eTraxx
Member
I dropped by my hobby shop today and picked up a bag of Woodland Scenics 'Mine Run Coal'. The bag is described as "9 cu. in. (147.5 cu.cm.)" and cost me $3.99
On the way back home I stopped at Michaels and found a bag of "Coarse Black Sand". This was a 2lb bag and cost me $3.00
Hard to compare the two but the sand was about five times the quantity of the 'coal'.
The Woodland Scenics Mine Run Coal is described as 'finer then their lump coal'. Looking at it under my Illuminated Stand Magnifier .. it looks like .. charcoal ..
The Black Sand looks to me like Coal.
These two photos were taken at approximately the same distance. The WS coal is at least 50% dust.
Zooming in ..
As I said, I examined the materials under my Illuminated Stand Magnifier (with scale) ... nifty little device ..
Just for reference .. here is an American penny. The scale is numbered in mm from 0 to 10. The small marks are .1 mm
So. Here are my feeble attempts to take a photo through the magnifier.
If you take away the dust from the Woodland Scenics coal then the charcoal looking lumps run between .5 and 1.5 mm. The sand averages about 1mm x 1-1.5mm
My opinion is that the Michaels sand looks much much more like coal then the Woodland Scenics product. In size it (sand) scales about 3-6" ..
My estimate is that I paid around $.44 an ounce for the Woodland Scenics Mine Run Coal and about $.07 an ounce for the Michaels sand .. that looks better.
On the way back home I stopped at Michaels and found a bag of "Coarse Black Sand". This was a 2lb bag and cost me $3.00
Hard to compare the two but the sand was about five times the quantity of the 'coal'.
The Woodland Scenics Mine Run Coal is described as 'finer then their lump coal'. Looking at it under my Illuminated Stand Magnifier .. it looks like .. charcoal ..
The Black Sand looks to me like Coal.
These two photos were taken at approximately the same distance. The WS coal is at least 50% dust.
Zooming in ..
As I said, I examined the materials under my Illuminated Stand Magnifier (with scale) ... nifty little device ..
Just for reference .. here is an American penny. The scale is numbered in mm from 0 to 10. The small marks are .1 mm
So. Here are my feeble attempts to take a photo through the magnifier.
If you take away the dust from the Woodland Scenics coal then the charcoal looking lumps run between .5 and 1.5 mm. The sand averages about 1mm x 1-1.5mm
My opinion is that the Michaels sand looks much much more like coal then the Woodland Scenics product. In size it (sand) scales about 3-6" ..
My estimate is that I paid around $.44 an ounce for the Woodland Scenics Mine Run Coal and about $.07 an ounce for the Michaels sand .. that looks better.