# Contact cement



## Ray (Jan 11, 2021)

What is a good contact cement for attaching cork roadbed to plywood and then attaching track to the roadbed?
Thank you all in advance.
Ray


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## Ray (Jan 11, 2021)

Out of 34 people seeing this post, I assume you all attach your roadbed and track in a different manner. Open to other suggestions. Thank you.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Ray said:


> Out of 34 people seeing this post, I assume you all attach your roadbed and track in a different manner. Open to other suggestions. Thank you.


You're up to 53 now. And I'm sure that in the last hour, at least some of those 19 people declined to answer because of the attitude conveyed by your last post. And you managed to wait a whole 4 hours before you got snarky. You need to be patient. People may have viewed your post thinking you were going to recommend a product, or that you were having trouble or something with a given brand or application (because the words "Contact Cement" leaves open a wide range of possibilities). And, certainly, many of those people may be visitors not members and can't reply.

Since there must be 2 dozen threads on this topic, or in which it came up, in 2021 alone, it doesn't really surprise me that there isn't much appetite for yet another. If you were really that desperate for an answer, Google would have given you probably a couple million results.

I use adhesive latex caulk for both (although I use foam roadbed, not cork). A lot of people do. Caulk is cheap and widely available in a variety of colors, and gives you roughly 15-20 minutes of working time to adjust things before it starts setting up, yet is tacky enough that things don't move unless you want them too (although I recommend pins to hold springy flex track in place while it does). Weighting while it sets up is also a good practice.


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## mesenteria (Oct 29, 2015)

Ray said:


> Out of 34 people seeing this post, I assume you all attach your roadbed and track in a different manner. Open to other suggestions. Thank you.


I don't know why you would assume that from the absence of responses. People use whatever works, if they have it handy, if it is otherwise available, and if it's cost-effective. I've seen people claim to use yellow glue, PVA, DAP Alex Plus, Liquid Nails for Projects, Aleene's Tacky Glue, Mod Podge or other gloss/matte medium. If you have contact cement, sure, why not. You'll need a lot more than would be found in your typical $5 tube of it. DAP would cover about 20 times the length for the same price. It's what I use, the clear stuff. I goes on white, but dries a very light clear yellow colour. Stays somewhat flexible, too, which allows the tracks to squirm a wee bit when the roadbed and supporting structure contracts and expands due to changes in humidity and temperature.


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## Ray (Jan 11, 2021)

It was not my intention to be "snarky". I just wanted to know what is mainly used. I do appreciate your answers.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Apology accepted.

Mesenterias response provides a good observation: there are literally thousands of ways to do it, and they all work. As long as you make sure your adhesive is compatible with the materials being used, it's hard to go wrong.


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## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

Ray

As you can tell, the type of 'glue' to use for track adhesive varies
from person to person. There's really not much right or wrong.
I found good 'ole' Elmer's white glue to be effective for both gluing
down track bed and also track to bed. It's cheap, easily available
and washable. I used it, also, to lay the ballast.

But, what ever adhesive you select...USE IT SPARINGLY. Just
a dab here and there. It is invariable...you will wand to make changes 
By limiting the glue you can pull up and reuse your roadbed and track easily.

Don


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## bigdodgetrain (Jun 12, 2015)

no glue just screws through ties to base. easier if you have to change something.


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## Ray (Jan 11, 2021)

Thank you all. This is all very helpful. I tried DAP Weldwood: it did not stick cork to plywood but did stick plastic ties to cork. I tried Gorilla Glue in the caulk tube and it stuck it all. I have Liquid Nails in the caulk tube but haven't tried it yet.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

bigdodgetrain said:


> no glue just screws through ties to base. easier if you have to change something.


Unless, of course, you're using an extruded foam subroadbed.

And not to quibble, but the chance of an off-center screw torquing your rails out of true, or over-driving a screw and bowing your ties, may actually make that method harder to get right.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Ray said:


> Thank you all. This is all very helpful. I tried DAP Weldwood: it did not stick cork to plywood but did stick plastic ties to cork. I tried Gorilla Glue in the caulk tube and it stuck it all. I have Liquid Nails in the caulk tube but haven't tried it yet.


Weldwood didn't stick cork? That's very surprising. Perhaps cork is too porous. I use weldwood to apply veneers all the time. It works great.


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## rsv1ho (Oct 16, 2019)

I read through all the responses and no one suggested common old nails cork to plywood however I understand the topic was about using some sort of contact cement so it's understandable. Another alternative - I have used Atlas track nails on all my layouts to fix track to cork and cork to plywood and been satisfied with the results. Easy to apply, move if necessary and without the mess of adhesives.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

I would have mentioned it, but that method is not currently in vogue and doesn't work with foam


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## Magic (Jan 28, 2014)

Actually nailing cork roadbed to foam works very well if you do it right.
That's how I did it and it held firm for two years till I ballasted. 
Won't go into it here as the OP is going over plywood but if done 
right nails in foam will hold very good indeed.

Magic


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

rsv1ho said:


> I read through all the responses and no one suggested common old nails cork to plywood however I understand the topic was about using some sort of contact cement so it's understandable. Another alternative - I have used Atlas track nails on all my layouts to fix track to cork and cork to plywood and been satisfied with the results. Easy to apply, move if necessary and without the mess of adhesives.


Magic's comment above notwithstanding, no would not have recommended the use of nails. Especially in my case, foam roadbed to an extruded foam base isn't a good mix with nails. Too many chances for things to work loose and move.

And as we adhesive users have repeatedly said, if you take care when applying (no more effort than is required to ensure you don't over-drive nails, drive them at an angle, or hit your track and bend or break it), adhesives are neither particularly messy nor difficult to remove.


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## rsv1ho (Oct 16, 2019)

My tack driver, been passed down for generations, built three layouts with it. Big end, roadbed to plywood, small end track to cork. Haven't damaged a tie yet.


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## Lee Willis (Jan 1, 2014)

Ray said:


> What is a good contact cement for attaching cork roadbed to plywood and then attaching track to the roadbed?
> Thank you all in advance.
> Ray
> [/QUOTE
> ...


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## rsv1ho (Oct 16, 2019)

How do you hold the cork in place _on curves _when using glues especially liquid glues? I can see contact cement, but you have my admiration for using it. Been there on other projects. Messy stuff that requires patience and a steady hand, two attributes that I do not have.

When laying cork, I use a compass usually a stick with a hole drilled in one end for a pencil and a pivot nail in the other then draw the radius on a center line. Then lay one side of the cork against the pencil line, secure in place then butt the other side of the cork against it starting at the center point of the laid cork which alternates the joints.


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## Stumpy (Mar 19, 2013)

T-pins and/or boxes of ammo.


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## rsv1ho (Oct 16, 2019)

Stumpy said:


> T-pins and/or boxes of ammo.


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## 65446 (Sep 22, 2018)

Draw a center line for where track will go...White-glue one side of the split cork up against the line using push pins, placing weights of any kind between the pins..When this has begun to cure run second half of cork against first half after running a bead of glue..then pin that down..You'll have to do some linear slicing of the cork for switches... 
When cork is in you can pin down track onto it and, again, run white glue between ties..This will hold track, and pins can then be removed...Or, nail track right through the cork..(careful not to cause ties to bend downward).


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

rsv1ho said:


> How do you hold the cork in place _on curves _when using glues especially liquid glues? I can see contact cement, but you have my admiration for using it. Been there on other projects. Messy stuff that requires patience and a steady hand, two attributes that I do not have.
> 
> When laying cork, I use a compass usually a stick with a hole drilled in one end for a pencil and a pivot nail in the other then draw the radius on a center line. Then lay one side of the cork against the pencil line, secure in place then butt the other side of the cork against it starting at the center point of the laid cork which alternates the joints.


Latex adhesive caulk. Lay a bead and spread it thin (not messy, as long as you know how to stop the flow of caulk from your gun). Lay one side against your centerline and curve it around. Then lay the other side. Of course, I use foam roadbed, not cork, but the principle is the same. Weight it down with something for a couple of hours. I use scrap wood and pavers. Canned food, large books, just about anything heavy. I have a friend who uses real railroad spikes.


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## Mixed Freight (Aug 31, 2019)

rsv1ho said:


> My tack driver, been passed down for generations, built three layouts with it. Big end, roadbed to plywood, small end track to cork. Haven't damaged a tie yet.
> 
> View attachment 557507


Nothing wrong with your method, as it produces good results. But I always found that laying cork and track with track nails to be fairly slow and tedious work. Of course, since I did N-scale, that could account for some of the tediousness.

Anymore I prefer clear adhesive caulk any more because I can lay cork and track lickety-split. Probably in 1/10 the time of track nails. You can lay down a whole bunch of cork first, then after 3~4 hours minimum drying time, then come back and start laying the track. The caulk gives enough time to properly position the track before it starts drying. And if you ever want to pull the track up, slide a knife blade under the ties to release it from the cork. With a bit of care, you can even pull up the cork the same way.

A lot of guys recommend the cheapest clear acrylic caulk you can find, such as DAP brand. While it does work okay, I discovered Loctite Clear Power Grab Heavy Duty Exterior Construction Adhesive. It has much better holding power than the regular DAP caulk. And it is foam-safe. Just be careful when buying construction adhesives, not all of them are foam safe.


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## MichaelE (Mar 7, 2018)

Instead of that three to four hour wait for drying you could be laying more roadbed and track.


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## Mixed Freight (Aug 31, 2019)

MichaelE said:


> Instead of that three to four hour wait for drying you could be laying more roadbed and track.


Except for when you run out of roadbed.

And you laid down the considerable bunch you had so fast, the first of it isn't even fully dry yet.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

MichaelE said:


> Instead of that three to four hour wait for drying you could be laying more roadbed and track.


Why do you have to wait? Weight down what you've done while it's curing and keep going. I can lay roadbed and track using decent adhesive forever until my back gives out. If I had the endurance, I could lay my entire layout in one session, and it can cure while I get 8 hours of beauty rest at night. Curing time is only a limitation if you let it become one.


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## Mixed Freight (Aug 31, 2019)

CTValleyRR said:


> Why do you have to wait? Weight down what you've done while it's curing and keep going. I can lay roadbed and track using decent adhesive forever _until my back gives out._ _If I had the endurance,_ I could lay my entire layout in one session, and it can cure while I get 8 hours of beauty rest at night. Curing time is only a limitation if you let it become one.


Bingo. You answered other folk's dilemmas.


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## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Mixed Freight said:


> Bingo. You answered other folk's dilemmas.


Yup. Getting old is a drag.... to paraphrase the Rolling Stones.


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