Layout on HOLD

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Getting the foam home is easy. Take a utility knife and just cut it in sizes that will fit your vehicle. You'll just piece it back together on your benchwork, use some patching plaster to fill any gaps, and you're set!
 
yeah that is kinda what I was thinking. lol We will see what happens. I am gonna stop by Home Depot on my way home from the dr's office tomorrow and see if they have any since lowes is in the opposite direction I am going. If not, I guess I will have to make a special trip the other way.
 
Ok so I went Lowes today and they didn't have anything thicker than 1/2 inch of the extruded foam, so I went with a less dense foam at 1 1/2 inch. It is a little messier but so far it is working for what I am wanting to do. I have decided to do a really simple layout instead of going all out crazy with it. The surface wood is going to be basically the level ground where I will lay track directly to the wood and then work from there. I will have a slight incline where the will be a bridge over a creek, as well as a small mountain where the train will go through it. I will have a small loop on the inside of the outer loop that will run a passenger train. I haven't decided on what kind of buildings I am going to have but I do know that there will not be very many of them. I will get some pics tonight of the first 2 pieces of foam I have glued in place, and started forming.
 


You didn't get white bead board, did you? If so, you're in for a heap of trouble. As long as it says Styrofoam or extruded foam, you're OK. If it's it's white bead board, which leaves little white popcorn pieces behind when you cut it, get rid of it now. It has very little dimensional stength and those little white beads will bed constantly shedding and getting sucked up in your rolling stock.
 
It is styrofoam. When I first seen it I thought it was just like the regular beaded stuff. It looks the same but it doesn't leave the little white popcorns when you cut it or try to shape it. I think I made the guy mad at Lowe's too when I was looking at it, cuz he told me it doesn't bead up like the regular bead foam, and I asked if he was sure, and he said yes. So I pulled my knife out, and cut a small piece off of it. lol You should have seen his face, it was great. It does leave a small mess, but nothing totally crazy like the other stuff would. I have actually gotten quite a bit of work done already. I am going to take some pics today, and I will get them posted up.
 
As long as it's not bead board, you should be OK. That was smart to cut a piece off it to be sure before you bought it.
 
Yeah, my wife about flipped out on me too. hahaha. I am getting ready to go to physical therapy, and when I get back I am gonna take some pics to post up. I need to get some paint and ground covering so I can actually detail it.
 
UP2CSX said:
I got my check today too. Unfortunately, there are other bills that take precedence over model railroad supplies. :) Oh well, at least it gets some bills paid so I can get some stuff next month.
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im in the same boat UP. ive got to buy a washing machine :( and pay a couple of small bills. but i will be able to treat myself to a couple of structures but i may get an airbrush instead. your stroy about lowes reminds of of when i got sawdust from Home Depot. The guys in the store were looking at me like what could he possibly need 2 big garbage bags of sawdust for. lol, i have enough ground cover for 10 layouts now. looking forward to your photos need2drag.
 
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that is great about the sawdust. I bet there were some crazy eyes going on in there that day. lol I am working on some stuff right now, but will get the pics up soon.
 
OK so I finally got the pics. I also did a little more work on the hills tonight. I am gonna go Tuesday to get some plaster from the LHS so I can make the total formation of the hills.
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What the heck is that in the first picture, a candle? You're going to burn up your layout before it's built. :)

If you're going to use plaster, take my advice and get plaster cloth. It's way less messy to work with and allows you to precisely place where you want the plaster instead of having big gobs all over the place.
 
lol, yeah it is a candle. I was using that to heat my crappy/dull knife so I could get the good angled cuts I wanted. And yeah I plan on using the cloth plaster. I used that on my old HO layout and I loved the way it laid out, and shaped. Hopefully I can get some this week, and get going on that process.
 
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