First train board question

Cork Roadbed for sound deadening.  That will provide a more realistic appearance as well.  If realistic appearance isn't a concern, go to a Menards and look for an 8 by 4 one-half inch sheet of Fiberboard--it is black on my side--a great base color!  About $11 a sheet.  This material makes it much easier to use screws to hold the track in place.

I did 1/2" plywood and cork road bed. Wish I was on this forum before I built my table. Would have used rigid foam board instead.

Thanks for the input.  I was familiar with "roadbed" under the track for sound deadening but has decided to go with the one quarter inch foam instead of cork.  I read a thread here and really either one seemed to be OK.  I'm intrigued by the rigid insulation comment over use of plywood.   What's the advantage and if I choose the foam board, is there a particular thickness and possibly a particular brand that I could look for at my local Lowe's or Home Depot?

I've seen a lot of guys on the forum mention 2" thick board. I suppose with proper support 1" would be enough. don't know if Lowes or HD carry the thicker stuff. Check around your area for building suppliers who may carry the thicker stuff.

windhund42 posted:

I am thinking about assembling a train board for the first time. and wondered if the initial  step is painting it green as my father in law suggests or if perhaps a better method exists to make it look more realistic such as a fabric or some other material like  grass matting or O scale "astro turf"  is recommended over the use of paint

You need 3 colors to paint the table. A base color and two shades to sort of mottle the base coat here and there. It doesn't have to be neat or any particular pattern. Then, one can sparsely add ground cover features like Woodland Scenics grass, sand or rocks. You don't need to 100% cover the earth colors. real grass and weeds and such have areas where one can see dirt.  A good base color to start with is Benjamin Moore Coral Sand. (light tan, then darker browns and grays) No green first. That's last. Adjust to your liking. If you do it all two or three colors when wet, it can blended some. Not really necessary. Depends on your mood.

Watch the table being built in the first video. Roger said they used whatever paint they had lying around. No additional material. You can the see the effect it has when track and buildings are on top. They do the holiday layout each year.

Insulation type foam is only effective for creating terrain features like a creek or ditch or perhaps some rolling earth areas. It has no sound absorption qualities. That's what the cork does.

John C. posted:

Cork Roadbed for sound deadening.  That will provide a more realistic appearance as well.  If realistic appearance isn't a concern, go to a Menards and look for an 8 by 4 one-half inch sheet of Fiberboard--it is black on my side--a great base color!  About $11 a sheet.  This material makes it much easier to use screws to hold the track in place.

I agree; and this material appears to be similar to the old QuietBrace, which many of us used instead of the venerable standard Homasote.

I looked up the Menard's Fiberboard, which is made by International Bildrite. That led me to another one of their products: Sound Deadening Board, which Menard's also sells for a bit less than the Fiberboard. Based on the description, the SDB is just right for the application when installed over 1/2" plywood or the like.

Alex

Wow, that's a lot of great information that will certainly help me a great deal as I move forward,  Thanks

I agree with starting with the suggestion of starting with a dark tan or brown board. Look at the real world; all of mother nature starts off in brown dirt. Then you can add areas of sand, grass or even asphalt using different paints or grass mats.

Certainly, this will give the board surface depth and realism.