I have a question reguarding Woodland Scenics "foam risers". What could I put on top of the risers to lay my roadbed and track on? Sorry if this is such a simple question, but I was curious.
Thanks once again,
LilBeckett88
If I am not mistaken, Woodland Scenics recommends their plaster cloth to cover the risers. After the plaster sets, you need to sand it down smooth. Using the plaster cloth gives you a good base on which to glue roadbed and keeps ballast from falling into the grooves of the risers.
There isn't any reason why you can't use other products for the same purpose. Home centers sell thin sheets of foam, maybe 1/8" thick. These would be fine for cutting into the shape of your risers and glue them on top. Glue your roadbed to that and ballast. You can also use thicker foam for the same purpose.
If you think you want the additional support, luaun plywood is very thin, not too expensive and can be used just like the thin foam. Thicker plywood can also be used, but it's a bit of overkill for most scales.
You question may have sounded simple, but the answers may not be as simple! LOL
Darrell, quiet...for now
I covered them with plaster cloth, but there's no need to sand them down before applying roadbed. While the plaster cloth is wet, you can rub your fingers back and forth over it to smooth out the plaster.
I fastened Woodland Scenics foam roadbed over the plaster cloth with latex caulking and weighted it down until the caulk set, which also helps smooth out any rough spots in the plaster cloth. I then fastened the track to the roadbed with gray latex caulk.
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
I used mine on a hidden cutoff track so I just put WS foam roadbed directly over the risers. One word of caution. At the top of the grade, you need to and easement to transition from incline to the flat track. If you have an abrupt transition you are asking for unwanted uncoupling as the couplers will separate vertically from each other. It's not a lot of fun seeing half your train rolling backward down the slope.
Thanks everyone for the replies and suggestions.
The main reason that I had asked this is because I'm looking for an alternative to covering my entire benckwork with foam sheets due to the price or sheets. I thought that if I used "risers" then that would raise the track and I could fill in around the track.
jcgisel wrote:Metro, thats what I did and it worked great. One thing that I would mention though is that if you plan to use under the table switches, you might want to do something else. I did my whole layout and was going to use tortiose switches. The first 4 i tried installing never worked properly because the throw was so far. And it was a pain to install. After that I gave up and went for caboose hobbies ground throws. Next layout I will definately use the cookie cutter method with 3/4 " plywood.
Nope, not a problem at all! I got a 1/4" thick plank of basswood and cut it to match the length of the turnout, cut out the foam riser for that length and notched it so the basswood board would fit and match the incline, then drilled a hole in it and caulked the roadbed and track on top and installed a Tortoise to the bottom, the basswood basically acts like a "bridge" and after cutting a hole in the layout base, I had room for the Tortoise!