Roadbed problem

[Anonymous]

How do you transition smoothly, from 1/2" homasote roadbed down to the 1/4" cork roadbed or down to the plywood for the railyard?

[wp8thsub]

I make transitions like this by installing cedar shims (sold at lumberyards and home centers for shimming windows and doors) on the subroadbed, then attaching the thinner Homasote/cork roadbed on top of the shims. Depending on the thickness of the shim vs. that of your thinner roadbed, you may have to remove some of the thick end of the shim so that both together equal the height of your thicker roadbed.

To make the vertical curve as smooth as possible, I fini***he area with a belt sander before laying track. I also check the vertical curve with long cars (like 89' auto racks) to ensure everything will function as intended.

Rob Spangler
WP 8th Sub
Layton, UT

[Sperandeo]

I've made transitions like Rob Spangler's with cedar shingles, and they work fine, but I've found I can make longer, gentler transistions by sanding the Homasote. (In my case its HomaBed Homasote roadbed. I just use coarse sandpaper on a sanding block, and sand with the block in one hand and the Shop Vac hose in the other. It goes very fast .

So long,

Andy

Andy Sperandeo
MODEL RAILROADER Magazine

So long,

Andy

[Anonymous]

Thanks Andy, I've seen some layouts that have homasote laminted across all of the benchtop not just the roadbed for the track. My concern is how do you transition from a flat railyard to the mainline and then to a siding with a thinner roadbed. I've considered placing the railyard ontop of the 1/2" plywood, but I'm concerned that nailing the track straight to plywood may become a chore. All of your suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks BB

[Sperandeo]

Hi "DoubleB,"

If you have a Homasote surface with cork roadbed on top to raise the main line, I can recommend two methods for making transitions – there are no doubt many others, but these are the ones that I've used myself. One is the cedar shingle as Rob Spangler described – and by the way, cedar is a soft wood that makes it easy to trim the transition to the shape you want. The other is to glue the cork to the Homasote and then make the transisiton by sanding the cork. You must glue the cork in place, though, because if you have to sand nails the whole project becomes a lot tougher.

So long,

Andy

Andy Sperandeo
MODEL RAILROADER Magazine

[BR60103]

I'm making a transition using a section of Woodland Scenics 2% grade material under the roadbed. (This may not be the most economical method if you have to buy a whole box of it!)
A method that may work if the cork is solid enough: Glue a few inches of Homasote under the end of the cork. Glue a few inches of cork under the Homasote. Glue twice a few inches of something (maybe more Homasote, plywood, ...) under the joint. This should level out your transition. It can also work with any place where your under materials are different thicknesses e.g. from 1/2" to 3/4" plywood, plywood to spline roadbed.
--David