Nearly all of us have roads on our layouts. I am currently in the process of renovating mine. I was wondering what brand of road system to use. Currently, I am thinking about using Woodland Scenics. So this begs the question: what road technique/system/brand do you use and has anyone used Woodland Scenics and do you like it. Any comments and recomandations are very welcome.
-Alex Warshal
I came up with my own system. I use 1/2 plaster and 1/2 white glue and smooth it on as best as possible and then when dry sand it flater and carve expantion lines (concret road). Then I paint it and then add a stain to make the lines show more.
Roads are one of the easier things on a layout to build from scratch. Why pay good money you could use on locomotives or rolling stock? There are all kinds of You Tube videos and other tutorials on the internet using roof shingles, Funky Foam from Hobby Lobby, styrene, paint and sand, and the wet pour methods that I prefer to stay away from. Give it a try.
Assuming you’re referring to pavement materials, I’ve been using sanded tile grout. It has a nice texture and is the same color all the way through so chips don’t show too badly. It’s easy to paint and weather too. I’ve probably used all of these photos before.
Here’s one example after weathering with acrylics and chalks, but before striping. The finished color is more or less the plain grout color when dry.
This one received more acrylic washes to lighten it. The way grout abosrbs paint, it wasn’t difficult to avoid leaving brush marks.
A closer look with enhanced side lighting reveals the texture. Pavement for the concrete gas station lot was scribed 0.60" styrene sheet.
I have used the Walthers concrete road “system” – properly painted the styrene looks very much like concrete and I like the built in crown in the center.
I would say however that if you decide to paint the Walthers pieces (and I suggest it even though the unpainted plastic is not a bad shade for concrete – it just has the wrong texture – I would say, paint all of your pices at once rather than assume you can perfectly match it later. Even using the same brand and shade of rattle can paint (Tamiya) there are color differences between batches that make for a rather patchwork looking road.
Dave Nelson
Dave Nelson
I use a product called Creatology Fun Foam (a 2 mm thick sheet foam product available at Michael’s and other craft stores) laid over 0.040" sheet styrene to create my roads. I first draw out the roadway on the layout, then cut templates from cardstock to fit over the roadway surfaces. Once the templates are complete, I transfer the template edges to sheet styrene and cut out the styrene pieces. I trial fit the styrene pieces on the layout to ensure that everything will fit as planned. I next use the styrene pieces as cutting guides to cut matching pieces of Fun Foam to fit over the styrene. Make sure to stagger the styrene and Fun Foam joints so there are no abrupt (visible) seams in the finished roadway. When all of the roadway pieces are ready to install on the layout, I glue down 1/4" wide strips of 0.040" styrene along the roadway centerlines to create a crown in the finished roadway. Although such a crown is subtle, it adds a lot to the look of the finished road. I also add styrene shims where the roadway grade needs to change spacing such shims so these transitions are smooth and gentle. I next glue down the styrene sheet pieces being sure to let the styrene assume whatever grade changes (don’t force the styrene into the glue at such locations). Once the glue holding down the styrene has dried, I spray the underside of the Fun Foam pieces with heavy duty spray adhesive and press them into place atop the styrene. A wallpaper or other type of small roller is useful to ensure the Fun Foam stay flat and smooth. Once all of the Fun Foam is glued down, I use Woodland Scenics Foam Putty to fill any gaps between the Fun Foam pieces. I next use craft paints to paint the Fun Foam surface a concrete or asphalt color. I also use fine tip paint pens to create roadway striping. The final steps are to weather the roadway. I start by cutting cracks in the Fun Foam with a hobby knife. The Fun Foam is som
Hornblower, can you post some pictures of your roads?
I’m using a self adhesive rolled roof product as of now, but am also open to other ideas. Dan
Styrene road/RR crossing folks. How do you hide the “open”/empty side area between the bottom of your styrene and the roadbed/ground cover. (the wedge shaped area below the ramp). Just shove more of the ballast or dirt in the opening? Tiny culverts? I’ve been looking through magazines and videos for ideas but not as many camera angles on this aspect as one would expect.
Thanks,
Jim
I am having the same trouble too, Capt. I would think sheet cork or something of that nature.
-Alex
For asphalt, black craft foam (EVA foam) with gray paint sponged on works well.
I’ve got a tutorial at this link…
http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/showthread.php?157294-Modeling-Asphalt&highlight=
Steve S
I use the Walthers brick street system, for a 12ft long main st. The Walthers street track running inserts for crossings in some area’s and 1/8 inch thick sheet cork for asphalt roads. In this scene, all details, street lights etc. have been removed. From the small tree on left to the right, track included is being removed and redone for my ongoing Transload Rail/Truck building which is 30’’ long. There used to be backdrop’s and large Grain elevator complex there.
Take Care!
Merry Christmas, All.
Frank
Capt. ,Alex
I use dry wall mud. Of course it’s white and I add acrylic black paint drop by drop to it until I get the color I want. But you can just paint it when you color your road.
Bob
There are any number of paving materials you can use, each have their advantages and disadvantages. I’ve tried the Woodland Scenics Smooth-it and I don’t see that it is any better than other types of plaster material. I’ve tried powdered spackling compound which gives good working time but isn’t quite as durable as plaster. Durham’s Water Putty is very durable. One other material I’ve tried recently is concrete patching material which is sold in small plastic buckets at home improvement stores. The trick is to find something that gives you good working time, is durable but can also be smoothed and shaped before it sets up. I model in HO and I use WS foam track bed turned upside down for forms to creat a beveled edge. I use a fairly wet mix so I can poor it into the molds and smooth it. As it begins to set up, I use a wet foam brush as a float to try to smooth it as best I can. After it hardens I sand it to take out any bumps.
Once the road is shaped and dried I paint and weather it. Most paved surfaces are asphalt, not concrete. New asphalt is black but over time, it fades to a medium to light gray, so I pick a base color to reflect the shade I am going for. I like to brush paint it on so there is a little variance in the color. I then weather it using dirty white, light brown, and gray weathering powders. I apply it with a brush and remove the excess. It looks awful after this step. I fix that by rubbing it with a dry paper towel in which smooths out the streaks and gives it a nice weathered look. The last step is to dab grimy black weathering powder down the center of each traffic lane to simulate rubber and oil stains and repeat the paper towel step. I’ve been very happy with the results.
[:-^]
Hi Alex,
The one road that I have in place is right along an edge of one side of the mountain and river side of the layout. it goes up and over a small rise before disappearing off the edge. Being so close to the edge I wanted it to be fairly sturdy to wear & tear and yet look better ( I think) than smoother plaster etc. if it is the asphalt look that you want.
So I chose to use the back side of some rolled roofing, shingles *back side) would also work. It gives a nice texture and color as is but will take some stains if required. I am very satisfied with it and will be using it again.
The most difficult part, as anyone who has worked with a shingle product knows, is cutting it. You need good quality blades for a utility knife and change them fairly often as when you get through to the grit side it really dulls your blades quickly.
Another nice thing about it is the cost. mine was left over from roofing a car-port, but a person can get used shingles fron any firm or person who is doing a re-shingling job.
Johnboy out…
I’m also a fan of Durham’s Water Putty. It’s a hardware store item. It’s a powder that mixes with water. I add a bit of white vinegar to the mixture to slow down setting and give me a longer working time. It is naturally a light tan color. I use a foam brush, kept constantly wet, to continually smooth the surface while it sets, usually about a half hour. Once dry, I use a wash of gray craft paint, applied in several applications. This gives a color that’s not quite uniform, more realistic than a ‘perfect’ paint job.
I applied the white lines with a felt marker.