Have you ever had to pull up ballasted track/turnouts to make a change in design? Well, I guess the methods used are so simple that no one ever mentions them. For a long time, I simply pulled up my track nails and then proceded to put a putty knife under the track and try to work the track loose from the ballast. I would break up the ballast between the ties and slowly work the track up.
Today, I was in the process of removing some very solid ballasted track for relocation and I came across and old formula. Got any ideas? How about H2O! Yup, water. All these years I had been thinking that the white glue would be too hard to disolve, but it works and works well. I just take a medicine dropper of water and go down the track ties, let it sit for a few minutes, and presto...loose track. If you used liquid nails...sorry...this won't help you
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How about removing "real" dirt ground cover? You know that it dries to concrete hard and you have to use a chisel to get it only half-way removed. Yup, WATER!
Need to clean up your track after all this? Borrow the wife's bathtub for ~24 hours and let them soak in soapy water. Take outside, lay flat, and use garden hose to knock off remaining clods. All the glue and mess in and around the ties and rail will be removed and your track (if flex) will be flexible as new.
This may be a "duh" for some of you, but at least it is now in print
Today, I was in the process of removing some very solid ballasted track for relocation and I came across and old formula. Got any ideas? How about H2O! Yup, water. All these years I had been thinking that the white glue would be too hard to disolve, but it works and works well. I just take a medicine dropper of water and go down the track ties, let it sit for a few minutes, and presto...loose track. If you used liquid nails...sorry...this won't help you
.How about removing "real" dirt ground cover? You know that it dries to concrete hard and you have to use a chisel to get it only half-way removed. Yup, WATER!
Need to clean up your track after all this? Borrow the wife's bathtub for ~24 hours and let them soak in soapy water. Take outside, lay flat, and use garden hose to knock off remaining clods. All the glue and mess in and around the ties and rail will be removed and your track (if flex) will be flexible as new.
This may be a "duh" for some of you, but at least it is now in print
