what do u prefer to hold track down in z scale

i know of the different ways to put track down but does anyone have a favorite for z scale for any reason? im about to start laying track down soon. i have some hidden track on a lower level that i think i will just put it on top the wood board as its not ment to be full of sceanery . on the top i wanted to use cork roadbed . are people using n scale? is it too wide or do people trim it down. i want to glue the top layers (cork and track) but the bottom should i use just nails or what ?

From my experience I'd say that glue is messy and unreliable - or was that just me ?

With track nails, you can always go back for slight to medium adjustments if necessary, whereas once the glue sets you might feel like the track - stuck.

I prefer using track nails. Some will say they look ugly - actually the Marklin pins are fairly inconspicuous on any track brand, and once the scenery besides the track has been glued down you can pull the pins up anyway if you prefer to. Others will say they make your layout noisy because they allow the sound of your trains to resonate with your baseboard construction, but somehow I seem to associate trains with sound, not silence

Happy track laying

My question is, which makes for a more reliable running layout, MTL style track with the built in roadbed? Or Marklin style track with a cork roadbed? I would think the cork roadbed would allow for more expansion and contraction like a real roadbed. Seemed to work that way for N scale.

The expansion issue is more an issue with the substrate you use, with foam expanding the least. I find the electro-mechanical characteristics to be about the same. On both tracks I leave a bit of a gap every 10-12 inches anyway. I use double-sided tape to hold down the roadbed track. You can slide a metal putty knife underneath the tape if you need to adjust. When I'm satisified with the layout I also add a bit of very fine ballast on the outside of the roadbed which makes it immovable.

Mark

water base bathroom caulk is good because when you pick the track up to revise your track plan the stuff just peels off. leaving no residue on the track pieces.

Myself I rely on white glue. Works OK for me.

Dom

When I built my show layout I used silicone caulk.on MTL's roadbed track.When I enlarged it it I used Loctite PL300 foamboard adhesive,for the next expantsion I will use them same product.

All of my layouts are foam based.

99% of my track is held down by gravel and Woodland Scenic scenery cement. I wet the gravel with alcohol and then drip the cement, then I hold down the track with full bottles of alcohol. Just make sure the track is even. On curves, I used superglue to hold the ends and middle of the track.

I find that for the person laying track for the first time roadbed track produces the best result and trains run well on it. My quicky 2x4 show layout is on Homosote board and I use HO rail spikes to hold it down using the holes in the Rokuhan roadbed. These hole have to opened up from below, but once open up are easily seen from above. This means it is easy for me to change the track plan and the spikes are easy to push into the homosote.

On my home layout I used the old method of plywood base then cork roadbed and rather than purchase n-scale cork as there does not seem to be any for Z scale I purchased 1/8th sheet cork from office depot primarily used to make bulletin boards and as it wellbend easily. I cut it into strips as under lay for my track initially I use Peco flex. with Norm Wright turnouts initially, but these turnouts are hard to get lately so I have gone to hand laid track and turnouts using fasttracks jigs and code 40 rail. I is allot of work but results are really good. But it is laborious and time consuming to say the leastI use contact cement to lay the cork then spike down my pre-made sections of track in 18 inch segments and form my curves and use rail spikes N scale size outside of the rail.while I ballast the track with a fine mix of grey black ballast then brush it down so the ties are visible, to hold the ballast in place on the cork, I use white glue diluted to 20 % glue and 80 percent water plus two drops of dish soap in an 8 oz bottle, and dribble the mixture into the ballast, making sure it is all wet and leave it an hour then lightly wipe the rail top and let it set over night, then I vacuum with computer vac the track picking up all the loose ballast and then check to see where I need to reapply the ballast and then when satisfied wet it again with a second wetting of the glue mix the next day and let that set 2 days. Now it is ready for painting and weathering and then so I pull the spikes I do not have an airbrush so I use an ink wash to colour ballast and I add a very small drop of diluted hand soap to wash and I brush it on in two passes one more brown along the inside of the rail and one more black in a line down the center of the ballast. This was spreads out so it is very subtle and not defined like a paint line. This method of laying rail while producing eye pleasing results takes maintenance that the road bed track does not require. The other thing is metal wheels on all your cars will reduce the amount of track cleaning you have to do and an Aztec track cleaning care towed first behind your engine will ensure you have a good running session. If you use the plastic wheel wheels that come with many cars, be aware they emit an oil and eventually they will gunk up with crud on the tire surface and that will contaminate all your track including tour cars with steel or metal wheels. My preference is for FOX Valley wheels but I have used AZL and UWD ones as well with good results. I have found that the use of metal wheels means I do very little wheel cleaning now the plastics are banned from my track. (UWD = Uncle Will Dean or Full Throttle) (AZL = American Z lines)(cars with metal wheels also roll more freely)

thanks a bunch eveyone i will try the white glue method just to see im curious

i was leaning towards the cork over osb on the bottom layer or straight to the osb . im not concerned on looks for the lower part honestly. the top part (visible to the operater) will be on foam.

i cant seem to find z scale nails , thats prob why eveyone is useing n or something else to hold it down till there glue or adhesive dries?

I have yet to see any N scale nails that rival Marklin's Z track nails - the item no is 8999 and you get 100 of them in that small bag. You should be able to find them, if not elsewhere then certainly on ebay I'm sure.

I always use a pair of tweezers to hold them in place while gently driving them home with something slightly smaller than a nine pound hammer

I'm sure the white glue method will give you good results, just make sure you don't get any of that stuff near any of the switches...

Hello I found an offer at Amazon for 10m appr. 30 feet cork layer for Z Scale

here the link.

www.amazon.de/Heki-3162-Kork-Gleisbett-Meter/dp/B001RIDN6M

Another solution is a foam layer

www.huenerbein.de/modelleisenbahn-Z/noch-zubeh%C3%B6r-m3/noch-99418-z-gleisbett-5m-rolle-o.schott-wyh.html

I had some experiances with the foam. It's nice to work with that. The foam is contourt to the track and easy to use also for the round track because it is very flexible.
I fixed the track with sprayable glue works fine, good contact and you could put crush rock in one workstep. The turnout are not so easy but if you cut the foam to size it works o.k.

This material is very expensive is my personnel meaning.

So my next step I go forward with cork. You could buy the version you will found on the upper link, but it is also expensive. So I went to a DIY shop and bought a thin cork plate 1x0.5 m for only 4 Euro. With a sharp cutter I brought it to size, and I glued the track with a transparent harden wood glue. Works quite good best, and was recommanded by al lot of Märklin model builders here in some German online chats

pm-ger wrote: Another solution is a foam layer

www.huenerbein.de/modelleisenbahn-Z/noch-zubeh%C3%B6r-m3/noch-99418-z-gleisbett-5m-rolle-o.schott-wyh.html

From my understanding, that NOCH foam road-bed falls apart after a few years of sunlight / ozone exposure.

Alex mid be right,
thats also the reason why most German modelists use kork.

Mr.JA wrote:

pm-ger wrote: Another solution is a foam layer

www.huenerbein.de/modelleisenbahn-Z/noch-zubeh%C3%B6r-m3/noch-99418-z-gleisbett-5m-rolle-o.schott-wyh.html

From my understanding, that NOCH foam road-bed falls apart after a few years of sunlight / ozone exposure.

It does. Pulverises after a while, and doesn't support track on portable layouts. I would not advise it.

I do use cork strips now, by Jeweha
Manufacturer suggests latexglue to maintain some flexibility and reduce noise, however, I use woodglue.

Matt

From personal experience I can confirm that you're actually quite lucky if that foam roadbed just starts to disintegrate and crumble away. If you're unlucky it actually turns into a sticky goo (and that's without excessive exposure to heat or UV light). I wouldn't use it anymore if I got paid for doing so - so many people seem to have had that same experience I'm basically amazed this product is still on the market. Cork, on the other hand, shows little to no sign of wear if sealed - which usually happens when you ballast the track

I've Used Cork road bed on my layout and it has been down for 7 year and have had no problems at all and it hasn't been sealed. It's still soft and flexible. The sun light from the east window hits it every day and it still good so I'll stick with the cork roadbed.