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Homasote, Cork or Rubber?
Barrie has a question for readers to try and answer:
“As a beginner in the model railway hobby I am just about to begin to lay track. The person who sold me my 36″ track also suggested a ‘rubber’ type of underlay. The difficulty that I have is that the underlay does not bend around even slow corners without crinkling on the inside of the bend. Is there a way to rectify this or is cork a better article for curves?”
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3 Responses to Homasote, Cork or Rubber?
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If you want to use the rubber roadbed, as you gently form the roadbed around your curves, then at each point it buckles, use a sharp hobby knife to cut the buckle out of the road bed. Your roadbed should lay flat as it curves.
Don’t forget to sand off those hard edges of the cork. Give them a nice round balalst like edge. So nice to see Progress!Congrats!Regards,Steve J.
The difference in Homasote and cork are simple Homasote is Cheep! but it is labor intensive to form into roadbed you get it in 4×8 sheets and have to use a table saw,band saw, and then build a jig to slot it so you can form it around the curves, and o yes you might want to take it all outside when you cut it up or you’ll have a snow storm in the garage and don’t forget to buy your friend lunch because he is going to be there all day helping you.
Lets talk about cork! It very easily forms around curves and doesn’t have moisture issues like homasote. If you keep you layout in a outbuilding with no heat or extreme stream temperature changes cork is better. Cork cuts easy with a box cuter but is EXPENSIVE if you don’t buy it in bulk
Rubber, I have no experience with. There is another way no road bed at all but its more noisy. I wish you the best of luck on you layout. I have used both materials and they both work very well. But I can say this; the day after I cash my paycheck I go to the train shop I buy CORK!!!!! Best of Luck ~AlanC.