cork bed

Is it an absolute necessity to instal track on a cork bed? and if I need it where can i get some if I use flex track?
Thank you

No, its not nessary. It depends on what you model. For most mainlines, it makes sence to use cork or other materials to raise the track. For Yards and street running, I dont use it. I would also leave it off in a badly maintain track that has the dirt covering it.

The best thing for Z cork bed is to buy N Scale, most comes with a score down the middle for a Z scale width.

charles wrote:

Is it an absolute necessity to instal track on a cork bed? and if I need it where can i get some if I use flex track?
Thank you

Charles,
You can find rolled cork or sheet cork at most hardware stores. Even office supplies have rolls of it.
Loren

I used cork under the MTL flex track on our micro-layout, but our next project we'll be using MTL track that has plactic ballast already attached to the track. Will we need cork under it?

I have thought about the whole cork issue round and round. I am somewhat prone to doing trackwork poorly, and I feel that sometimes the flexibility of cork permitted me to, for example, start grades with sharp breaks from level track. I just feel like the material encourages tracklaying errors. Therefore I am within a day or two of deciding to use balsa for roadbed for a layout I have in progress right now. I am intimately familiar with balsa, find it quite a bit easier to work with (especially to glue down), and my theory is that its rigidity will make for better track and running in the long haul. What do y'all think???

I've been using on my modules the Woodland Scenics N-Scale foam roadbed that comes in rolls as well as individual pieces ... like the N-Scale cork, it is split down the middle and I found that I could use 1 1/2 widths of the stuff to make a double-wide Z roadbed. I found that this foam stuff does a reasonable job at dampening sound.

That said, I've a pile of IBL cork roadbed that I got reasonably cheap a couple of years back and I'm planning to use on my home layout

Beverly, I would say no cork. If you do that raises the track about 5 feet off the surface area. Micro Track need nothing extra underneath. Cheers, Jim CCRR:)

Thanks for the reply, Jim I was thinking the corkbed would raise the track too high, just as you said.

If you do that raises the track about 5 feet off the surface area

What cork are you using? I got some cork tiles at the diy of 2mm high. This raises the track a scale 450mm. This works fine. Got a pic from when I was trying out ballast, this is just a strip of cork and covering the sides with ballast.

Beverly56 wrote:

Thanks for the reply, Jim I was thinking the corkbed would raise the track too high, just as you said.

Height is all relative. Really! How high to raise your track above the layout surface is all a function of how you will be dealing with the scenery. I find that track that is close to the surface limits my scenerymaking options. But this is because I am always working to eliminate the "flat top" look that many layouts have because everything is placed on a flat surface; there are very few places in nature look like this.

For myself, I actually lay my track on a roadbed made from 1/4-inch Foamcore--far thicker than cork. This is because I will always be filling in the surrounding terrain with scenery material (usually Sculptamold). If I have trackside structures that should be even with the grade, then I prepare foundations of Foamcore for them.

So, when you are laying your track, think in terms of how you will be making the scenery. The height of the track should not be a limiting factor, because the "surface" of the layout may not be the "surface" of the surrounding scenery. Indeed, it's far easier to adjust the height of the scenery than the track, since the track will be the first thing done.

andyjbj wrote:

I have thought about the whole cork issue round and round. I am somewhat prone to doing trackwork poorly, and I feel that sometimes the flexibility of cork permitted me to, for example, start grades with sharp breaks from level track. I just feel like the material encourages tracklaying errors. Therefore I am within a day or two of deciding to use balsa for roadbed for a layout I have in progress right now. I am intimately familiar with balsa, find it quite a bit easier to work with (especially to glue down), and my theory is that its rigidity will make for better track and running in the long haul. What do y'all think???

Andy, what track are you using. My trackwork used to be problematic until I switch from Marklin to MTL flextrak. With MTL track, I can bend into shape before installation. That is something impossible with Marklin.

andyjbj wrote:

I have thought about the whole cork issue round and round. I am somewhat prone to doing trackwork poorly, and I feel that sometimes the flexibility of cork permitted me to, for example, start grades with sharp breaks from level track. I just feel like the material encourages tracklaying errors. Therefore I am within a day or two of deciding to use balsa for roadbed for a layout I have in progress right now. I am intimately familiar with balsa, find it quite a bit easier to work with (especially to glue down), and my theory is that its rigidity will make for better track and running in the long haul. What do y'all think???

It sounds as though you might be trying to use cork as a subroadbed. Cork provides no support for track at all; it is simply a layer between subroadbed and the track to create a ballast profile and/or provide sound-deadening properties. If you find that you are having problems with trackwork, then you need to look at your subroadbed, because good trackwork begins with good subroadbed.

There are many materials that are suitable for subroadbed. Woodland Scenics makes prefab grade ramps, but these do not always make perfect transitions from level to a grade, and may require a filler material or other patchwork to get a silky-smooth transition, especially for steeper grades. Plywood of almost any thickness makes great subroadbed. Thick foam core sheet, such as 1/2-inch Gatorboard, also works very well (important to use Gatorboard since it is waterproof).

What's important is to use a flexible yet rigid material with as few joints as possible (having no joints is ideal). Obviously, larger layouts will involve subroadbed joints, and where joints are needed, they must be firmly mated with a splicing plate, preferably made of the same material, clamped and glued.

Tracklaying methods can help improve the quality of trackwork. Where track joints fall on tricky areas such as grade transitions, the trackwork will be much better if joints are pre-soldered, before laying the track. Arrange the group of track pieces (pre-shaped, if it is flex) on a level work surface, and solder the rail joints. When the track is laid, the joints will then be rigid and perfectly smooth.

Balsa may not be ideal since it comes in relatively small pieces, at least the balsa I've purchased, which poses problems for curves or larger layouts. You will most likely have many joints as a result, and this may give rise to issues. Also, it has limited rigidity across the grain, and is prone to swelling and warping from moisture unless completely sealed first. I'd used it as a subroadbed material on one of my first layouts back in the 70s, and would not use it again based on my experiences with it.

I'm not familiar with balsa at all, but I do have a question. Even glued down will balsa warp when wetted for the laying of ballast? Cheers, Jim CCRR:unsure:

Socalz44 wrote:

I'm not familiar with balsa at all, but I do have a question. Even glued down will balsa warp when wetted for the laying of ballast? Cheers, Jim CCRR:unsure:

If it is firmly glued to a non-warping substrate, balsa won't warp, but it can still swell and deform. It must therefore be completely sealed (with something like shellac) before being saturated with water.

Balsa is also not suitable if track is attached with nails or screws--it will not hold them.

David, all true to a point, but....I don't think the swelling and/or warping will result in permanent deformation more/less than plywood would....but you have the experience here, so, when you tried it in N, what happened?

andyjbj wrote:

David, all true to a point, but....I don't think the swelling and/or warping will result in permanent deformation more/less than plywood would....but you have the experience here, so, when you tried it in N, what happened?

The subroadbed became uneven. Solid wood of almost any kind (save possibly for hardwoods) is notorious for causing grief when used as a subroadbed material. Plywood has fewer problems because it's laminated with the grain running in different directions. Even so, any porous material will behave better when sealed.

That said, although wood is still a perfectly suitable construction material when used properly, truth be told, nowadays I use no wood products of any kind in layout construction.

Thanks David, will consider try & see

That said, although wood is still a perfectly suitable construction material when used properly, truth be told, nowadays I use no wood products of any kind in layout construction./quote]

Would you mind telling us your preferred materials for layout building? If possible with a description/photo/link as brand names change from place to place. I was thinking of going with multiplex for the frames and subroad bed and cork for under the tracks. Rest of the landscape in insulation foam (PU or PS whatever). But I'd like to hear the alternatives.

Havoc wrote:

That said, although wood is still a perfectly suitable construction material when used properly, truth be told, nowadays I use no wood products of any kind in layout construction./quote]

Would you mind telling us your preferred materials for layout building? If possible with a description/photo/link as brand names change from place to place. I was thinking of going with multiplex for the frames and subroad bed and cork for under the tracks. Rest of the landscape in insulation foam (PU or PS whatever). But I'd like to hear the alternatives.

I just composed a very long, detailed description of materials and methods here, and the post was lost. I will compose a new one offline and re-post it later, after I've calmed down; right now I'm rather steamed at having lost so much effort.