I use it on my Yuba River Sub, and I like it. It's a little 'spongier' than cork, but it takes ballasting very well, and it's proven to be a good sound deadener.
Tom
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!
Some people really like it but I bought a roll (HO Gauge) and personally I did not care for it at all. I put it back in the box and put it on a shelf.
The issues that I had with it:
I do glue (adhesive caulk) my track and my roadbed so that would be the same in either case but I am just more confortable with a firm, definable roadbed surface (I use Homabed).
I know others with more experience can probably give you better feedback.
Good luck,-John
I use it.
It's dead quiet and I've had none of the issues rustyrails had.
As for laying it on curves, I use white glue and then tack it or put weight on it until the glue dries -- easy!
On my HO layout I use the HO roadbed for mainlines and N roadbed (with some fill in the middle) for sidings.
Craig
DMW
"Rust, whats not to love?"
I use it. And I plan to use it on my next layout to. It works great. I use latex caulk to put it down and it have never caused me any problems what so ever. I use 36" curves as a minimum and have never had any problems on curves.
Magnus
It's all I've ever used, so I can't compare it to cork. However, it's extremely quiet (about a quarter as loud as the same loco running on my son's PowerLoc track is).
I've also never had an issue with curving it, even on 18" radius curves. I split it down the middle, spread tacky glue (craft glue) over the subroadbed, and smooth it down, laying one side at a time (that makes it easier to see the centerline of your subroadbed, too). The tacky glue is sticky enough to hold it in place until the glue dries. Sure, there are small wrinkles in it on curves, but you can't see that through the ballast. It doesn't affect operations.
Speaking of which, I have no trouble ballasting it. I use an old paintbrush to spread the tackyglue on the shoulders, then sprinkle a little ballast on them and let it dry. Then I go back over it with a second coat of ballast and lock everything down with diluted matte medium. Works like a charm. I have even had success pulling it up with a putty knife and reusing it!
Connecticut Valley Railroad A Branch of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford
"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right." -- Henry Ford
IT SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wont Hold Track nails for love nor money. The Vikings will win the Super Bowl before I ever use Track Bed again.
Cork in my opinion is and always has been the best way to go.
James
Prefer it., Easy to use. Can't beat the 25' rolls. No issues on curves, even 22". I use yellow glue and just put a weight on it till it dries. Very quiet and easy to pull up and realign, if needed. I swear by it.
Engineer Jeff NS Nut Visit my layout at: http://www.thebinks.com/trains/
CTValleyRR wrote:Just a hunch: it looks like people who use adhesives to hold their track in place like it, and those who use nails hate it....
Nope. I used caulk on mine. I've got a 2.5% grade. One side of it is cork, the other side is WS foam. As soon as the train hits the WS, the noise goes up about 100%. If it didn't run through my big mountain, I'd rip it up and replace it.
Cork...dries out and will crumble...that's the fact
Foam..never dries out....that's the fact
Use what works for you....that's the fact
A true friend will not bail you out of jail...he will be sitting next to you saying "that was friggin awesome dude!" Tim...Modeling the NYC...is there any other?
Worked for me:
Modeling the Rio Grande Southern First District circa 1938-1946 in HOn3.
I first found out about this the same time I found out about Woodland Scenics Mod-U-Rail system which I talked about in this thread
http://cs.trains.com/forums/1386457/ShowPost.aspx
I was amazed, nay astounded how dead quiet two big -9's were as they headed down my friends pike. I asked what the deal was and he showed me a strip of the road bed and a bit of the Sub-terrain system. Of course the two Rivet counters that were with me were just as disdainful of the Foam Roadbed as they were the Mod-U-Rail system. I saw a a nice looking quiet, and most importantly functional Railroad.
I will be using it the very next time I lay track.
Works fine for me as well. But - after ballasting it's not much quieter than cork. I use latex caulk and pins to hold it down then to the same with the track (removing pins when set of course).
Never had a problem on 36-24" curves, 2.1% grades or anywhere else as long as I pinned it. It will try to lay a little unevenly on tight curves until the caulk sets but the pins keep it flat. I have a total of well over 300 feet now with no regrets. The larger sheets are nice for turnouts etc too.
This is 24" radius on a 2% grade: the section has since been fully "sceniced" and ballasted - still runs fine.
Karl
The mind is like a parachute. It works better when it's open. www.stremy.net