What would be a good alternitive to Homesote, Would laying cork road bed over 3/4 in. plywood be ok? Thanks
HELLO
This is larry yes that should do just fine it will reduce the running noise level providing you dont mind a tiny bit of noise as opposed to not having the cork down underneath which would signifigantly increase the noise factor and that could be a bad thing
hope this helps ya
Regards
Larry
Gary;
My standing recommendation is 2" (absolute minimum anywhere) to 4" of extruded foam (typically pink or blue, may be laminated), with the cheapest plywood on the bottom; which at Lowe’s here is 3/16" laun.
Woodland Scenics roadbe on top. Others like AMI.
Nigel
I have used several methods, including homosote, and the one I like best is cork roadbed over foam over particle board. I glue everything together including the track onto the cork. It comes out very quiet and stable from a dimensional standpoint. I use particle board because it dosen’t warp so badly like plywood. I have had very unsatisfactory experiences with homosote due mainly because it seems to absorb moisture and therefore change dimensions.
Terry (Ohio)
Cork is great and it can be a lot easier to get, at least where I life it is. the At Orchard Supply Hardware it comes in 18" wide by 36" to 42" rolls from 1/8" thick to 3/16" thick and its cheap. All you have to do is trim it into strips and away you go.
I just heard from a gent in Texas recomending MICORE from US Gypsom. He thinks it is more stable than the gray scrap paper Homosote. The Homosote or MICORE layer is to absorb the vibration and reduce the rumble (noise to some). Cork seems to age faster than Homosote and the trains are louder. The plywood is structure and the thickness depends upon the distance spanned. 1/2" seems good to aboout 16" and 3/4" will span to about 24".