How do I transition from mainline track to a branchline siding when using cork roadbed? I know enough not to use the cork roadbed for the branchline.
IRONROOSTER Posted: 06 Sep 2004, 10:35:58 Quote
Posts: 761
Joined: 08 Jun 2003
Location: Northern Viriginia
I use cork. I find it easy to use. With a suraform plane it is easy to smooth. I think it’s quieter than just putting the track on bare plywood.
Enjoy
Paul
quote
Use a sureform plane or similar tool.
In N scale:0 I usually use HO cork under mains, N cork under sidings, no cork under spurs and yards.
I use homasoate for the subroadbed with cork on the mainline only. I’ve used various materials for making the change from the cork to just the homasoate and most anything that you can make a smooth grade from will work if it will accept glue or nails (whichever you use to hold your track in place). In a coule of yards, I used sheet cork like you would use on a bulletin board.
I have been thinking about this same issue. I want to transition from a 1/2 inch cork to 1/4 inch road bed on sidings. I read somewhere where a person used a carpenters shim in the trasintion, this reduced the the amount of sanding. Any thoughts?
Here’s a new twist to consider. I use HO cork roadbed for my main lines and N roadbed for sidings and A/D track then drop to the deck for yards and most industries. An occasional industry can be raised to vary the terrain, eh? For the transitions I use cut-up strips of old credit cards (about 1/4" x slightly wider than the ties)and the phony ones that come with offers. I also use various thicknesses of plastic. This way I can shim every 3 inches and spread the taper out to approximately 1/16" per foot with a slight vertical radius at top and bottom. Use clear silicone ADHESIVE not caulking material for the laminations and the track. It makes for quiet running and with .010-.020" expansion gaps at the rail joints, you can actually hear the click-click of the wheels.
I believe Homabed has transition section for connecting the two thicknesses of roadbed it produces. See www.homabed.com.
I think the above ideas are great- but if you’re like me and have some back sidings that don’t get heavy use, I’ll just spike down the rail to the surface and hide the transition with ballast securely glued down. It makes for a pretty good angle, thought. It works for me, a granger line modeler.
Adds the element of nervousness and mystery every time a train goes through it, (like real "deferred mait. roads) of if the train will derail over the “bumpy” track this time. Gives heartburn to the engineer who tries to spot a car a little too fast.
I’m kind of uncoventional, I use my belt sander with an 80 grit belt to transition the cork from mainline thickness to branchline or siding. Work’s great and fast too! Just make sure the glue is dry and the nails are countersunk.
I use old wooden shingles. They are wide enough to cut for curves, they can be cut/split to the appropriate wideth (e.g. for two tracks), and the taper is gentle to any heighth.
I just put two spurs for a sawmill on my layout, and I simply used joint compound (sculptamold will work too, though it’s more expensive and pretty much the same thing) to transition from the turnout to about six-eight inches down the length of the spur. When it’s sat until it’s a putty like consistency, you can shape it more exactly to what you want. When it dries completely, paint the joint compound “ramp” an earth tone, then put your track down and ballast as you normally would. I put the lowered section of spur track directly on the plywood (how much noise can it make. It’s not like you’re running an engine at 60mph on a spur anyhow). Besides, prototype spurs and sidings, especially ones that have been around a while, are usually at ground level anyway, with many of the ties half-covered as the track has settled.
If the spur is pretty short (less than 15 inches), the grade change from cork to plywood might be too drastic, in which case you might want to use thin cork like the stuff gaskets and bulletin boards are made with. But the joint compound still can be used for the actual transition.
I am new to all this stuff. Why do you do a transition from main line roadbed to yard or siding roadbed? Thanks.
Its a scenic technique.
On the prototype the mainlines are usually built and maintained to a higher standard than sidings, spurs. Main lines often have a thicker structural section (deeper ballast under the ties) than the other tracks. One way to show this is to use thicker roadbed under a main line. This will visibly show which is the main track because it will be slightly higher than other tracks at the same ground elevation. A slight grade is then needed between the main and the body of the siding or spur.
In N scale: I usually use HO cork under mains, N cork under sidings, no cork under spurs and yards. Doing this requires a short grade to transition between the main line and the secondary track.
With a Yard it actually would be more correct to have the top of rail elevation in the yard the same as for the mainline approach so there is no grade.
Is it really worth the trouble to change the thickness of the roadbed - will it be noticeable - or is this one for the rivet counters brigade?[?]
It’s really not any trouble, it is noticable, and while not absolutely necessary to make a good looking model railroad, it is not rivet counting either. It just gives a visual key to the purpose and importance of the track. Another visual key often suggested is using different colors or shades of ballast. I also use (in N Scale) code 80 rail on main tracks and code 55 on most other tracks.
Most model railroads are too flat (including mine) I live in the Sacramento Valley. Most of the rail lines around here are on embankments 3’ or more above the natural ground.
Many thanks DSchmitt for the comment. As you recommend that it is worth doing, I will probably do it on my new layout that I am planning to build in the near future.[:D]
I agree on the top of rail elevation issue. But there’s still a case for not putting track in a yard area on individual strips of cork roadbed. Yards I have seen tend to be ballasted very flat (or wound up that way after years of service) with the top of ballast between adjacent tracks at or only slightly below the level of the ballast at the rails. I suspect that this is as much for convenience and ease of walking around the yard as much as anything else. To reproduce this, you could consider laying the yard tracks on a flat piece of cork cut from sheet the same thickness as the cork roadbed you are using for the mainline. In this way the top of rail elevation is the same, but after ballasting between the rails and between adjacent tracks you’ll wind up with a flatter profile in this area. Here’s an example of what I mean, obviously not taken in a main yard of the BNSF or UP. [:D]
Just an idea. Your mileage may vary.
Regards
Ed
I agree and your reasoning is correct. I don’t usually use cork in yards. As your photo shows they are also usually closer to the “natural” ground grade than the main is.
Yards are usualy flat. Point being to prevent injury to swichmen getting on or off car while ajacent to swich stands and after coupling up cars to connect the brake pipe hose, especially at night and heavy weather.
I agree with egmurphy, If you have a problem with yard elevations to flat ballast, don’t use road bed only to have to add material to bring it back up to grade.Use thicker ply or shim the benchwork with appropriate thickness material to make up for the lack of roadbed. Sound deadening should not be an issue for yards.
Bob K.