track realism

[ebtnut]

Homasote does have a bit of shrink-swell in a damp envrionment, but frankly so does the wood framework and subroadbed underneath.  Ever seen a closet door swell up in the summer time?  Plywood (except maybe marine-grade plywood) will also move some as well.  And yes, you can paint your Homasote roadbed (after it's all cut) and that will help.  A grey primer-sealer should do just fine.

[rogertra]

Homasote does have a bit of shrink-swell in a damp envrionment, but frankly so does the wood framework and subroadbed underneath.  Ever seen a closet door swell up in the summer time?  Plywood (except maybe marine-grade plywood) will also move some as well.  And yes, you can paint your Homasote roadbed (after it's all cut) and that will help.  A grey primer-sealer should do just fine.

Homasote does NOT shink or swell.  It is inert.  Many tests have shown this.  It's the bechwork that shrinks and swells.

[skipgear]

I quite honestly have never been an EZ track fan but, it can look reasonably good when ballasted, save for the rail height. It's no proto 87 but is passable for most people.





I started help on this layout about 3 years ago. I came in to it after the owner had already bought tons of EZ track so he could experiment with the layout design. The layout worked, the turnouts were not causing any issues so I decided to stay with it.

Even ended up custom building an EZ track #6 turnout to match the 35.5" radius so we could fit in an expansion.