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Grant, the alcohol will break down the surface resistance of the ballast and let the glue mix get absorbed.
I prefer to use a bottle with a spout for my application of the alcohol and also with the glue mix. You don't get the spray on everything that way. Also, and very important, spraying does not get very much glue into the ballast like the spout will. Basically, you will only get the surface. Just open the spout and let gravity pour down the middle of the track and then down the outside ties. An old Sterno bottle is for the alcohol and I use an old white glue bottle for the mix.
BTW: I happen to be ballasting right now...about 40 feet .
I'm ballasting right now too and if you dont use the 50/50 mix u will see right away why you should use it. A section of mine got to dry and I figure it out pretty quick.
Yeah, when I started ballasting several years ago, I made the mistake of not getting enough glue in the ballast. One little bump and the crust breaks, spreading ballast everywhere.
I use an eyedropper for the glue... but now reading what was said about the spraying that makes sense... I'm going to get pipettes or another eyedropper for the "wet water". I use the dish soap/water method instead of the rubbing alcohol method.
I use an empty and cleaned glue bottle. I wrapped the end with a layer of masking tape and drove a single pinhole into it. Covered the tape with the cap, and when I invert the bottle, only a dribble of the water/alcohol mix comes out. I do the ballast between the ties last because it is the thinnest, and in any event, I only glue about one foot at a time so that I don't end up with having to repeat and waste the alcohol on longer lengths due to drying.
With the nib held close and above to the ballast material, the application is direct, no overspray and making the air around the layout and you filled with alcohol fumes, except what is evaporating from the ballast. I have no problems with dislodging or displacing the beach sand grains that I use this way.
Same process for the glue mix, but my glue is much more watery than recommended by many users. I like to be able to bust up my ballast and fix things, including shimming on curves if necessary, or shimming dips in the rails that I had not noticed.
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