After hand laying about three-quarters of the LAJ track, I have to say I don’t really see a noticeable improvement over well colored Micro Engineering flex. Comparing the time and effort versus visual payoff, the Micro Engineering wins hands down. While laying the last section of track I stumbled on a technique that creates the nice effect of rust texture and rust stains on the ballast directly below and adjacent to the rail. After painting the rail, I took an old, small, stiff brush and ground brown powdered chalk into the rail web and allowed the extra chalk powder to drop downwards on to the ballast. When finished I sealed it with Krylon acrylic flat.
