Hi all:
I have recently started my 3rd layout. This time I am going to use Homosote board as trackbed instead of cork. What I would like to know is can you cut Homosote easily without it looking like a blizzard with the dust off it. We have tried utility knives but they take way to long, are hard to keep the lines straight, wear out your wrist and the blades break to easily.
Is there a saw blade that won't make dust or something else that will do the job? My wife is getting fed up with the dust and has threatened to bury me in it.
Any help is appreciated.
Long live Model Railroading
-Dan
Builder of Bowser steam! Railimages Site
Homosote (and cork too) have so many drawbacks. Have you concidered using other products?
When building my current layout I was looking for a cheaper alternative to the foam roadbed I used last time and with none of the drawbacks associated with cork (it dries out and gets hard and brittle as well as acting like a noise amplifier when it gets that way). I dropped Homosote years ago because of it's instability and incredible difficulty to work with. So as I was walking through the local home improvement store I spotted something that might work, and even better, it was out of season so it was on sale!
I use a foam base with my roadbed and track secured by the latex caulk. For roadbed I use rope caulking. It comes in a roll about 15' long, and it's perfect width for HO scale track right out of the box. Since I model N, I just tear it along the already formed centerline and I get about 30' of roadbed per box with no waste. The advantages are that it never dries out, so it's always soft and pliable (absorbs sound!), it can easily be molded to any curve radius you want, it's easy to cut with just a xacto knife to form turnout pads, crossovers and such, or you can use a wallpaper roller on it to flatten it and make trasitions in rail heights or lower passing sidings in just a few seconds. As if that isn't enough, the latex caulk holds well to it, but you can still slip a putty knife in there and take up the rails without damage if you need (Spread the caulk very thin with a putty knife when you lay it down and then lay the tracks and use some canned goods laid lenthwise along the tracks to hold it while it sets up). If you get it in the off season like me you can often find it for a buck or two a box. It comes in gray and brown that I've seen, though other brands may come in other colors.
Here's what I bought...........
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/Picture016.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/Picture019.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/Picture023.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/Picture021.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/Picture024.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/Picture002.jpg
http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j319/pcarrell/Autumns%20Ridge/7-15-077.jpg
On my last layout, I used Homasote glued to 1/2" plywood with Elmer's Yellow Carpenter's Glue. Cutting Homasote is a mess. I tried using a knife blade (no teeth) to cut it. It took forever. I finally cut it with a fine tooth metal cutting blade in my sabre saw. The cutting created a lot of dust. I would suggest that if you decide to go with the Homasote, that you do all your cutting outside or in an area (e.g., garage) that can be easily cleaned. Be sure to wear a dust mask to protect your lungs when you do the cutting.
I'm starting a new large N scale layout and I'm going to use 2" Dow (Blue) extruded foam glued to 1/2" plywood with latex caulk. I plan to use cork roadbed glued to the foam also with the caulk. It's true that cork roadbed does dry out over time. I found a piece in my work shop the other day I'd had for over 25 years and it was very brittle. However, since I plan to attach the cork to the foam subroadbed with caulk and paint it with a ballast-colored paint before ballasting it, I think it'll be fairly well sealed so it should not dry out in my lifetime. I don't think sound transmission is as much of a problem in N scale as it may be in larger scales.
Bob
I recently completed cutting my homasote for my elevation and found that with an extra pair of hands(my father) following right behind the jigsaw with a shop vac, the mess was very minimal. Just a thought and worth a try!