[Richard Johnson]

You asked:
"I have some laminate underlay left over from my latest
non railway project which I am wondering if it could be used
as track underlay
http://www.screwfix.com/app/sfd/cat/pro.js...72&ts=69680

Also I have thought about doubling it up to make it 6mm thick
and trying to bevel the edges at something like 50 or 55 degrees.
The usual 45 degrees always looks wrong to me.
Has anyone any opions on this idea and is there an easy way
to bevel the edges except with a freehand knife."

*** No reason not to use it. The angle should be 60 degrees. Personally I think that doubling will make it too thick unless you use thin sleepered track like C&L - Peco track/sleepers are already 3mm high, so 3mm + peco is as thick as it should be for a good visual result.

Freehand is iit unless you make a cutting jig to hold the blade - best is to use a truly sharp snap off type blade and go carefully... there's no real easy other way to do it without specialist tools.

Richard

 

[Richard Johnson]

No need for complexity... I think that I'd simply cut a 30/60/90 triangle from wood and use duct tape to stick a cheap snap off blade knife to it, with a bit more tape on the side that rubs against the foam so it slips well....

Creating it...

this should be almost understandable if my geometry is still OK.

To make one, the two sides each side of the 90 degrees should be 4 units and 3 units, and the third side or hypotenuse (long side) 5 units to give the angle U need.

The knife would be taped to the long side with the blade cutting where the long/mid length sides meet....

Richard

 

[Richard Johnson]

Arghhh - I suspected I'd got it wrong - I'll go and quietly sit in the corner

Richard

Cheers, Robert (retired mathematics teacher.)
[/quote]

 

[Richard Johnson]

QUOTE (Robert Stokes @ 6 Sep 2007, 03:21) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>No, I'm sorry Richard those are the wrong measurements to get a 30, 60, 90 triangle.

You need short sides of 1 and 1.732 units and a long side of 2 units.

Cheers, Robert (retired mathematics teacher.)

 

[Richard Johnson]

Doop. Mea Culpa

Geometry/Pythagorean triples Homework properly done this time - can I go home now

for 30/60/90 tirangle, 2 units = hypotenuse, 1 + square root of 3 = 2 sides at right angle

my wrongly suggested 3,4,5 gives 90, 53, 37 degrees - close but no prize

Richard

 

[Richard Johnson]

You Said:
Of course cork might be different with an angled cut
but not foam underlay. Even with a straight cut you need
to be careful not to tear it.

** Then its the foam type (its specified as "cross-linked foam" in the ad I saw for the stuff you have), or your technique - I know as I have about 10,000metres of high quality closed-cell foam track radbed with edges cut to 60 degrees in my warehouse . Not a tear, ragged edge or other problem anywhere!

Also... Even if its a different foam, if it'll cut cleanly straight, it'll cut cleanly angled - its in the technique and blade angle you should adopt for it...

Richard

 

[Richard Johnson]

Hi
Basically you'll need to angle the blades angle of cut to the foam - in otherwords, it should enter it at perhaps more than 45 degrees from the vertical in relation to the cut, as well as being at an angle for the 60 degree shoulder

(You are cutting a bevel at 60 degrees, and the blade itself should additionally be at a shallow-ish angle in relation to the direction of cut - does that make sense?)

The "closed cell foam" I use for manufacture of roadbed cuts easily and very cleanly at any angle, however I don't have an example of your cross-linked foam here to try.

I suspect that a series of light passes may give you a cleaner cut if it has any form of structural reinforcing or strong "graining" in the foam.

Experiment a bit... It will cut cleanly if you can find the technique.

Richard

 

[Richard Johnson]

Hi
You asked:

Do you know by chance if the track underlay from Australia mentioned in various posts is this

**nope, its not: I am boththe Mfr and the distributor of it, and also supply to Bromsgrove models if you want a local supplier. This is the same as you can see used in my layout photos in the gallery

Richard
DCCconcepts

 

[Richard Johnson]

If you'd like to email me direct then I can send you a data sheet to your email address
sales at dccconcepts dot com will get me OK

Otherwide look at Richard Johnsons railway in the gallery - all the track is laid on the roadbed as discussed.

Richard