A diary of Tramway Demiel

Yes it was 33 degrees today but for the first time there was a warm breeze and no humidity. At one point i left the train going round the track while i did a couple of lengths in the pool!!

Mikey

Your ASH ballasting looks really effective Mikey; it looks as well as if it keeps the weeds at bay.

I also regularly spray the ash with white vinegar, which is a natural weedkiller and very cheap (especially here in France). The ash absorbs the vinegar and is an effective barrier.

Mikey

mikeyh wrote:

I also regularly spray the ash with white vinegar, which is a natural weedkiller and very cheap (especially here in France). The ash absorbs the vinegar and is an effective barrier.

Mikey

Well that's a good tip that I didn't know...I'm off to the supermarket...

I mix it in a handspray with a little squirt of washing up liquid (this helps it stick to the plant.) Most weeds will turn brown within a couple of hours. Once they are dead they wont return for about three weeks if they are rampant weeds. I spray every two weeks (takes 10 minutes) and that seem to be OK. It aways reminds me of home because the line smells like a chip shop for an hour!

Miek

The liquid detergent serves as a surfactant - breaking down the surface tension of the water and eliminating its natural tendency to bead. In effect, it makes water "wetter", which helps immensly with the ash being able to absorb it.

I'm surprised though you haven't discovered a source of recycled vinegar- maybe a local pickle factory. I know it's a cheap herbicide, but it's still a shame to have to actually pay for it.

BTW, vinegar is also useful as a rinse agent for laundry. We use it instead of fabric softener to help remove detergent from our laundry. Try it- you could take the aroma of the chip shop with you wherever you go.

nice to know the reasons for these things. i used to go out with a girl whose parents had a chip shop. she must have used half a bottle of perfume to disguise the smell! When we were snogging it always used to make me hungry!! Round-up=highly poisonous 1 litre 26euros. white vinegar not toxic=1 litre 1 euro. nuff said!

Mikey

I was in a garden shop this past weekend and mentioned your vinegar herbicide and the clerk said 'Oh yes, it certainly works.' and showed me a gallon bottled of vinegar labelled 'Organic Herbicide' . It was also priced at $20, which just goes to show you how stupid some people are when it comes to 'organic gardening.'

I was in my local Carrefour yesterday trying to buy vinegar (28 cents a litre, 5 litres less than 1.50€)....but it was nearly all gone, just a few bottles left which I snapped up.

When I got to the check-out I saw several people with the same idea including one old lady with 30 litres of the stuff in her trolley.

She also told me she mixes it with bleach which destroys everything.......

great info here, I have been looking for a "safe" something to spray , does it work on grass ? I have been very lazy and my track is overgrown - already !! Apart from a splash of detergent do you spray it neat. I have never seen ordinary vinegar in Spain, it's all wine vinegar or cider vinegar which is a tad more expensive - will it still do the job ? I need "safe" because of the dog, and no I am not getting rid of him.

Yes Patrick, ordinary vinegar will work (they are all acetic acid) the pickling and cider vinegars are, as you say, a tad more expensive and the smell lingers longer! Yes its a non-selective weedkiller (which means it will kill anything it touches). I dont think that one application will kill grass completely but several will.Be careful not to spray it on anything you want to keep!
Spray it with a bit of washing up liquid. As Bill said earlier it makes the vinegar 'wetter' but it also gives it some body and doesnt evaporate off the weed too quickly

Mikey

We had a patch of really resilient weeds on the far side of the line that just kept coming back. I thought that a cemetery would be ideal (as every french commune has one). Its not finished yet but the walls are made from strips of a camping mattress, the hearse is loosely based on the one at Le Bournat (see living history thread). the figure was made from a model of a welsh miner bought from a working mine and supposed to be of welsh coal. (the dremel proved otherwise!), the gravestones and tombs are made from Celon blocks;



Mikey

I am not sure about the walling material Mikey but the rest will look great, especially when the weeds grow back (joking)

Last year Carl kindly made me a brass tram body for a live steam chassis. Before he made it he made a template from plasticard. He recently sent me this body which i have bashed a bit and fitted to one of my stainz locos (with the chassis extended a bit) A worthy addition to Tramway Demiel!:



Mikey

Looks good Mikey you’d never believe there is a Stainz in there.

Gets my vote for the best Stainz conversion yet!

Glad you could make use of it as it would have lurked around for years doing nothing chez moi.

Here's another (heritage) pic of the plastic body on the Edrig chassis...not in steam of course...

I think this has been covered before but wher do the lamps come from ? Oh and very nice.

Ps how is the donkey train coming along - must be nearly finished

these two are old LGB plastic painted with brass coloured paint

no donkey/bullock train; the cost of the animals is more than the loco!!

Mikey

mikeyh wrote:

these two are old LGB plastic painted with brass coloured paint

no donkey/bullock train; the cost of the animals is more than the loco!!

Mikey

BULLOCK's

no, honest its true!

mikey

The new Locomotive entered passenger service today. Here it is passing the cemetery;





Mikey

The cemetery is looking good (if a bit dead) the walls look good now they are painted, presumably that is ash on the floor.

Yes direct from the crematorium!

Mikey

mikeyh wrote:

Yes direct from the crematorium!

Mikey

Is one of those the next project?

Spooky.