Location(s)
MA, 01510
United States
If you are using a Foam base for your layout, is it really necessary to use the cork roadbed.
Just Wondering,
Question about roadbed
See map: Google Maps
Foam base
I would tell you yes because most railroads put their tracks on some kind of roadbed to allow water to drain without deforming the rails.
There are places where you might not want any roadbed and those are on sidings next to customers or yards.
Irv
Since you won't have to
Since you won't have to worry about drainage on a model railroad cork roadbed is largely a cosmetic decision. Railroads built roadbeds to aid in drainage and provide a stable base, but after decades of deferred maintenance the roadbed looks like a mowed field, if even mowed. Your choice to use roadbed or not will largely depend on what you are trying to depict on your layout, a well-maintained high-speed mainline or a rickety branch, or something in between those extremes.
~BS
Joined: 2005-03-03