Another take of building a Static Grass Applicator

Thanks Nigel for your comments - all noted.

The PVA I'm currently using is a "501 PVA Bond" - nice big bottle at a decent price. It seems to be quite gloopy but not too thick and seemed to work quite well on the small area tested (as shown above). When watered down and with a drop or two of washing up liquid (probably to 50:50 PVA/water) it seemed way to runny and nothing seemed to stand upright - or at that stage I hadn't got the method of applying the grass in connection with the applicator correct. I guess it'll be a question of a more acceptable 80:20 mix and see how it goes. It felt better anyway at undiluted.

So far, I've only tried the applicator with 4mm - and that seems to have worked ok. Next time I'll add some 6mm into the mix and get that applied somewhere non too obvious - but I see no reason why it won't be successful as well. Whether I go for anything longer is debatable at this stage but I'm sure the applicator should be well powerful enough.

I may well see about building an add-on for my DVM to check exactly what voltage is being generated. The ad says 15-20Kv but I feel that, like many things, it may be a bit optimistic! I've no idea whether a datasheet is available for it as it doesn't have a model number on it and there is "very" limited data on the ads. 12v in, 5W, 15-20Kv out; the ads can't even get the physical size correct! Having said that, one ad did have it about correct. But a datasheet? no chance.

Quite how long the applicator took to build is somewhat questionable. I started the actual build on about 4th August and finished it on 15th - but not continuously! Quite a few hours were spent doing research beforehand and then trying this or that approach regarding putting it all together.

That and choosing and finding what I thought were the right items for the job and also digging out the long lost tools that were required. And then waiting for the ion generator (and a couple of other parts not in the scrap-box) to arrive in the post. It's surprising what bits you know you've already got - but finding them…..that's another time consuming matter altogether. So I just gave up looking and ordered new bits!

So, in reality, I can't put a build-time on it - a few minutes here, an hour or two there, all full of disruptions for various household tasks that came along. I would say, if you have all the bits to hand, it could be built in a couple of hours or so, plus glue setting/hardening time where appropriate. Sorry I can't be more specific. Hope it gives you an idea though.

Cheers
Dave

[user=1938]The Q[/user] wrote:

One thing I haven't seen is a "detail" grass applicator. I've had problems trying to get into small corners to put in grass with those 3inch-ish diameter shakers.
I'm considering and alternative lid that funnels down to a cone with maybe just a half inch  diameter hole and wire mesh on the end.

Anyone tried it?

I tried using a plastic funnel and it worked ok with 2mm fibres. Much longer and they get caught in the tube and come out in a long sausage. Resolved it by cutting the tube off leaving just the cone. Best thing for really tight corners or along the base of walls buildings etc is the Noch puffer bottle. 
Dave - Very impressed with build of the applicator and your first attempts using it. I have used pro quality PVA, decorators PVA, cheap PVA from Tescos meant for school type projects and all seemed to work fine for the base layer. Use WWS, Peco, 3M spray glue or even hair spray to add additional layers, then final coat of spray and dress with varying grades of flock.

Many thanks Ian for your comments - much appreciated.

Glad to know virtually any type of PVA will work satisfactorily, at least for the base layer - I'm still very much a complete novice at applying the static grass.

I certainly need to experiment some more but it will probably have to be on the layout - a coupleof small areas have been started and it looks much better than just a plain layer of flock particles. So far I've tried the 2, 4, and 6mm lengths from WWS. Can't comment on the other varieties of make (or longer lengths) but the WWS seems to do the job for me (at least for now).

All I need now is some base scenery surfaces added around the trackwork so I can play around a bit more with the applicator and various grass lengths/shades/etc.

Dave