Dan Pugatch Breakwater Branch

Hey All,

I am running into an issue using Atlas Rerailers as road crossings. Partly because my dad drilled into my head you use a rerailer on every side of the train table and before/after tunnels and bridges.

rerailer.jpg 

Growing Up I used them without issue but that was because I didn't use cork roadbed then. Now with cork roadbed they are too high off the ground and the plastic of the rerailers is not flush to make a road crossing.

crossing.jpg 

Do you know of a product or have specs of what size wood to use to create a ramp or a tutorial to pour material to make it more like this?

ossing_2.jpg 

I totally get most of you don't use Atlas Rerailers and avoid the height issue with cork road bed by using foam as a base and the tracks are buried into the foam to be more realistic.

crossing.png 

Not going down that route and want to use ten rerailers I have as well as not buy foam to be the base of my layout, I'd rather keep it plywood. I get the hobby has gone that direction but carving foam and making non flat scenery can be something I do on the next layout. For this switching layout flat with maybe one bridge over a stream is all I'm doing. Especially since I am using them before and after the removable cassette that allows you to stand in the middle of the layout.

ewlayout.png 

Freelance HO Scale set in 1977-1984 Portland, Maine.
Reply 0
Ironhand_13

Spackle

Get some lightweight drywall spackle (any hardware store or big box store has it), and use a putty knife to make a smooth transition.  Can even add a little acrylic paint to color it, or paint after.

 

-Steve in Iowa City
Reply 0
Dan Pugatch Breakwater Branch

Steve thank you! I thought

Steve thank you! I thought that was the solution but wanted to check as you all may have a better way of doing things!

Freelance HO Scale set in 1977-1984 Portland, Maine.
Reply 0
Jackh

Road Crossings

Made Easier.....

2 good products are joint compound or my 1st choice is some stuff called Fast'N Final. Find it at Lowe's,  Home Depot ect in the paint department. It goes on real easy with a putty knife or spatula. Great thing about it is do it in several coats and you can build up the thickness. You can sand it and paint it even easier.

OK so you have cork road bed with a rerailer on top. Makes for a large hump in the road crossing. Proto typicacle for a lot of places in the country and makes you think you are driving over or on a roller coaster. Build up the edges a little at a time until you have a ramp built up leading to the tracks. Where 2 tracks are parallel fill in between. Scrape the rails clean with your putty knife. Shouldn't have to do that with a rerailer though. I would run the Fast'N Final over the rerailer just so it looks good and not up to the track edge. Try to make it a smooth meeting of the plastic and the Fast'N Final so you can't see where one starts and the other ends. Paint both at the same time so it looks more like one surface.

Jack

Reply 0
barr_ceo

Quick and dirty fix... Use

Quick and dirty fix...

Use cork roadbed under your ROAD at the approach to the crossing as well as under the track. Assuming HO scale, run it out about 8-12 inches and taper it down to nothing away from the track with a sanding block. Finish with your choice of road materials. It'll have the same look you're used to without the "wall" at trackside. 

If you don't want to go to that much effort with sanding, then buy some long wood shims at your local hardware/lumber yard. (not the short 6" ones...  look for 10-12" inch shims!) They're cheap and will save you the effort of sanding. Cut them to length so that the shim + road material meets the edge of the rerailer. Finish as above.

Read my Journal / Blog...

!BARR_LO.GIF Freelanced N scale Class I   Digitrax & JMRI

 NRail  T-Trak Standards  T-Trak Wiki    My T-Trak Wiki Pages

Reply 0
Chris VanderHeide cv_acr

Plaster or Spackle

I would second the use of plaster, spackle or drywall mud to bring the road up to and across the cork so you can lay your rerailer sections on top.

Reply 0
Dan Pugatch Breakwater Branch

As always I appreciate all

As always I appreciate all your tips and feedback, thanks!
Freelance HO Scale set in 1977-1984 Portland, Maine.
Reply 0
Benny

..

Use Cork to raise the Road surface up above the level of your substrate.  A single lane road is roughly as wide as cork roadbed.

--------------------------------------------------------

Benny's Index or Somewhere Chasing Rabbits

Reply 0
Al Carter tabooma county rwy

Or Foam Core...

I use cheap (Dollar Store) foam core cut into appropriate widths to raise my street/road levels.  It is the same thickness as cork roadbed, and much easier to sand if you need to.  I remove the paper backing.  You can do this by pulling up a corner and slowly pulling back at a steep angle.  If it is stubborn and wants to tear, then I either spray the surface of the paper with water and let dry, and then it peels easily, or I spray the surface of the paper with cheap spray paint, let dry, and same deal - peels easily.  

Added benefit:  "raw" foam core board is a nice looking surface (not "slick" like styrene) that is a great beginning for a street/road.  Easily sanded, scribed, stained, painted, etc.

Al Carter

Reply 0
Reply