Attack of the killer tomatoes?

Puckdropper wrote:



Ol' Duffer wrote:

At that scale, you will have to be an obsessive neat freak
to keep it running. Unless it is completely enclosed, like
in a greenhouse or something, you will have to contend with
all kinds of flying and crawling mammals, birds, and insects
as well as weather and the plants themselves. Even a stray
blade of grass would have the potential to stall a train.
I think most of the garden railroaders will tell you to go
"O" or bigger.


I didn't really think of the flying and non flying animals... I don't
normally see them when I'm outside.


But if you insist, you might want to look at some of the new
vinyl products designed for outdoor deck and fence work that
machine like wood but are mostly impervious to rot, mildew,
etc. Maybe 1x4's half-lap jointed on a bed of compacted sand
like you would do paving bricks and secured with gutter spikes.
And I think I would be inclined to try tiny screws instead of
nails as less likely to work loose. And if you insist on the
"quiet track" thing, maybe try micro-mesh packing material
instead of cork. Or maybe something rubbery like bicycle
inner tubes. Outdoors, I think I would rule the noise factor
irrelevant and go for solid mounting, but it's your call.


I may give some of that a try. Thanks. I don't think I'll go for the
"quiet track" thing as it really doesn't matter. I doubt anyone will
hear it if they're not listening.

Using screws is a good idea. I'll have to visit a hardware store and
see what they carry. (Maybe something with a shallow head and about
1/4" deep...)

Mounted to a solid base, your track will take more abuse
than you might think. It will probably support your full
weight vertically in sneakers if you don't scooch around.
You can protect it somewhat by building up the surroundings
flush or slightly above the top of the rails, although that
might detract from the esthetics of your layout, depending
on your scenic plans.

And if you *really* want it to be sturdy, you can make your
own "track" by embedding metal strips in the dielectric
material of your choice, pour a reinforced concrete base,
etc. From an engineering standpoint, just about anything
can be made to work with sufficient investment of time and
materials. As a hobby, it's up to you find a performance
vs. difficulty tradeoff point that fits your comfort level.


Thanks for the suggestions. My scenic plans have been not to scenic ;-)
I'm just going for having the train in the garden and look somewhat
natural. (I know those 3' tomato plants scale up to about 500' in HO.)

Puckdropper