Rail and chairs have now been laid for two sidings in the goods yard, that is two times about 4'6". This provides my first real test track for 14.2.
I tried ash ballasting in a similar fashion to my O Gauge in the Garden but the white spirit and Ronseal varnish started to loosen the chairs. When I read the small print on the tin of varnish it said "Do not use on plastic type materials" so I hunted in the cupboard for something else. I found some Rustin's Shellac Sanding Sealer which advises Methylated Spirits for cleaning brushes. That seems to be working well diluted 50/50 with meths after ballasting about 36" of track. I spread Green Scene 2mm Scale Black Ash ballast (GS414) dry and then drop the shellac on with a mini pipette. It is a slow process but very rewarding. Next job is to find the right colour for painting the rails and then finish a 14.2 loco chassis for testing.
Here are the materials and those mini pipettes
and a closer look at the end result