After much investigation into durability, noise cancelling ability, ability to hold paint and most importantly stability, I am going to use Gatorboar. It is available at MicroMark. Thanks to everyone for your input.
I used 2 layers of .030 styrene, and Durham's Water Putty for the roads. The first layer was cut to the shape of the "city blocks" I was modeling, and glued in place on my pink foam base. Then, I filled the space between the blocks with the water putty to the same level, and let it harden. Here, the white blocks are the styrene and the gray roads are the Durham's water putty, which I painted using a wash of gray acrylic craft paint.
Next, I cut another set of styrene pieces with the same shape. For these pieces, though, I traced the outlines of the buildings and cut them out.
Next, I glued the second styrene blocks on top of the first. The second layer forms the sidewalks, uniformly raised just a bit above the roadway.
I painted the sidewalks with a slightly lighter shade of gray than the road, and added the lines with a #2 pencil and a ruler. The structures all fit neatly inside their outlines in the sidewalk layer. This avoids the "just sitting there" look of simply placing the buildings on the styrene, and also prevents light from leaking out under the buildings if you decide to illuminate them.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
LION mount buildings on a 1/4" masonite base, decorate base as a single unit.
LION use roofing singles for the street. Yes, the stones are far too gross for HO scale, but you come back with some N scale ballast and some white glue and fill in the gaps. Works good enough for me, and it keeps the crown in the road.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
In this city scene, I put the roads (.010 thick styrene) directly on the plywood and raised the buildings with 1/8" thick styrene. The sidewalks I use are also 1/8" thick.
Here you can see the 1/8" thick styrene under some buildings I was working on:
Matt from Anaheim, CA and Bayfield, COClick Here for my model train photo website
You can often find Gatorboard at a sigh shop. So far as I know the thinest available is 3/16". I am told water based products will not cause it to warp but I have no firsthand experience yet.
I used foam board & acrylic paint.
Mike. I live in Peoria, so we are nearly neighbors. I had considered Gatorboard, but it is really expensive and I cant find it locally. You can get it online, but is expensive there also and usualu available only in large sheets, so shipping is involved.$$$$$$$
If you are working with water-based products above the "ground" then I would caution against using the paper-covered foamboard. I've used it a little for surfacing, buit have limited its use in the future. I thought it wouldn't matter much where I used it so long as it was just going to be a flat lot, as I didn't plan on scenicking that stuff anyway. But more and more I run into issues around the edge, so I don't really avoid the problem, just face it on a small scale.
You can get waterproof or water resistant foam board, which should work better in such applications. I think one name is GatorBoard. But these are more expensive.
When representing concrete, I tend to use basswood. Its fine grain offers a pretty good representation of concrete once painted. It's easy to cut and shape. It comes in several thicknesses, so makes it easy to build up streets, curbs and walks. Since it is thin, it can snuggle right up to the outside of the rail for street trackage. It's not super cheap, but is widely available in 3" and 4" wide 2' long sheets from Michaels, HL or your LHS.
Once sealed/painted, it's OK around brief, limited moisture, but you still have to be careful about getting it soaked.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
Frank. As the paint dried the board relaxed. So far,so good.
Maybe using the water based paints is the problem. I always air brushed or sprayed with solvent based paints when I used it, no time to soak the board, like in water based. A light dust coat, then final coat.
Frank
Frank. I went to Hobby Lobby and found 3/16 art foam board. For those of you interested it is 20 by 30 inches and is adhesive backed. It was $5.99. The non adhesive was $4.99. It is made by a company called Gilman. I painted it with water based semi-gloss and it buckled in the center for the entire length. I believe that when you glue it down the buckle will disappear. I am also going to pour water on the bare board and see what happens. I think it will be OK.
You should have no problem painting the paper covered foam board, it's more glossy cardstock, then paper. Light spray would work fine. Brush, don't paint it like painting a house.
Galaxy. I had thought of the paper covered foam board in the arts section. My worry is that they wont take paint and/or might distort. Ill buy one and paint it to see what happens.
I have been pleased with the Walther's Cornerstone Brick Street System. The manhole covers and storm drain catch basins are nicely done. It takes some care to assemble, as the paving sections are made to provide a slight "crown" to the roadway. If you are modeling a narrow street, this can result in a mis-match of the pieces until adjustments are made. This "system" is much better than using conventional brick material, as almost all of that brick material is made for modeling walls.... and the bricks in the street are put down differently than those in a wall. In the Walther's system, the sidewalk sections (which are admittedly narrow for a city sidewalk) set up higher than the street, so then the buildings can be elevated slightly by shims if needed to match the sidewalk.
Bill
I also will agree on the Walthers street systems. I use the brick street system, along with RIX Early Highway Overpasse's widened to match the streets. That's how they were, when I grew up in Chicago in the 40's, along with streetcar tracks. One street is 12ft long.
I agree with Mr. Schmitt
The Walthers street system is very convincing for city streets. They are properly crowned, you get curb cut-outs and driveway aprons, man hole covers and catch basins.
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/933-3139
Some buildings, even the Bachmann city buildings are made to match up to the Walthers street system. And as Galaxy and Ed suggest, just raise the buildings to suit.
I have had very nice results with it.
Ed
Use foam to elevate. WS makes differing thinckness of rigid {white} foam for terrain building. I think 1/4" is their thinnest. There is also foam core sheets covered in paper in the art section.
There is also the pink or blue extruded foam boards in as little as 1" thick.
As far as elevating things like sidewalks, you are looking at it wrong. Instead of lowering things, you elevate the theings that are higher.
Make whatever is the lowest point you plywood base, so if it is a street the lowest point, then you elevate the sidewalks and buidings higher than the street. If your track is to be the lowest point, then build up around it. {which much track is actually raised}.
If you don't want the plaster route, there is the extruded {and even beaded foams -though I would not use it for track work}, and there is papier mache over newpapers wads, and Sculptamold for starters as options to plastering everything. Search around and see what else might be available to you.
Have fun and enjoy the hobby!
-G .
Just my thoughts, ideas, opinions and experiences. Others may vary.
HO and N Scale.
After long and careful thought, they have convinced me. I have come to the conclusion that they are right. The aliens did it.
Maybe as suggested by the link above, raise your sidewalks and / or streets. Your buildings could be raised using foam core board. Assuming you're OK with having everything fairly flat, or at least, on parallel planes.
https://www.walthers.com/concrete-curbs-sidewalks-kit
I tried to sell my two cents worth, but no one would give me a plug nickel for it.
I don't have a leg to stand on.
OK. I have a big plwood layout and I want to make an urban scene. In order to make convincing city streets, they should be a little below sidewalk level. Short of cutting into the plywood and dropping it down a bit, what else could be done? Has anyone tried thin foam to elevate the rest of the layout? I really dont want to get into plastering to raise everything.