# Moose Junction



## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

Well, it seemed like I'd never reach this point. But now I can finally post under "my layout". ^_^ I made it from a cluttered garage to this, and with thanks to my wife. The track plan ony morphed nearly 100 times I'm sure.  , But I"m ready to get going now. 

Now comes the construction, 

1. to lay the pink foam, I'm going to get some PL300 and squirt it on the wood, and get a flat trowel thing to smear it into a thin coat to make a nice uniform bond. That is how it goes as I understand it. How much weight do I need to place on top? I'm in no hurry to rush things, haste makes waste, and I want to do it right. How long should I let it dry before I add more pink on top? or can I do it all at one time? I've read ambiguous times, but haven't seen an actual hours or days number for this. 

I'm going to have several layers of foam so I can sculpt it into mountains and valleys, so my track doesn't have the 'flat Kansas' feel to it.


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## dablaze (Apr 17, 2012)

I like that benchwork, you must be a master carpenter! You are describing exactly what we did. Just remember it is easier to build up than down, so yes if you want good deep water/valleys/opportunity for bridges etc, extra foam. Keep in mind though that extra foam can make for deeper drilling for wiring, harder corrections in benchwork etc. Have a good track plan worked out and play with your sight lines at eye level. If you are planning a backdrop, you might want to consider it now before you lay foam as well.

Craig


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Gee, the garage has hardwood floors? WOW!


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## xrunner (Jul 29, 2011)

Looks good but I see one problem. I hope you have enough room to do wiring under the top level. I have more than double the room that you do and I bust my head all the time. Looks very cramped to do the wiring that you'll need to do.


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

My wife demanded, er, um, strongly suggested that it meet her standards for being in our craft room. So, a friend of ours who is a carpenter did the work. She reminded me to stick to what I do best, lol. And the shelf below was another of her needs, so the room isn't cluttered. 

The floor is some kind of fake hardwood floor. It's nice with a soft cushiony layer just under it. 

I could run the test train around the 4x8 with just one set of wires going to it, and with two reverse loops that makes three seperate areas for electricity. I'm hoping I don't need to do much more wiring than that. I was going manual switches instead of the electrical ones.


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## xrunner (Jul 29, 2011)

MrDuane said:


> I could run the test train around the 4x8 with just one set of wires going to it, and with two reverse loops that makes three seperate areas for electricity. I'm hoping I don't need to do much more wiring than that. I was going manual switches instead of the electrical ones.


Well it's too late now but I think you should have run the bench design by the guys here first. I don't want to rain on your parade on purpose but you'll need more wire connections than three, for reliability. What about other scenery items like lights? Also you don't know what you might want to do in the future as far as things that require wiring. Trying to wire up things under that little space will be very, very difficult. I wish you luck though.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Difficult, but not impossible.  I've wired a lot of stuff in spaces a lot smaller than that! It just makes it more difficult.


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## Carl (Feb 19, 2012)

Excellent work......say hello to my friends at Evergreen Scale Models....great folks


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Duane,

Benchwork looks quite nice!

To glue the foam to the plywood, you can buy adhesives (Liquid Nails, PL, etc.) that are "foam safe" ... specifically designed for use with insulation foam. I don't think you need to smear a full layer of the stuff ... in fact, if you spread it out too much, you run the risk of having it pre-cure, loosing its "stick" in the process. I would squirt some curly-Q random lines of the stuff, and then bed the foam down rather quickly. Before the foam goes down, you can also add a few dabs here and there of hot glue ... that will offer a quick-grab, while the adhesives cures/sets. Work fast though, with the hot glue.

Regards,

TJ


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I used construction adhesive for foam for 2" insulation on my attic access door, it sticks on the spot and it's not coming off! I just went around the edge and a couple lines down the middle, more than sufficient. I'm sure even less will hold a table top piece in place forever.


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## joed2323 (Oct 17, 2010)

What the guys said is good advice...

I dont think you would really need anymore then 2 layers of foam.

That layout wont be hard to wire as long as you are flexible and not heavy set, no offense to you or anyone 

You will need more then 3 connections for your track and extras..
General rule is every 3 feet or at the least every other track section you would want a feeder wire to each rail.
Its better to plan for the future and wire it right then having problems in the future


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

I was going to get some PL300 but the store only had 375 and whole lot of other kinds. Kinda overwhelming, none of them said, "Model train safe" lol. so, is there any kind of words I need to look for to make sure it's 'foam safe'? 

I'm not entirely flexible, but not overweight. the shelf was a wife have to have, so I'll just have to work around that. It should be doable.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

MrDuane said:


> I was going to get some PL300 but the store only had 375 and whole lot of other kinds. Kinda overwhelming, none of them said, "Model train safe" lol. so, is there any kind of words I need to look for to make sure it's 'foam safe'?
> 
> I'm not entirely flexible, but not overweight. the shelf was a wife have to have, so I'll just have to work around that. It should be doable.


May I ask why she wanted a shelf under there?

Your talking about the shelf on the layout table right?


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## broox (Apr 13, 2012)

Its a good use of space (bar the PITA when it comes to wiring), I'd probably do the same. It also sounds like its a shared room... We all have to keep our better halves happy


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

it's for storage. some of the stuff in the garage has to go somewhere, ^_^, tools, etc. she's an accountant, everything in a space, ...etc...


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## xrunner (Jul 29, 2011)

MrDuane said:


> it's for storage. some of the stuff in the garage has to go somewhere, ^_^, tools, etc. she's an accountant, everything in a space, ...etc...


An accountant, but not a model railroader ... 

The storage could have gone above on the walls. But done is done I suppose. It's a nice table.


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## dablaze (Apr 17, 2012)

I think the shelves will work, I have worked under plenty of cars with no more clearance. Besides, I am lazy, as long as you have someone to pass you anything you need you get to wire while laying on your back, don't forget the pillow!

I have considered how to create something that is like cabinetry, but still has accessibility. I figure after I move our layout, the wiring will have to be done perfectly the first time (ya right!)

Craig


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

i was hoping for a glue answer, we are headed out today for shopping for normal stuff, and it's my chance to pick it up.


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## dablaze (Apr 17, 2012)

We did several layers with either PL20 or PL300 (cant remember which) on about 5 layers to make a mountain. We did not worry too much about spreading it around. We then layered heavy books on top for about 24 hours then started carving. The overall result was 5 layers on top of which the shays run up and down on a small logging operation.

Craig


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

i did read a few threads on it, but the store only has 375 or pl500 or stuff with no numbers, wasn't sure just what key words i needed to see on the tube were.


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## The New Guy (Mar 11, 2012)

A little late to the party but why not a spray adhesive? 3M or the like in an aerosol can - spray it and place it, no monkeying with weights or whatnot.

BTW, the tables look great.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

The New Guy said:


> A little late to the party but why not a spray adhesive? 3M or the like in an aerosol can - spray it and place it, no monkeying with weights or whatnot.


The construction adhesive I mentioned earlier works like that, and there's no way it's coming loose!


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

Things are going fine so far. Actually seeing things in full scale 3D does help alot on what I want. On my left loop with overpass, still fence sitting on either a hill in the middle of it or a box canyon. that, and the 4x8 area is the mining area, and unsure where to drop it off at, lol. thinking back to the river wharf in the skinny side under the window.


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## sawgunner (Mar 3, 2012)

Very nice work!! what incline set did you use? looking at using one or 2 of them on mine let me know how they work when the train runs up them


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## joed2323 (Oct 17, 2010)

Pretty cool so far. Did u pick up a xtra long drill bit yet, so you can run wires? A regular sized drill bit wont work obviously


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

I went 3%, I tried 4% by tilting the 4x8 and that seemed way to much, just wish I had enough room for a 2%


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## sawgunner (Mar 3, 2012)

3% is still a nice grade, wish i had the room to do a 2% myself but @ 16' to accomplish one you really need some space!

is that all sectional track your using?


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## MrDuane (Oct 21, 2011)

the sectional track is just for planning purposes, and to be able for grandson to watch. a friends neighbor gave it to me. it runs fine enough on it in testing, but I'm going to solder the flex when I get to it. Just realizing I have no elmers glue to put the cork bed down, lol, I've not had that stuff since grade school.


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## joed2323 (Oct 17, 2010)

A hot glue gun works great foe road bed. I highly suggest you try it.
you can got glue roadbed fast versus waiting for glue or caulk to dry.

You can glue a section, bam, your moving on to the next section and so on.

Caulk works good to but not as fast as hot glue. If you are gluing to foam use a low temp setting andbl if you glue to wood use a high temp setting.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Ditto on Joe's comments above. Few more thoughts, especially for laying cork around curves ...

Mark a track centerline on your foam (Sharpie, etc.). Tear the cork bed into left/right halves along the precut line. Apply a few dabs of hot glue over an 18" length of foam, on one side of the centerline mark, only. Lay down that cork half, abutting its edge on the centerline. As you press is down, try to direct any excess glue towards the outer edge. Repeat the process for the remaining 18" (or so) of that same cork strip half.

Once that half is down, repeat the process for the other mating cork half, trimming its ends as needed to achieve staggered end-joints between the left/right halves.

TJ


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## broox (Apr 13, 2012)

Hows Moose Junction coming along?


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