General questions from a newguy

[Anonymous]

Hello all :) I am not a mrr but find the hobby extremely intriquing and quite complex. I recall the HO and Lionel layouts my Dad used to run but it was in no way comparable to the heavily scenicked and detailed layouts most folks do these days. Having detailed my ignorance of these matters then let me get to the matter @ hand :)

-What does the average layout incorporate for roadway material, i.e. "ashphalt" highways and the like? Some have made refrence to joint compound (s'rock mud?), plaster or something called "structolite". Does anyone have a prefrence? What is the most realistic looking material? Easiest to work with, i.e., spreading and paving?

-Does O scale track always appear with the third rail? I have seen some outstanding layouts in the GMRR 'zine but there is no mention as to any modifications to make the engines run on the 2 rail track versus the standard 3 rail. And the local shop does not appear to carry 2 rail track in O scale anyway...is it unusual or expensive?

Thanks for any info you can provide and cheers to all.
Michael

[Sperandeo]

Hi Michael,

And welcome to what we think of as the world's greatest hobby. There are lots of ways to model roads, but for paved roads and streets the easiest method may be to use roadway-width strips cut from sheets of styrene plastic. We'll be covering that in Jim Kelly's Turtle Creek Central article series in MODEL RAILROADER.

Happy holidays,

Andy Sperandeo
MODEL RAILROADER Magazine

[dknelson]

There are so many ways to build roadway that it would take a book! Sheet styrene painted to concrete color works. AMI makes a rubbery roadbed that looks pretty good. Plaster works as does joint compound. What can we say but "try as many as you can"? There are also commercial road systems that look quite effective
Third rail -- Lionel was originally AC. Maerklin HO is also AC and it too uses third rail, disguised as a series of studs in the ties. Most scale models use DC and two rail. So yes you will see O scale layouts using center third rail, outside third rail, and strictly two rail. (We won't even discuss DCC, trolley layouts, and other such distractions here!)
THere are brands of O track in two rail. But most shops would find it doesn;t sell in quantity. Try looking in a magazine that focuses on O for ads, or use the Walthers large scale catalog
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

Thanks to both of you for the insight. I will do as you suggest and experiment with diff't materials for the roadways. Perhaps plaster or joint mud mixed with scale ballast (for the gravel content) and spread with a heavy steel wheel will work....oops, I'm thinking out loud :) Much obliged, again.
Michael

[Anonymous]

One point, color the material with some black/brown first, Durham Water Putty has been used for roads, rocks. Weatherstiping tape holds the mixture at the road sides, remove before fully set. I'm wondering how to get the high crown so common in the Los Angeles area before some of the decrowning projects of the last 10 years. Take a four lane road, during heavy rains only the centers had little water, but curb high steams ran down the sides. Here in Illinois, the roads are nearly flat, else we'd slide off in a ice storm or heavy snow. I favor ties at the tracks, make the best crossings.