No cork here

I used Woodland Scenics foam roadbed for my layout.........for my lower and upper yards I used their 12" x 24" sheet foam.

I found cork to be a hassle to use and after so long it dries out and turns into a crumbly mess.

cork

I use it, not a super-fan, but use it.

The Midwest stuff in my opinion is fine.  Nice and tight and firm.  Then I started expanding the cork world to include cork-backed foamboard- a thin layer of cork fused to 1/2" foamboard.  To this I have no problems, and have it as a diorama base (now permanently mounted to my layout) under my 2-stall engine house.

I've also used two different thicknesses of sheet (roll) cork, and have spread it out as a base for a yard.  From the start it was/is dry and crumbly, and if not thoroughly glued/caulked to the base plywood, will most definitely rise/bow up once you try and scenic the area with water-thinned white glue, and be a major pain in the rear.  I've ripped up sections and replaced because of this.  And then I repeated the error just last week because I forgot, but using some rail spikes here and there was able to tack things down to become manageable.

Beware craft store cork rolls.....use, but......beware.

Large sheets

I know Midwest sold sheets at one time that would be good for yards. You could also check out your local art supply stores for large rolls or sheets of cork to use as a base. I would avoid the 100% natural cork and also the more open formed stuff.  You want the look to be like the standard cork. 

Auto parts store

Check for cork gasket material at your local auto parts store.  They may have a choice of thicknesses available.

Crafty Foam Sheets

Ian, I am in the process of building my yard right now. I am using the HO Scale cork roadbed on the main, N Scale roadbed on the sidings (because I had so much left over) and cork sheets on the yard tracks. I didn't have trouble locating cork sheets, but the quantity I needed was going to be somewhat costly and all I could find were 2'x4' sheets.

I got lucky and found an 18" x 8' roll on ebay for a good price, that covered about 1/3 of my yard area. I used some of my N Scale roadbed and sanded it down with a belt sander, but that was too labor intensive and dusty. Finally, I found 12" x 18" craft foam sheets about the same thickness of the cork sheets and less than a dollar per sheet! These worked very well, available in several colors (I used black of course). You should be able to find them at any craft supply store (Michael's, AC Moore, Pat Catan's, etc..)

I doubt I would ever used

I doubt I would ever used cork for a yard.  I don't glue my track down so sheet foam is out too.

One word, Homasote.  It's ideal for yards because it will hold spikes and track nails well and comes in 4x8 sheets.  I just paint it first with a neutral earth color and then use dry wall screws to hold it down to the plywood.  If there is any warp, the drywall screws will pull it out when it's all fastened down.

I only use cork on mainline track to give the profile of the track.  I like it for that and just use the Midwest cord I can get from MB Kleins.

Cork rolls...

I used big rolls of cork that I cut to the needed width and rolled out. 

Randy

Cork

My main yard and a number of other areas (mainly industries) where I did not want an elevation difference between the track and surrounding land were made with 1/4 inch cork from rolls glued (100% of area) to 1/2 in. plywood using 3M or Lepages water-based (acrylic) contact cement (no toxic fumes).  I then ballasted the Walthers 83 flex track, actually the whole yard, with cinders using matte medium.  This was nearly 20 years ago and not one bit of it has lifted, cracked or otherwise deteriorated.  The cork was end of rolls from a dumpster at a notice board manufacturing plant and was in perfect shape!  I did not use cork roadbed strips due to the cost and the fact that between each track would have been be a ditch.  Yards tracks typically do not have the ditches between them so I would have had to fill them in anyway.  Where I wanted to add a ditch I simply cut it out with a utility knife with no problems after it had been glued down for a long time.  In a couple of places I wanted to remove a section of it to place buildings which had 1/4 inch bases.  I cut the cork down to the plywood with a utility knife and lifted it with a putty knife and a little muscle.  A small sanding and vacuuming and I was down to smooth, bare plywood.  A word of warning about glue.  Do not use solvent based contact cement, use acrylic, unless you don't care about your health.  I didn't use white glue.  I did a test and found it took longer to dry than the contact cement and did not give as strong a bond - but it would have been cheaper.  I would not be concerned about the white glue dissolving with ballasting as the pre-wetting water or in my case 50% alcohol would have to penetrate 1/4 inch of cork to get to the cork-plywood interface which I doubt would happen. Here it is. All of what you see is on cork.

Ian Stronach

Modeling the CPR Montreal Terminals Division in HO in September 1968 

What I Did

I used cork rolls also.  I installed the cork with contact adhesive intended for laminate countertop material.

Here's how one of these areas looked before ballasting.  The cork provided a nice, smooth surface for laying track compared to plain plywood.

cork tiles

I got some cork from a friend that comes in 2 foot by 3 foot squares, used as floor underlay I think.  I glued two layers together to get the same thickness as my cork roadbed.  Used white glue for everything, quite happy with the results thus far.  

Marc Simpson

Well thanks for all the help

Well thanks for all the help guys, but what about thickness? Should a yard be the same level as the main or should it sit a little lower?

Lower

The yard should sit a little lower, or more correctly stated, the main should sit higher. The main would have better ballast and would generally sit higher than the yard. 

Randy

Lower

Your yard track will generally sit lower than your main. 

"Ballast, roadbed, maintenance is not cheap for railroads" and because traffic in yards moves much slower than the main there is not really a need for the same amount of ballast and roadbed height you would find on mains or even passing sidings.  

The type of railroad and era you are modeling will also help you determine the height and look of your yard track.  For example, a modern busy Class-I railroad yard will probably have better maintained roadbed and ballast in their yard versus a short-line railroad watching every penny.

For yards and spurs I generally don't use roadbed.  Because speed is usually very low on these types of track, noise factor has never been an issue for me.

If you decide to go with track level of various heights, make sure you have a smooth transition between the different track heights to avoid uncoupling problems.  

Joe

The way I deal with the

The way I deal with the height difference between where the Homasote is in the yard and the cork on the mainline is to build the sub-roadbed at an elevation which allows the base of the track to line up perfectly.  For example, I have some kerffed Homasote bed coming out of the storage yard and it meets a point where track is laid on cork for the mainline.  The mainline sub-roadbed is on risers so it is easy to match the level where the track crosses over.

Looks like cork wins the poll.

Rolled sheet cork

​   I am in the process of laying sheet cork in my staging area. I used sheet cork that was the same thickness as the cork under the main line. This made an easy transition between the two. Since my track goes between/through a building you can't see the change. I picked up two rolls at H/L and it is going to work well I think. Even have some left over for other out of sight areas. Was kind of pricey tho. $14.99 for a roll 2' x 4' but only have to buy it once. PS it was the cheapest in town by a buck.

Cork from hobby lobby

Hobby Lobby has a weekly 40% off coupon for one item on their web page. If you have a smart phone you can have the coupon on your phone at checkout.  The $14.99 cork roll drops to $9.00.  They have two thicknesses in cork rolls: 3/32" and 5/32".  The 3/32 is very fragile, but the 5/32 is much stronger and easier to lay. 

I use the 40% coupon for anything greater than $15.00 because I pass HL coming into town and it is convenient to stop. Never buy an expensive item at HL w/o using the 40% coupon!

Ron Willson

Cork

Grainger sells 3mm cork sheet (2'X3') for $7.22.  Many other sizes/rolls/thicknesses available.

Roll cork

I've switched to thin roll cork from HoPo.  I think it's actually shelf liner.  To my eye, the commercial MR cork roadbed is way too thick and previously, I sanded it down with an electric palm sander.  I bevel the cork sheet at 45 degrees with a matte cutter from Dick Blick where necessary.   I might try the Pelle S. method of building up roadbed for the mainline portion.  I might also try the craft foam which is what I use for roads and parking lots.