From what I have seen from different project layouts, foam seems to be a good choice for flat areas and small hills, while the cardboard strips method is great for large hill, cliffs, mountains, etc.
If you’re modeling the prairies (NOT the Camas Prairie!) then a deck - foam, plywood or a combination thereof - makes sense. If, like me, you are modeling a place where the terrain stands on edge, decks are a very bad choice for a base.
I personally use thin cookie-cut plywood (to form vertical transitions and hold screws) which I refer to as subgrade. On top of that is a layer of thin (9mm) extruded foam, aka fan-fold underlayment, which I sculpt into roadbed with a sharp knife. (Here in the dessicated desert, cork is a non-starter. In a couple of years it turns into something like Graham crackers.) Total thickness, about 3/4 inch, well within the length of standard drill bits.
If I need a really thin track support, I use a length of steel stud laid like a rain gutter, with the flex track secured by latex caulk and #22 wire. Total thickness is approximately 1/4 inch. Needless to say, this only works on hidden track.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - on steel stud benchwork)
I used the cookie cutter method, no foam used. The layout is made from 1/2 inch plywood supported regularly enough to be strong. The road bed is Midwest Cork and the scenic contours are made from woven cardboard strips, covered with paper towels dipped in plaster; or, Woodland Scenic plaster impregnated cloth. Most surfaces have plaster; or, Sculpt-A-Mold on them, carved to shape and cast rock faces.
There are many ways to “Skin-a-Cat” Try the methods described here and elsewhere and a you will determine a preferred way to do things, as there is no right; or, wrong way, despite what some people will tell you! Have fun, if you ain’t having fun, try another way that is fun!
I used mostly 2" pink foam on 1/2" OSB. Here are my lessons learned:
-The OSB sags if not supported every 18-24"
-only use 1 thickness unless you’re topping off something, 3" does not equal 2 1-1/2" or 3 1" etc
-The hot wire and knife style cutters only work for short, quick cuts, then your smoke detector thinks there’s a plane crash in your basement
-It’s super easy to glue roadbed and track on, and scenery and roads and you can draw out with a sharpie
-The train is really quiet, swooshing clickety clack vs grrrrrr on wood (my previous layout)
-I’m assuming that my sections will be easy to carry when I move
[:-^]
I agree with Jim,
My trackage that is on plywood and risers is far quieter than the trackage that is on foam or foam on hollow core doors. However the louder noise trackage is all closer to my control end and therefore should be louder. the trains are much quieter at the far end that you would expect being in the distance. Indeed forced perspective SOUND wise. I LIKE IT and it works for me.
Johnboy out…What did you say ? there’s a train going by.
I model in HO and used 1" pink or blue foam (whatever they had at the Depot that day) over 1"x2" pine open grid benchwork. This works for me because my layout is an around-the-walls design ranging from 10"-36" deep, so I never need to climb up on it. In situations where I’ve had to lean heavily on it while working on the backdrop, I cover the foam with a piece of plywood big enough to span the frame supports under the foam. I began raw construction more than 10 years ago, finished construction nearly five years ago, am now into the scenicking stage and have never broken through or cracked the foam top. The reasons for my choices are: - lighter weight/easier if I ever need to move (the benchwork is modular so, in theory at least, it can be taken apart and reassembled) - easier/cleaner to cut/shave foam pieces to fit (don’t bother with a hot wire, a good sharp utility knife is all you need for 1" foam) - easier to create natural-looking undulations in my Oklahoma prairie landscape: building up a 1/4" rise is as easy on wood as on foam, but just try carving a slight 1/8" depression! - because my layout is double-decked, the thin profile of 1" foam on 1x2 framing maximizes clearances - a lot of under-table turnout and semaphore hardware is designed for tabletop thicknesses of up to 1". 2" foam looked to be more problematic - I figured that in places where I need to dig more than 1/4" or so into the tabletop (ditches, small streams) I could laminate another 1" foam layer underneath. For my one larger creek valley I just lowered the benchwork and will use stacked carved foam for the valley walls. There are some downsides to foam. If the layout needs to take your full weight, I wouldn’t recommend it. I also agree with those who say foam is louder than wood. My trains are almost silent on the helixes which connect the two levels (these are flextrack spiked directly into plywood roadbed; no cork) but when they hit the foam on the up