Model Railroading > New layout! And a couple basic tracklaying questions...

Good morning:
Soon I will embark on my first permanent HO layout in 25 years, after a 3-year stint using Kato Unitrack (which worked out well!)

I plan to use Homasote for my staging & yard areas, and Woodland Scenics foam roadbed for everything else. Atlas flextrack in hidden areas, and Micro Engineering in visible; all Code 83 with a little Code 70 for spurs etc.

Two questions:
1. What adhesive would you recommend for the foam roadbed? Silicone caulk? Clear or white? (Does it matter much?)
2. For the flextrack, a challenge I remember is the need to remove a tie or two to make way for the rail joiners. Back in the day, this left an unsightly gap in the tie line. If you reuse the old ties, it's necessary to do a little filing so that the "spikes" and the rail joiners don't combine to raise the rail up too much. Are different ties recommended, or are most of you simply reworking and replacing these ties?

As my new layout will be a 3-level shelf layout, primarily surrounding a family room, I will be relying heavily on two Lloyd's Layouts helix kits to make it all come together. Looking forward to assembling those!

The long-term plan is NCE DCC, along with NCE block detection and likely Digitrax signal control (SE8C) dispatched with JMRI/CATS, all following on RGDave's Onondaga Cutoff as a basis. (Thanks Dave, for blazing the trail!)
Best,
-Alex

You're welcome buddy! Exciting to see this begin!

For adhesive, what you use does matter. Silicone is not paintable and therefore very difficult to ballast - water-based cements will ball up on it. I used latex adhesive caulk. Make sure it is labeled as paintable, some with silicone in it is still paintable when dry and that works just fine. I use this adhesive for the roadbed and again for the track itself.

For end ties, some sandpaper is all you need for a quick 'rework' of the ties you cut off the flextrack. I laid all the track and saved the cast-off ties in a box, then went back and reworked most of them and added around the whole layout once the trains were running. No point in wasting time finishing track that may need to be moved for some reason after you discover you need a different configuration somewhere.

Some details are discussed in one of my blog posts from a while back: http://onondagacutoff.blogspot.com/2009/12/tracklaying.html

Enjoy! For me the fun started as soon as the progress did!

~RGDave
http://onondagacutoff.blogspot.com/

A second on use of acrylic caulk rather than silicone. Acrylic takes paint far better, has superior adhesive qualities and also doesn't have the vinegary sort of acidic smell that's present in the silicone-based products.

I purchased a bag of the thin-profile wood ties, stained them a dark shade and use those to fill the gaps at rail joints or anywhere I remove ties. The exact color isn't important to me as the flex track will all be painted later so they'll match in the end. A dab of white wood glue on the ties or roadbed secures the ties in place, and I also add a few Micro Engineering medium-size spikes as appropriate.

Depending on slight flex track and switch track tie thickness variations due to different track brands -- Micro Engineering, Shinohara or Walthers -- I also insert cardstock shims to bring the filler wood ties up against the rail joiners. This avoids having a dip in the rails once the spikes are installed.

Jeff Johnston
www.trainvideosandparts.com

 

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I have used the Woodland Scenics roadbed in most places on my layout, and I have used the Woodland Scenics white glue to hold it down. It works great.

If you live in an area with temperature and humidity fluctuations, you will want to seal the homasote on all sides to prevent it from swelling and shrinking. Unsealed homasote has a nasty habit of screwing up even the best laid trackwork

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/14/18 19:15 by Finderskeepers.

Thanks, all. I'm thinking with the Homasote issues that I will go with 1/2" foam instead (assuming such a beast exists). Appreciate all the comments. Hoping to start doing some of this work next week!

Greetings again! The "Homasote issues" you refer to depend entirely on who you are talking to. Homasote and its use varys widely in popularity among modelers. I can only speak for myself alone, but I've used Homasote on layouts in Indiana, California and Oregon, in rooms of varying degrees of climate control including an 1800s vintage fright house in Indiana and an uninsulated garage in southern California, and have experienced none of the swelling and warping problems people refer to. I don't paint or otherwise seal the Homasote beforehand or after installation. I've had layout rooms with walls that move somewhat with changes in seasonal temperature and humidity, and wooden layout framing made from inexpensive dimensional lumber and 1/2 inch plywood that likewise "breathes" a bit with the seasons, but never a Homasote problem.

I thoroughly glue the Homasote to the plywood subroadbed using white carpenter's glue, fasten it down with 3/4-inch pin nails that hold it until the glue sets, and the base is as solid and dependable as I could hope for. The Homasote is a wonderful sound deadener and it holds spikes well, among other attributes.

People say "it's hard to find around here." Go to the Homasote website and use their "dealer search" function to find a local retailer. That's what I did, only took a few minutes, and found one just a few miles from me.

But as they say, that's my experience alone and others may vary.

Jeff Johnston
www.trainvideosandparts.com

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Yeah, Homasote warping and swelling is a new one for me. Never had that issue, and I know of two other local railroads with no issues. And I dont keep track of humidity or any of that.