Each of us has a private model world arising from a very personal, creative inspiration. It magically transports us to a different time and place where we are the Big Engineer. But then, unsatisfied, we subject that beautiful little microcosm to the real, hostile, outdoor world with its devastating rainfall, embrittling cold, withering heat, searing ultraviolet rays, corrosive atmosphere, and violent voracious, monstrous, filthy varmints.

And, as if that were not enough, sometimes we goof, too.

OUR READERS SPEAK

For example, Chip Rosenblum from Columbus, Ohio:

I had always had great success using silicone to attach glass to wood for outdoor low-voltage lamp fixtures. [An "adhesive/sealant", "E-6000, Industrial Grade Self-Leveling Formula" for use on "all woods, metals, fiberglass, glass, and reinforced plastics",] seemed to be a viable alternative and so I gave it a shot. The glue joints, although exposed to the weather by virtue of outdoor installation, were within the structure and so not exposed to direct sunlight [ultraviolet]. The glue, over a six-month period, went from clear and slightly flexible to brown and brittle. Then it proceeded to release from the glass. That, of course, allowed the glass to follow Newton's apple until it reached the closest downward obstacle. Needless to say, if you'd care to stop by, the door prize will be the remains of the never-to-be-used-again E-6000.

Also, Douglas Gibson, from Cincinnati:

If it could be glued, I "Gooed" it. Half of my HO layout was held together with [Walthers' Goo]. Then came large scale and the outdoor layout.

Since POLA's "Plast" couldn't be used on Korber's #561 Barn, I "Gooed" it. The instructions specified Ambroid Cement, but I had a fresh tube of Goo. The first hot day in the backyard the Goo softened and the barn collapsed. Chalk that one up to experience. Use Goo inside but follow instructions outside.

MR. MICRO COMMENTS

More misrepresentation seems to abound regarding consumer adhesives than regarding Florida real estate. If you doubt that, count how many times the word "super" appears on glue packages in your local hardware store. It is always good to know the base polymer of a glue, but even if you know the solubility parameters (polarities) of the glue and those of the materials you want to join, you could still fail to predict the interactions of all the other components at the joint.

Lacking our own testing lab, we depend on our own and others' experience. We will tell everyone about your results, be they good or bad, amateur or professional with no intention of endorsing products. Manufacturers, see our advertising department. Modelers, write to us.

ATMOSPHERIC CORROSION

The overhead conductor parts for LGB's catenary system are hard brass wires. They are heavy and corrode to the same degree as the rails in LGB track but are grossly oversize for a finescale layout.

The House of Duddy sells handsome overhead catenary parts for smaller scales and has .020-inch diameter (24 gauge) phosphor bronze for conductor and catenary wires. It is strong, springy, straight, and its size is close to the prototypical half-inch catenary suspension cables.

Beware, anyone living near a damp, corrosive environment such as the ocean. Within two years the bare phosphor bronze wire will develop a thick, green crust. It undercuts and destroys all soldered joints, even those of 2-percent silver-bearing solder.

Unfortunately, the catenary system is mine. I will make one more try, using silver-plated phosphor bronze wire (not in Duddy's catalog), unless someone has a better idea.

ELECTROLYTIC CORROSION

Never depend on plastic ties completely to insulate the rails from the ground. A large, temporary layout at a county fair ran quite well, 12 hours a day, for two weeks. When we dismantled the layout and returned the track we had borrowed, we discovered some rails had corroded away by as much as one-third and the rail joiners were beginning to disappear!

It seems running the trains continuously in one direction polarized the rails. That, together with frequently watering the miniature landscape and its fertilizer-rich soil, let electrolysis quietly destroy the "plus" rail.

The obvious solution was ballast and, in subsequent years, it worked. One inch of clean, coarse gravel adequately separated the track from the saline soil to protect it during the short term of the display. From that example we see that good drainage away from the track is a must for long-term, trouble-free, serious train playing.

You need not have solved your particular problem to share it with others. Please send a note to Mr. Micro, Outdoor Railroader, 1574 Kerryglen Street, Westlake Village, CA 91361.