yard layout questions

[jlcjrbal]

Hey guys I am getting into the yard part od my layout and was wondering of I should use cork road bed or just use a rool of cork to cover the whole area. I hav a 4 foot square section that will take up most of the yard.. I remeber a while ago looking to see if Mid-West did sheeets of their cork road bed but was unable to find anyone who carried it...Also I no not remember proto-type yards having raised track LMK Joseph

[JCasey]

Joseph, read the below thread from a few days ago, it may help.

http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=60154

[jlcjrbal]

Thanks just what I was looking for ..... Joseph

[n2mopac]

I use sheet cork for everything. It is much easier for yards, and I cut my own for roadbeds too, saving a bunch of money WITHOUT swithing my car insurance to Geico.

Ron

[Anonymous]

Hobby Lobby sells rolls of 1/8" cork. I think it is 2'x8' and costs around $12. I used it for my yard, 30' x 30" deep and it made for fast work.

Mike in Tulsa
BNSF Cherokee Sub

[Anonymous]

I never use cork, etc, in the yard I put them right onto the plywood. Most yards are dead flat on the ground, as long as the cars stayed on the tracks most railroads won't sink to much cash into yard tracks.

[claycts]

Roll Cork, Get ROLLER to flatten it dwon after you glue (rolls out the lumps.
Our yard is 48"x110" and will be roll cork flooring.

[Medina1128]

I'm going to use thin sheet cork to make my yard. Prototypically, yards, as well as sidings, are lower than the mainline. I use the cork to help with sound deadening. Even though a yard appears to be dead flat, depending on what area you are modeling, there are variations in elevation. Another idea you may want to consider is gluing your yard tracks to foam, making it even easier to make slight variations in terrain. All I use is a couple of wire brushes ( a small one and a large one) to scratch and carve the "ground". In some places, I've brushed on a coat of plaster. Then, I either wait until the plaster has set and spray with water then sift dry plaster on it, or you can sift it on while the plaster is still wet. It gives the appearance of dirt and small rocks. It also gives the ground some "tooth" so that the ground foam I apply later doesn't wash and float away.

[tomikawaTT]

My yard and specialwork are laid over a layer of 1/4 inch extruded foam. Cork has a limited survival time in the dessicated, superheated environment of a Mojave Desert summer.

Ask for 'Fan-fold underlayment" at your vinyl siding supplier. (I got mine as leftovers from a siding project.)