Track question (ho)


M

MilitaryMike0023

New Member
hello all, it has been some time before i posted but a few weeks after i posted last i deployed to afghanistan, now being home and all my HO stuff sold im starting fresh again, however i am at a loss and need the help of the experianced people again, i will be living in an apartment and one day move int oa house, so the question i have is what track should i use? I would like to use Atlas code 83 track for it's good looks and price and all the options i have with it, but can a layout that is laid with roadbed and ballast be moved around when i change ideas on my layout or even move? 2) i like the true track but is it even worth it with the limmited selection? 3) there seems to be hardly any new products for unitrack in HO and the price is quite high for a LARGE layout? and last Bachmann EZ track, is it even an option? the layout i have planned out will always be subject to change as that is how i am and will have to be lifted up and moved one day, but to give you an idea of what im working with ... the room i will have the layout in is actually a basement and i planed on running a layout around the walls and having many turnouts to different locations and a huge yard ... im sorry to sound quite novice but before i commit i would like help from everyone, again thank you so much
 
if you build it in modular manner you will be able to move it out.
IMHO you will be much better off with ordinary track on cork or foam roadbed. the plastic balast track is for purpose of playing on carpet and such.
 
If you're serious about model railroading, then plastic-ballasted track is NOT for you.(EZ-Track/Power Loc) I would try a modular layout with flextrack. Even if you build something and hate it, flex is cheap enough that you could start over if you had to. Hope this helps! Welcome back to model railroading! :)
 
airport1246 said:
If you're serious about model railroading, then plastic-ballasted track is NOT for you.(EZ-Track/Power Loc) I would try a modular layout with flextrack. Even if you build something and hate it, flex is cheap enough that you could start over if you had to. Hope this helps! Welcome back to model railroading! :)
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Forgot this in last post: I'm not trying to make plastic-ballasted track sound bad, but it is something for beginners. It is very limiting, and electrical conductivity is poor. You sound like a serious model railroader, so I wouldn't use plastic if I were you. :)
 
I think I'm going to go with the atlas code 83 flex track ... Never worked with the stuff though... Also plan to get roadbed for it too ... Is there a way to get the track down stable but easy to remove for movement?
 
MilitaryMike0023 said:
I think I'm going to go with the atlas code 83 flex track ... Never worked with the stuff though... Also plan to get roadbed for it too ... Is there a way to get the track down stable but easy to remove for movement?
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I can think of two ways, Nails is one. Each piece of flex has holes for track nails drilled partway thru the ties from the bottom. All you need to do is open the holes up for the nails. When the track is ballasted, and the ballast is glued in place, the ballast will hold the track and the nails can be removed. To remove the track a small putty knife will do the job.

The other way is with an acrylic type sealer/cement, spread thin on the roadbed with the track then placed on the roadbed. When dry, again, a small putty knife will allow you to remove the track easily.
 
MilitaryMike0023 said:
I think I'm going to go with the atlas code 83 flex track ... Never worked with the stuff though... Also plan to get roadbed for it too ... Is there a way to get the track down stable but easy to remove for movement?
Click to expand...

If you build your layout on pink insulation foam, you can hold the track down using sewing pins, with flat heads. Then, if you want to pull the track up, just do so, and the pins will come with it. Also, you don't need roadbed on foam. Hope this helps! Good luck!
 
Id go with Code 83 flex. In fact, I did. :) I used chaulk and/or liquid nails for projects to secure it. Unopened food cans make great weights to help weigh down the track as they wont roll off when you lay them down on the track. ballast it all when your done with your scenery work.

Get a simple 25 Watt soldering iron (weller is the one i have), some flux, and some 60/40 rosin core solder, and some rail nippers and go to town.

Good luck, thanks for your service, and welcome home!

Brad
 
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tankist said:
IMHO you will be much better off with ordinary track on cork or foam roadbed. the plastic balast track is for purpose of playing on carpet and such.
Click to expand...

airport1246 said:
If you're serious about model railroading, then plastic-ballasted track is NOT for you.(EZ-Track/Power Loc) I would try a modular layout with flextrack. Even if you build something and hate it, flex is cheap enough that you could start over if you had to.
Click to expand...

airport1246 said:
Forgot this in last post: I'm not trying to make plastic-ballasted track sound bad, but it is something for beginners. It is very limiting, and electrical conductivity is poor.
Click to expand...

I wish someone had told me this when I first posted here. Maybe someone did and I just didn't listen or my questions were too specific to allow these kinds of responses. Fortunately, I'm still making the decision, so there really is no harm done.

I did buy an E-Z Track set and it's been great for experimenting. It goes together easily and comes apart just as easily. I now plan to use it for my granddaughter's layout, so I think it was worth the investment, but I'm pretty well convinced to switch to flextrack and standard turnouts for the layout I'm planning. I also need something modular, so I'd appreciate you guys taking a look here if you don't mind. I have a concept for multiple sections, but I could use some ideas how to make more smaller sections. Bear in mind the current design might change quite a bit based on recent comments, especially about that center level.
 
tankist said:
IMHO you will be much better off with ordinary track on cork or foam roadbed.
Click to expand...

I wasn't sure what you meant by foam roadbed, so I googled it and found this PDF showing one way to do it. Is this what you mean? Are there better ways? I'm assuming the 1/2" foam will be cheaper than cork and maybe last longer? Darn, I suppose I'll have to add ballast too?
 
Foam roadbed

Extruded foam is used as "sub-roadbed". You can buy foam roadbed similar to the more often seen cork roadbed. The foam comes in 2" wide rolls of about 20 feet and is sticky both sides. I have not used it myself and am not a fan of what I see. Just my opinion.

You sound like you have some grand plans (lots and lots of switches), but also am out of touch with what's up with the hobby today (what is foam roadbed). I also use B'mann EZ track for trying some ideas, but I buy it cheap on ebay. Hit up a lot of "model rr " sites and see what they are doing with whatever. If you want to change it a lot maybe try buying used snap track and switches off the net. Maybe pin it down on the pink or blue rigid extruded foam insulation on a section of shelf about 24" wide and 8 or 10 feet long.

Armchair :)
 
Armchair said:
Extruded foam is used as "sub-roadbed". You can buy foam roadbed similar to the more often seen cork roadbed. The foam comes in 2" wide rolls of about 20 feet and is sticky both sides. I have not used it myself and am not a fan of what I see. Just my opinion.

You sound like you have some grand plans (lots and lots of switches), but also am out of touch with what's up with the hobby today (what is foam roadbed). I also use B'mann EZ track for trying some ideas, but I buy it cheap on ebay. Hit up a lot of "model rr " sites and see what they are doing with whatever. If you want to change it a lot maybe try buying used snap track and switches off the net. Maybe pin it down on the pink or blue rigid extruded foam insulation on a section of shelf about 24" wide and 8 or 10 feet long.
Click to expand...

Are you talking to me or Mike? If you are talking to me, I guess I didn't ask my question right, so I asked it again and referred to the post that prompted the question. I admit I am not up to speed on all the new stuff, but I'm not a novice either and am learning about the "new" techniques fairly fast. Mike is the one who wants to be able to change things.
 
thanks

I'm new to model railroading so I can't be of much help, but I did want to say thank you for serving our country so unselfishly. Good luck with your project!

Modeler1
 
DoubleDAZ said:
Are you saying to just lay the track directly on the pink foam and forget about the raised prototype "look" you get fom cork or foam roadbed? Do you then just add some minimal ballast to make it look kind of "real"?
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Just depends...If I'm building a yard, then yes, but if it is a mainline, or an important track that has to look "perfect", then I throw down a strip of cork on top of the foam. I go to hobby lobby and get rolls of it, for next to nothing.
 
airport1246 said:
Just depends...If I'm building a yard, then yes, but if it is a mainline, or an important track that has to look "perfect", then I throw down a strip of cork on top of the foam. I go to hobby lobby and get rolls of it, for next to nothing.
Click to expand...

Thanks, that makes perfect sense.
 
Again thank you all for the help on my question .... I plan to use the roadbed and just nail the track down for now and won't ballast it untill I move into my own house a few years from now ... Just to be clear though ... If I do ballast it what's the best way to remove ballast? Also does it matter the brand of roadbed I buy?.... If I missed an answer to eaither of these I'm sorry as there are not just my own questions in my thread.
 
If you put ballast down, its usually a one and done type deal. It hardens up into one continuous slab. No when you go to pull your track up it will break up and you may be able to break the clumps and whatever loose ballast remains and maybe reuse it.

There are many types of roadbed available.

First, the traditional roadbed is cork. It is widely available. You tear the two sides apart, sand the beveled age and glue it down with white glue. Some people soak it in water in an effort to stop it from cracking pre-maturely.

Second most popular is Trackbed, an foam product. It is available in 24' continuous rolls or 3 foot pieces. Typical prices are $8 and 75cents each respectively. The supposed advantages are that it absorbs sound better, doesnt dry out, and you dont have to soak it--just lay cut to length and glue donw with white glue.

There are several others, but their names escape me, and the above two are by far and away the most popular, least expensive, and most widely available. I know there's a type that is made from rubber with an adhesive backing that you peel off press down and install.

good luck,

brad
 
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