Realistic FasTrack Layouts

Ok Here are some.

Ray Marion

Ray,

   Thanks buddy I appreciate your pictures very much, FasTrack reality very serious stuff, even for us who do not count rivets and have Child like wonder land layouts, this is truly an incredible life like FasTrack layout. 

Much appreciated sir.

Hoping Rick O adds his also.

PCRR/Dave

Thanks for the pics.  I am on the edge to either cover my FT with ballast or leave it the way it came.  I am considering using the roofing granules and the 50-50 mix of white glue and water and a drop of dish detergent.  Anything else I need to know before starting this project would be appreciated.  Thanks.

laz1957,

   Ray M and Rick O are definitely the guys you want to hit up for this knowledge, even if you have to talk to them via private e-mail for an extended time.  Ray's stuff is so life like that it's like walking along the real RR tracks, when I was a kid.   Ray's layout alone, pretty much puts the hammer to the fallacy that FT layouts can not be a life like layout.

PCRR/Dave

Thanks DAVE.  They do have beautiful layouts.

I start by running a bead of full strength white glue along the top edge of the plastic ballast. Then I use a 1" paint brush and brush the bead into a nice liberal layer of glue over the whole shoulder.

Im not sure what color the roofing granules your using are. IMO getting a color that is a close match to the plastic roadbed is key. I use Woodland Scenics coarse Grey Blend.

Then I sprinkle ballast onto this glue layer, a nice even light coating so the roadbed doesn't get "oversized".

I come back 24 hrs or so later and flow on the glue mixture you mentioned. An empty elmers glue bottle makes a great applicator.

Ray is certainly leaps and bounds ahead of me, with his paint/ weathering that "seals the deal"

Heres a small yard I did recently. I used a 1/2" layer of pink foam to raise up the ground level so that the yard ballast was level, " more prototypical". I got the pink foam as close to the fastrack plastic roadbed as I could, then I used Woodland Scenics " Mold -A- Scene" plaster to fill in the rest of the gap

I did add some black weather chalk to the ballast and between the rails to give it a grimy effect. I still have to paint the rails like Ray but the initial result was good.

BTW Thanks for all of the compliments Dave! Once I got past the whole" what if I had to get out of the hobby and need to sell the track"", thoughts, it really goes pretty fast and easy. Just gotta DO IT!

Ray and Rick you both did a wonderful job! 

In addition to gluing ballast (I use Woodland Scenics' medium grey blend) to the sides of FasTrack, I've also experimented with embedding the FasTrack more deeply into the scenery to make a rail yard where just the tops of the ties show (picture 1 below) and a set of turntable spurs where only the rails show (picture 2 below).  Details on how I went about this are in videos #19 and #20 in my YouTube series (see my signature below for the link).

Rail yard spur:

Turntable spur:

Thank you RICK O and BOB for the pointers.  Did any of you ever remove the ballast from the Fast track?  If I want to remove the ballast later will this be hard to do?  Thanks again.

All of these look amazing. I currently have FasTrack- from started sets- and would like to switch to Gargraves (I would prefer Atlas but its too hard to find). The main reason I'm switching is because the echo from FasTrack is way too loud.

If you guys know a way to make it much quieter (hear the steam engine chuff at speed step 120) that might make me stick with it!

It would be good to find some layout photos from Jim Apitz (not sure if I spelled that correctly) as his weathering of Fastrack is some of the best that I've seen.

Some FANTASTIC work no matter the track brand!!!!

The round top rails still bug me......but I don't see it so easy with this kind of work!

Regarding removing scenic ballast from FasTrack:  I do it regularly, when changing layouts.  I use an old toothbrush and warm water, and it comes off quite easily.  Sometimes I just soak the Fastrack in warm water for a few minutes, to make it even easier.  Then after removing the glued-on ballast, I air-dry and blow-dry the track to make sure it's totally dry.

And I use dilute white glue (50%) as a bond, so that makes it come off easier, too.

Around switches, I don't want the ballast to get into the mechanism, so I lay a strip of tape on the plastic ballast, tapering it down onto the layout surface, then scenic the tape.  I used duct tape before, so it would stick, but will try something else next time; it tends to pull away a bit around curves.  And needless to say, I don't soak the switches!  I just use a mild toothbrushing.

   Bob A.

These are some of mine - 

Bob Anderon,

   I totally forgot about including your incredible FT layout in this discussion, my apologies, and I give darn few, for forgetting about your beautiful layout.  Thanks much for joining in the discussion.

PCRR/Dave

Harry's Trains,

    It is very easy to remove all the unwanted noise from an FT layout, I use discarded acoustical block ceiling tile, to cover my wood platforms, it deadens all the train running sounds.  If you want to go even further with sound suppression (Dead Quiet) I have even covered the acoustical ceiling block tile with different types of inside outside carpet, this deadens ALL sound however, and my wife actually ask me to leave my 2nd and 3rd levels of FT on bare wood so she could hear the trains run once again.  Remember to always screw your FT down to the acoustical tile and it removes all the noise you want.  You can purchase new acoustical block tile from Lowes, if you can't fine some older undamaged stuff.

PCRR/Dave 

Im not Rick O or Ray but here is a shot of my yard.The entire layout is Fastrack.Nick

Nick,

   Man that is fantastic, never sell yourself short, what a great layout, you guys are just super talented at making realistic FT layouts.  I never realized there were so many of you guys around.  Thanks for posting the pictures and joining the conversation.

Chris,

    Your layout is super also, great looking realistic layout stuff also.

graz,

    Take a good close look at Ray M's weathering on his FasTrack layout, it is the best I have ever seen anywhere.

PCRR/Dave

Great job guys, really nice looking workmanship.

Just don't mount it on bare wood, those who use the better solid rail track put cork and or homasoate under theirs.

My initial layout tests were fastrack directly on my OSB top, the noise was HORRIFIC, think billiard balls rolling on plywood.

I went with a "cheap" way of sound reduction by using 1/2" pink foam sheets. Difference is night and day, while not a "sound deadoner" persay the pink foam quieted the fastrack plenty.

Its not totally silent, no more than solid rail track. Steel wheels on steel rail no matter what brand will make some noise........ not unlike the prototype.

If I were to do it over, I'd go with the thicker 1" or 2" foam so I could carve bigger valleys etc.

Looks great Nick! Love the big coal piles back there, by the powerplant? I assume?

Rick O,

   The big coal piles caught my eye also, and with the Coal Train running right along the left side, of one of the big coal piles, the realism is just incredible.  Nick has put together a great FT layout, no doubt about it.

PCRR/Dave

Rockstar1989 - I love that pic of your yard, can you post more?

Thanks Rick,actually that is my BOF(Steel producing furnace)I do have a 50 megawatt power plant on the other side.The layout is all Steel mill and heavy industrial.I still want to do some weathering to my Fastrak.Nick Ken:yes I will.Thanks.N.

This is a great thread ..... I have a Fastrack layout and have not started scenery yet ... but these are ones to aspire to!

Way to go guys!

Thank you. Now I might do some test ballast on FasTrack to see if I can achieve a look I like and role with it.

Good work guys.

I have about 280 feet of fastrack and like it.

I have posted some of these pictures before and do like to try and show sometimes it's not the worst track made and you can fool with it.

I'm a toy train guy and just wanted to make it look better. Especially after seeing so many members do it.

Because of all the information I read on OGR I used quiet brace on top of the plywood and don't have a problem with noise.

But that is definitely a opinion on the noise issue.

I still have lots of work on my layout but I'm done with ballast and track....(famous Last words)

Larry

Very nice.  Love the dusting of snow - makes the scene very "Cleveland." 

Larry Sr,

   You are a very quiet poster and I missed a lot of your fantastic FT pictures, great stuff I love it!

Thanks for joining in the discussion I appreciate it!

PCRR/Dave

Wow! Thank you all for the compliments. The other layouts deserve at least as many also.  Rick O used the same ballast application method I did. My Ballast is Brennans. There is no reason to shortchange trackwork as it only goes down once. This pic shows what i tried to copy.

    As for sound, the track is mounted on window sill foam on homasote base on plywood. Very quiet.  A lot of noise is relative to the speed of trains. My dad's prewar are noisy no matter what. The modern command trains at prototypical speeds sound very good. Its the same at my club. When the traditional guys run at supersonic speeds you can't hear anything else.

Ray Marion

All are really nice work...Make me think seriously about using RealTrax vs ScaleTrax on my upcoming outside layout...

Absolutely awesome!!!! Fabulous work!!!!! Thanks for sharing!

Here is the layout Jim Policastro and I built using Lionel Fasttrack for our local Train store Mohawk Valley Railroad Co. in Schenectady.

Thank you GUYZ for all the shots of your spectacular layouts.  This is a wonderful thread!

  BOB A, also for the reply of getting ballast removed from the FT.  I will cover it, because it really adds that certain touch to realism. 

  NICK, Very nice love what you have done.

  DK, WOW nice scenery altogether.

  LARRY, what do you use to rust the rails?

I am enjoying this thread. You all have done a magnificent job ballasting your fastrack. Also the information offered on "how to" is much appreciated. Thank you. 

                                                                           Fred

I found a few pics of Jim's weathered fastrack.

I hope he doesn't mind me posting these.

His technique really provides the look of roadbed that has been weathered by the elements.

Instead of adding additional ballast granules, he weathers the FT roadbed and then hides the edge of the base with ground foam, etc. to provide the look of encroaching ground cover.

Fantastic work by ALL of the posters.  I currently have a permanent Christmas layout using Fastrack and the track looks "nice" in that application as it is partially covered by fake "snow".

I am currently planning a second 4'-6" x 9' Fastrack NYC layout (all the room available) and will certainly try the techniques suggested on this great thread.

Don Klose:  I love the Proctors billboard in your photos.  I was born in Schenectady and my Dad used to be an usher at Proctors when he was young.

Gentlemen,

    Thanks to everyone who participated, I really appreciated the incredible realistic FT layouts, even thow my FasTrack layouts are meant to be a child wonderland, with many different scales and toys. Each of us has his own way of building layouts, I truly appreciate all the engineering work everyone has done with their FT layouts.  Thanks again for participating in the thread.

PCRR/Dave