What size drill to open up the track nail holes on Atlas Code 83 flex track?

[Track fiddler]

This may sound a little odd to you guys.  I'm relaying what one of the members in my Railroad Club told me this morning.  This method applies to N scale, so it may not be of use to many of you and may only be feasible on a larger scale.  I just found it interesting.

My friend did mention he had plywood that was so hard,  to drive or push little nails in without a pilot hole, was next to Impossible.

The catalysts, resins, adhesives and polymers in todays plywood's dry extremely hard these days.  That's all I have to say on that subject.  If you're not shooting nails with pneumatics.... well you get the picture.

He told me he coats his cork roadbed with matte medium because it is slow to dry and provides a longer workability time than caulk. 

His layout is huge, I have been to his home and seen it.  He has long straight runs that go the whole length of his basement. 

He gets his straight run of flex track set up to the side with track joiners installed ready to go.  He gets the matte medium spread on the cork and sets the track by hand in workable increments. 

At this point he lines up full pop cans or beer cans on top of the rails.  He said he only has to schmooze the cans with very little effort to line them straight.  Cans interlock with each other and naturally balance between the rails.  The physics of it keep the track nice and straight.  I have looked down his straight runs,  they are nice and straight. 

I think I remember him saying he uses the little round plastic bulletin board pins at angles to adhere his tracks around the curves.

TF

[doctorwayne]

SeeYou190

I wonder if the quality/type of plywood makes a big difference? . Down here, we get plywood that sometimes seems like it is more glue than wood, so we opt for more expensive hardwood plywoods for layout building.

That's a possibility, Kevin.  I used 3/4" 7-ply FirPly for my cut-out roadbed on the original portion of the layout,  and 5/8" T&G FirPly, (5-plies) as sheet material on the partial upper level. 
While it's definitely not hardwood, it does have different characteristics, seemingly based on whether an area is in the dark-coloured grain or the lighter portion of the sheet.  I didn't notice any difference in nail installation between the 3/4" stuff and the slightly thinner sheets, but there's no telling what the make-up of the interior plies might be.
I've used hardwood-veneered plywoods for building furniture, but wasn't aware that plywood composed of all-hardwood was available.

Wayne

[SeeYou190]

doctorwayne

I've used hardwood-veneered plywoods for building furniture, but wasn't aware that plywood composed of all-hardwood was available.

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I cannot be sure, but I think only the two outside layers are hardwood. They are a different color when you cut the sheets.

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-Kevin

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[hon30critter]

SeeYou190

I cannot be sure, but I think only the two outside layers are hardwood.

If you buy Baltic birch plywood or Russian birch plywood every ply is birch veneer. Great stuff if you can find it and afford it.

Dave

[doctorwayne]

After a little digging, I found this from the Canadian Wood Council:

DFP is produced to the manufacturing standard CSA O121 Douglas fir plywood, where front and back faces are Douglas Fir. Veneer for inner plies can be any one of 21 listed species, including Douglas fir, western hemlock, and most spruce, pine and fir species in Canada.

I used the 3/4" g1s version for my cookie-cutter roadbed on the main level of the layout, and 5/8" t&g sheets meant for sheathing, with no sanded faces, for the plywood deck of the upper level.  Pushing nails into either required similar force, although I should note that most of the upper level's mainline is Central Valley tie strip, with M.E. code 83 rail, both cemented in place with contact cement - track nails were used on the turnouts and for the flex track used in the engine terminal and also all of the staging yards.

Wayne

[riogrande5761]

richhotrain

I remain unconvinced that nails can be driven into plywood (unless it is rotting) without pilot holes or the use of a hammer. Rich

I've been using nominal half inch OSB and can use Atlas track nails on it.  I do bend a few but mostly it works fine.  OSB has worked quite well for me so far on several layouts.