching ur shows for a couple of months now and made u one of my subscriptions. anyway just watched ur video on ballasting and u showed me ur 30.00 dollar fencing. just to help u save a buck or two,

[ntrains]

what kind of alcohol do you use

[HoScaleTrainBoy144]

lol

[robbyp79]

What else is good to use for the ballast is a paint brush/pad you can buy from Wal-Mart. Its about $3.00 and it has a blue handle. Its flat and PERFECT for ballast. It makes it nice and even. The pad is used for corners when painting if that helps.

[AzBaja]

Your a Nut...:)

[dmaleod66]

Great video al, without it i would have ended up with glue everywhere.

[Jabbajawz4life]

Before I go to school all im going to say is AMAZING!KEEP THEM COMiNG

[Waffles341]

lmaooo 3:03

[railfanfromiantha]

Thanks for making the video. And I hadn't heard of water and alcohol mix. I've all ways heard of water with a couple drop of detergent.

[trainamtrakcsx]

4 the gravel wouldnt it be better to put it in a shaker thing?

[ballparkfrank10]

no, it doesnt work the best. it makes more of a mess than u need

[adfgfds]

For the water and alcohol mix, how much of each is in the bottle? One of the members at my club uses Windex. I guess it must do the same thing.

So the glue is part water and part glue?

[ramdor72]

Amazing Al :) I am about to do the ballast on my layout, and I am totally confident in doing a good job now after watching your how to... thanks man. Sweet.

[RyanSamuelBarry]

lol. dude silly. nice video. where did you get the "Junk pile"?

[STEELHORSE1975]

ballast on track makes a layout i think i have seen some wack jobs though a always take my time and study the way it should look when i go rail fanning and take lots and lots of pics lol

[dmaleod66]

Thanks for the how to, I'm just starting out, and without this video I would have ended up with glue everywhere,LOL.