PRSL, I'd like to hear your position on ballast. A friend who works for BNSF said that hard granite 1-1/2" rock is great for current mainlines, but not the best for the NG. His feeling was that it would take a very long time for the rock to compress enough to provide a solid base, and would end up being pushed into the mud and dirt and head to china.
He said even a bed of cinders would work better as it would create a nice matte that would prevent dirt from mixing with the ballast. And drainage was essential so that when it did rain, everything dried out quickly. Comments ?