Having recently retired, I’m resurrecting my 50-year-old Lionel train, including original .027 track. I’ve completed the basic layout and wiring on a 4 x 8 sheet of 1/4- inch plywood, but before I “nail” down the track, I’d appreciate suggestions on what to do, if anything, to the base/roadbed, to begin to make it slightly more realistic than just track on painted plywood. I’ve heard covering it with homasote board and green mat before laying the track to dampen sound, using cork roadbed before ballasting, installing foam first, and other ideas. I’d like to have some 3-dimensional aspects to add interest, not just something flat, and have incorporated a graduated trestle as part of the layout. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Welcome to the forum, old timer.
I’m assuming your 4X8 plywood is reinforced so that it won’t bend and warp. You could lay down an entire sheet of homosote over the plywood or cut strips of homosote or use cork and put that under the track.
My preference would be to use silicone calking (or some other type), to affix the track to the roadbed instead of nails or screws; but there are so many preferences it’s hard to say which is best. The calking could also affix the roadbed to the table as well.
Also, if using homosote, bevel the edges but do it outside where dust won’t go all around.
For ballast, you can use chicken starter grits and spray 1:3 wood glue/water with a tad of alcohol and liquid soap to penetrate and spray that on. I’d first tape the rails or smear some WD-40 on the rail heads so the glue doesn’t dry; then wipe the rails with Goo Gone to remove the residue.
You’ll get more indepth responses on this or any forum if you break down your task into steps and post one question per step, instead of lots of questions in one post. Just my take. Good luck
drothenberger,
An easy way to add dimension to your layout is to use 2" foam insulation panels on top of the plywood. That’s what I did. I cut a river into the foam and added a couple of bridges over it. That same foam can be used to build up scenery in the form of hills and mountains. See my photos at the bottom of my post. All done with foam. The farm sits on a 1" foam board. Even the stone wall surrounding the farm was made from 1" foam. Pink or blue coloring of the foam doesn’t matter, and it holds screws. I screwed all my track to the foam with drywall screws (thanks, Buckeye) and it holds them very tightly.
Click on the link below and scroll down to see the river and tunnel I made.
http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?page=1&TOPIC_ID=57096
Jim
[#welcome] drothenberger !! I always like to put a link to a fellow forumites layout construction on. You may find some parts very useful or all of it. This method makes for a very strong & longlasting layout, plys easy to add onto, should you like. i use homosote myself, & if you do, I only use a Stanley type knife to cut it with, to avoid any & all dust.
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8ZYtnLVww24¬ag=1
[blue]Thanks,[/blue
Welcome ! I like to use 1/2 inch plywood or better if I am going to have a permanent
layout, half inch plywood can support more weight and won’t warp or bend as easy.
And I prefer to use screws to hold the track in place, first drill a pilot hole then screw the screw in with a low speed drill, saves time and hard work.
Lee F.
Great suggestions! Plywood base is reinforced. If I choose to use homesote or foam on top, I assume track should be screwed through to plywood base? Caulking might work, but I want to minimize damage to components in order to maintain value. Would you cover entire layout, or just under roadbed with it?
If you go with foam panels, cover the entire layout. It’s easier and works well as a sound deadener. you will also have the option of adding dimension to any area of your layout. I recently decided to add a second river to our layout. I just took a steak knife and cut one out of the foam. The whole thing, start to finish was completed in a little over a day.
You also don’t want to screw all the way down to plywood if you can help it. That will create additional noise. If you use 2" foam panels for example, screw the track down with 1" drywall screws. The foam is dense enough to hold the screw securely. I know, it sounds a little unbelievable. But try it for yourself. you will be amazed at how very strong it is. If you want raised roadbed, put the homasote between the foam and the tracks and ballast over it.
Jim
Sounds good. I assume extruded polyurethane, not expanded polystyrene foam for holding power? Any glue recommendations? Is gluing homasote roadbed to foam a good idea before installing track over it?
Welcome, drothenberger! The foam panels are usually colored pink or blue and used for wall insulation in more northern climes. They are usually sold around here in 4x8 slabs ranging from 1/2 to 3 inches thick. I have nine of them on my layout. There is a special glue for them (That won’t melt the foam) you’ll find with the other tube sealants at your hardware or home store. You could either glue or screw down the homasote to the foam board. I’m using tubular track without roadbed, just loose stones for some ballast-look.
I use ordinary Elmer’s glue to hold the extruded foam panels to the plywood. No problems with it holding. Some adhesives will melt the foam, like regular Liquid Nails. If you use that product, use the kind that is intended for projects and foam.
I’d wait until you have all the track on the homasote and it’s all the way it should be, then just glue it down or use a long enough screw to penetrate the homasote and foam.
Jim
What are the approximate scale dimensions of raised roadbed?
I don’t know the scale dimension. But if you’re going to be using the old style O-27 tinplate track, I wouldn’t get too hung up about it. You might even find that you don’t want or need raised roadbed. Just screw the track to the foam and ballast it.
Jim
Welcome back to the hobby. I think most of the guys on this forum have similar stories in that we dug the old trains out of the closet, attic, etc. Lots of great information. before you run your trains, do a search on this forum for putting your engines and rolling stock back into action. You should clean and lube them. Another thing to be carefull of is that a lot of transformer wires, control wires, etc. dry rot and should be replaced so you don’t have a problem.
Dennis