Attatching track to foam


CbarM

CbarM

HO all the way!
I am seriously thinking of rebuilding my entire yard modules starting from scratch. I used Elmers white glue for my current set up to glue my atlas flex track to both pink foam and WS foam. Alot of the track has popped off and it doesnt seem like the glue holds very well. Does anyone have a better idea on how to properly secure it?
 
Get some cheap Latex Caulk, its easy to remove if you want to pull up the track. Just spread a thin layer, and weight it down with soup cans.
 
Get yourself some DAP Alex Plus with Silicone, the stuff that says 'dries clear' on it. It's white, but it does dry clear.

You want a thin metal spatula and a decent caulking gun. When you deposit your caulking bead, you want just a little, pencil thin, and spread it thin like vegamite or thin margarine. Set your cork or track elements over the centreline, insert a couple of track nails here and there while you place soda cans or beer cans, or soup cans over the rails on their sides. Stacks of magazines work well, even paperbacks or hard-cover books.

For foam on foam, I use PL 300. It gets quite hard, not like epoxy or concrete, but like a hockey puck when it cures. It works well on wood to foam, foam to foam, plaster castings to foam and wood, etc. Once you bond two layers of foam with PL 300, you won't be getting it apart again...not without it turning into smaller chunks.
 
Thanks for all the input here guys, much appreciated! I think I am gonna try the DAP silicone, but what is PL300?
 
Glad to see this thread as I am about to try a shelf layout with no elevated roadbed, so I'll glue track directly to foam.

OP, did you glue directly to the pink foam? Or was it painted first? I saw a thread on another forum where it was suggested painting first might make a difference (for the better).
 
I didnt paint my foam first, but I dont think that would have mattered as the problem was the white glue sticking to the plastic ties. The glue stuck good to the foam, but over the period of a year it came loose from the ties and alot of it started coming apart. I think this next time though I will give it a coat of paint with a roller...some kinda dirt brown just so it will look better.
 
I picked up a couple tubes of the latex kitchen clear caulk and so I will get to try it tomorrow to glue my foam to the plywood base. I built one 2x8' table today and am gonna work on another one tonight. Not sure yet of how I am gonna attatch the legs, but I was planning to use 2x4's and I got a bundle of 4' 1x2 stakes that I was gonna use as bracing. I used yellow wood glue and #6 screws to put the table top together. So far so good! Pics to follow...
 
CbarM said:
I didnt paint my foam first, but I dont think that would have mattered as the problem was the white glue sticking to the plastic ties. The glue stuck good to the foam, but over the period of a year it came loose from the ties and alot of it started coming apart. I think this next time though I will give it a coat of paint with a roller...some kinda dirt brown just so it will look better.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the follow-up. For my own attempt, I will try to add ballast to the track in the first month or so after laying/testing the track. With this in mind I may give a line of white glue a try (easy to remove if I mess up, I hope) and then follow up with ballast later to help ensure long-term stability. I will try to return to this thread to post my experience, successful or not.
 
Im beginning to wonder if maybe thats the way to go, do immediate track scenery n then ballast before everything is fully cured. Might have to be within the first week or less though. Then at least everything should stay permanent I would think...
 
I'm glad this post is here - I'm getting ready to lay track sometime next week. I have a plywood strip on some open frame bench work, and the track will lay on that (at least that's the plan). The plan is to use caulking spread thin with a putty knife (as mentioned earlier in this thread) and lay the track directly to the plywood.

I couldn't find a really good reason to mount the track to the foam instead. Should I put foam on the plywood first? Would the caulk stick better to foam rather than plywood? Or is the purpose of the foam just to make scenery easier?
 
Are you talking the foam roadbed, or the pink foam that alot are using over the plywood? The pink foam is an excellent sound deadener and the roadbed is just that, it already has a nice slope to it for ballasting.
 
Currently, I plan to use the cork roadbed, directly on the plywood. I'm questioning the pink foam stuff that is seen in a lot of layouts. It looks like people are substituting plywood for the foam - is that true? I've heard of (and probably will do myself) using the foam for landscaping mountains, but is there any benefit to using it under the tracks?
 
bklynman01 said:
Currently, I plan to use the cork roadbed, directly on the plywood. I'm questioning the pink foam stuff that is seen in a lot of layouts. It looks like people are substituting plywood for the foam - is that true? I've heard of (and probably will do myself) using the foam for landscaping mountains, but is there any benefit to using it under the tracks?
Click to expand...

Using foam under the tracks or as a base allows for easier terrain shaping. Creating Ditches and what not.
 
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