Started the N scale!

[trainfreek92]

well today i have officaily started the new N scale. i have laid down the three sheets of plywood onto the sawhorses. Now i have to nail them together.also i repainted the sawhorses. should be laying track in 3 weeks. Just a start . My question is does any one use Ho scale roadbed with n scale ? I was thinking about ballasteing it to make it real ( i often see ballast go far beond the track) any ideas would be appreciated. Tim

[dgwinup]

Hi, Tim.

Yes, I suppose you could use HO roadbed with N scale. It is taller than N roadbed, but if all track is layed on it, height won't matter.

What might matter is having that wide of a roadbed. Large, mainline railroads often had wieder than normal roadbeds, but it wasn't a common practice. Railroads are very cost conscious and making the roadbed wider than necessary is just wasting money.

You could, of course, trim the roadbed to make it narrower. It would still be taller than needed, but you wouldn't need as much ballast. You could widen the roadbed in several places to imitate some of the mainline railroads or to indicate where an old siding was or a new siding is to go.

Unless you already have a supply of HO roadbed, I think it's better to stick to the N scale products.

Darrell, widely quiet...for now

[chateauricher]

Very often the prototype railroad companies built sidings and yards slightly lower than the mainline (in order to prevent cars from rolling back onto and fouling the main).

Some N-sclale modellers use HO-scale roadbed under the mainlines and N-scale roadbed under sidings and in yards to create this illusion. Where the 2 sizes meet, they just sanded the edges down to create smooth transition.

So, to answer your question : Yes, some N-scale modellers use HO scale roadbed.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by chateauricher

Very often the prototype railroad companies built sidings and yards slightly lower than the mainline (in order to prevent cars from rolling back onto and fouling the main).

Some N-scale modelers use HO-scale roadbed under the mainlines and N-scale roadbed under sidings and in yards to create this illusion. Where the 2 sizes meet, they just sanded the edges down to create smooth transition.

So, to answer your question : Yes, some N-scale modelers use HO scale roadbed.

What Tim said is correct however, as a cheapskate I have to put my 1 cent worth. I bought a roll of 1/8 inch thick sheet cork and use it under the main line and put the sidings flat on the surface of the layout. If you have the HO road bed by all means use it but there are cheaper ways. I prefer to spend my resources on visible items.

Tim Crawford

[DSchmitt]

I use HO cork roadbed (1/2 width) under the main lines on my N scale

[trainfreek92]

thanks for all the input i have decieced to use n scale ropadbed. But one more question,I was thinking of putting 2x6s under the plywood on the sawhorses to keep it all stable and straight. Good idea?

[chateauricher]

QUOTE: Originally posted by trainfreek92
(...) I was thinking of putting 2x6s under the plywood on the sawhorses to keep it all stable and straight. Good idea?

It is a good idea to put some sort of support under the plywood; but 2x6's are overkill.

Some 1x3's or 1x4's are sufficient. The best way is to put a "rim joist" along the edge of the plywood, then add cross pieces on 16" centers (some even go to 18" or 24" centers depending on the thickness of the plywood). If you glue and screw the joists in place, you'll have a very stable and rigid structure.

[Anonymous]

heyy loco man this is sheeme here umm dude im telling u go for the ho road bed you have over 90 feet of that stuff lol!

[Anonymous]

congrats on your start . it sure is a good feeling to get out of the chair and actually be building on the RR.

what thickness plywood did you go with?

once again good luck with your RR and keep us posted how it goes . john

[trainfreek92]

thanks!! yesterday i bought some track i have not done anything else to the railroad but soon. i am definetly using 2x6s my dad thinks the are the best 2 use and he works in a lumber yard! Tim

[Anonymous]

The reason to not use 2x6s is that the thing will be about 3 times heavier than it needs to be to do the job, so moving it will be a [censored]. But they will certainly work.

[railroadyoshi]

glad to see you rolling, so to speak[tup]