Brennan's Blog
Inexpensive O Gauge Ballast?
Kitty litter, chicken grit, oil dry, and aquarium gravel are a few items that are often suggested as cheap alternatives to commercial ballast. Rather than make a value judgment about the suitability of any of these stand-ins, I’m simply going to take issue with the reasoning for using them.
The idea that commercial ballast is too expensive is not true in comparison to other train related purchases.
Toy Trains or Models?
Whenever this topic comes up on any 3 rail train forum, it’s time to get out the popcorn. And I’m sure more than a few of you have raised eyebrows right now. So, I’ll get right to it–the answer to the question, “Are they toys or models?” is “Yes.” The hullabaloo arises because we have 2 distinct camps: those who wish to embrace the toy in the train and those who view themselves as model railroaders. However, one doesn’t have to preclude the other.