Looking Good

Luke-

Both roads look good to me, the one on the right looks older and less maintained, but not by much. I am looking forward to the video once you're done with the experiments.  

I know you're based in Australia so it may be different there, but I'd like to make a minor comment for those who model the United States. Current US roadway standards in the DOT/FHA Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD- 2009) show the center line markings (i.e. markings that divide the opposite directions of traffic flow) should be yellow, and the roadway edge markings (aka "fog lines") are white.  Here's a link- http://mutcd.fhwa.dot.gov/pdfs/2009r1r2/part3.pdf.   For those who model earlier eras, here's a link for MUTCDs back to 1935, the first year roadway markings were standardized by the US Government: https://ceprofs.civil.tamu.edu/ghawkins/MUTCD-History.htm

Keep up the great work Luke, all of your videos are great.

Lou

Looking Good

"Looking Good!"

I have also used "wooden derby" pin-striping tape for road lines and sealed the tape with flat Mod-Podge.

Joe

I've posted this before a few

I've posted this before a few times.  Black craft foam with gray craft paint sponged on works well for asphalt.  The foam is easy to work with and much of the work can be done at the workbench.   If you don't have trackage running through it, you can use 2mm foam.   For street trackage, 1mm foam used with code 100 track would work without interfering with wheel flanges.  No need for unusually large flangeways.  The foam can go the full width of the track.  I've never seen 1mm foam at the craft stores, but an eBay seller named Wandy-Foam sells it.  (it's the EVA foam.)   If you email him, he might be able to get you longer pieces so you won't have as many seams.   Seams can be disguised as cracks that go the full width of the road.

I used a kitchen sponge to dab the paint on.  First I dabbed it on some cardboard (or a foam meat tray) to knock some of the paint off and spread it around the sponge.  

Patches are easy to make by tearing or cutting out a piece and then rinsing off some of the paint.   Large cracks can be made by tearing the foam.  For small cracks I chucked a straight pin into a Dremel and etched them in. 

For the stripes, if you made a template, you might try using a cosmetics sponge to dab paint on. 

Steve S

Wallonian roads

Great job !!!!

but try to create roads we have got here in Wallonia (the south part of Belgium where we speak french...)

We need Humvee because there are a lot of holes...like the Moon.

I think Lance M. mentioned

I think Lance M. mentioned  in his blog that using tape for road markings was a bad idea, but didn't explain.  Any idea why that might be? 

Tape?

I'm not 100% sure why but if I had to guess I'd probably suggest that tape has a possibility of peeling and lifting away from the road surface as the layout ages...

I like the look of airbrushed lines using a template but I also like the look of the lines using the Woodland Scenics road stripping pen, which is much easier and faster to use!

Paint Pens

Has anyone used these paint pens to put lines on the roads? Sharpie makes these oil based paint pens they are available in ultra fine, fine, medium and bold sizes, not sure how wide that makes the line for any of these.  Also available are water based paints.

You can get a set like this at Wal-Mart here in the US.

See the complete line at sharpie: http://www.sharpie.com/en-US/specialty-products

Flexi Edge

I'm working on my road, any trick to get the Flexi Edge ruler straight? After taking it out of the package I can not all the little curves out from being curled in the package.

Thanks, John

Road striping pens

I have tried to use the WS road striping pens -  I like the roughness of the lines -- looks realistic.  You can get the same thing at craft stores.  But I gave up on them.  Part of the time the paint would not flow, and then suddenly it would come out in a blob of paint.

Any hints on how to use these successfully?

The Wandy site

They sell large sheets -- 26 by 39 which may make it possible to make curves. Worried about how the joints will look..  I did not see 2 mm foam.  I like the look of the foam surface.  Thanks for sharing.

Wandy

Also found some 1mm on eBay. May have also been Wandy.....can't remember.

foam for road base

same foam used for base of concrete pad at top

Something to add

 Where and if the double yellow lines end/start, there should be a yellow post in the ground, This is called a barrier marker, it let's the striping crews know where to start, and stop striping the road. Granted we all don't have a 100' of roadway right of way (ND DOT standards) from the center line of the road, but this can be narrowed down to somewhere between 20' to 40' (modelers license). ND DOT uses metal fence posts for barrier markers, but you can cut the tip off of one end of a tooth pick, paint it yellow, and stick it in the foam. If the double yellow line were to start where Luke's two boxcars are sitting, this is where the barrier marker would go. (somewhere between the side walk and the boxcars.

 Have any questions, just ask. (15 years, working for ND DOT).

Charlie

Rick, wow...

That old road you have looks fantastic, not to mention the concrete slabs! I've always had trouble trying to find and mix nice concrete colors and you've certainly hit the nail on the head with yours!

I would love to visit your layout one day... if I ever end up on your side of the world 

I've used Steve S's technique

I've used Steve S's technique using foam a few years back and it held up well.

Luke (BoulderCreek)

Thanks so much much for your nice remarks and a huge thanks for your video tutorials. I have learned a lot of great techniques from your work. Recently I spent over a month working on palm trees and your video tutorial filled in a couple of holes in my technique that were really bugging me. 

Concrete and galvanized metal have driven me nuts. Getting a true neutral gray has been almost impossible. I won't go into all the trials and tribulations but there have been many. I'm slowly getting a select group of paints that are helping but odd tints are always a danger.

 If you ever get on this side of the pond you are so very welcome here. I would love to swap stories and techniques with you.

 Please keep up your fine work and sharing of techniques as it is so appreciated and helpful to all of us that love this hobby.

 Rick

Barier markers

In NY state, they remove the posts after the road project is complete.