Hello,
I am going to build a removable section and plan to use foam board for the first time. I was trying to find a good method for gluing the foam board together to create terrain that will hopefully be fairly quick drying time as well. I don’t want to go through a ton of back issues to find foam installation tips, so any help is welcome…I plan on using both the White and Pink type foam board…Thanks…
Phil…
Phil;
Use the search function.
Liquid nails. Strong and fast drying.(spray glues eat through the foam)
I am working on an N scale layout now that is 100% foam board (3/4" pink, the white stuff is too messy. Low temp hot glue does the trick for me, but you have to work quick. I built a 5 foot long mountain section approx 15 layers high and had it completly plastered over in one evening. Be sure to use low temp glue in a gun with a low temp setting otherwise it will melt the foam. I have also used “latex liquid nails”, but it takes a while to set up. I only use it when I need to fasten large sections where the hot glue would dry before I was finished applying it. Good luck with the foam board, it’s a great material to work with.
The bad thing about that search function is it picks out key words from conversations. I just tried to do 3 easy searches. (1-Ballesting, 2-foam glue, and 3 Atlas code 83) Over half the hits that came up were from the Coffee Shop and they were just basic conversation. Most of the rest were things like “great pics” or “thanks for the link”. Not a whole lot of useful info on the topics.
Not the regular Liquid Nails, this will eat the foam. Make sure it is the special LN for projects foam compatible. There are a couple of other brands of foam compatible adhesive as well. I have recently been using another brand called Nail Power http://www.nailpower.com/Products.aspx?ID=Latex-Panel-Foamboard-Adhesive from the local Lowes hardware store. I actually prefer this to LN and have been using it to install my cork roadbed and my track.
It’s a whole lot easier, and cheaper, to just silicone caulk. I use White Lightning brand that I bought at Meijer’s on sale for $1.25 a tube. The stuff is available anywhere and doesn’t attack foam. It dries clear too.
I use it for scenery, sub-raodbed, roadbed, and even laying track. If you screw up and it’s already dry, no problem. Slip a putty knife under the edge and gently pry up. The tracks will come up unharmed and ready to be reused.
Plain old latex caulk works, it’s cheap and it cleans up with water (in case you get some on your fingers).
i use latex liquid nails but remember that there is no air circulation between the foam layers and the adheasive will need several days to dry as it will dry from the outside in.
Uh…No…I put all my foam down with the cheap ($1.17) per tube Liquid nails and it has no adverse effects on the foam.(pink or blue). This is what construction workers use to put this crap up for the purpose it was intended. I literaly just walked in from glueing a bunch of it down with Liquid Nails! DON’T tell me it messes with the foam. Spray glue will melt it. Liquid Nails works GREAT! Latex caulk and silicone take longer to dry. (they work, but you said you wanted somthing faster.) Spend $1.17 and try it for yourself.
I even have some spray glue that works on foam 3M’s Spray Adhesive for Styrofoam, it is meant for floral foam, but works just fine for glueing small chunks of foam for hills. I did find out the hard way contact cement will form funny looking green oozing puddles on the foam though.
Thanks to all who have replied to my orignal post in this thread “Adhesive for Foam Board”…I have many types of glue to try thanks to your input…If anyone has any pointers for building foam terrain, I welcome the input. I need to make both rock cliffs and sections with more grass and trees…Keeping them from getting too heavy is an objective to keep them easily removable for access to hidden track…Realistic rock cliffs is a primary goal to blend with surrounding scenery…Thanks again…
Phil…