linoleum for backdrops?

[jward]

i came across references to older model railroaders including the late great john allen, using linoleum for backdrops. i have acquired some scrap linoleum from a flooring dealer, and noticed the bottom side is smooth. i am assuming that is the side that you'd put the backdrop on.

has anybody on here used linoleum for backdrops? how did you mount it to the layout? what prep work, if any, would i have to do to the linoleum? did you paint on the linoleum, or laminate a photo or other surface to the linoleum?

looking forward to hearing others experiences.

[Jim Banner]

I wonder if the old timers used Battleship Linoleum?  This was a heavy, commercial grade of linoleum with the cork/linseed oil layer about 1/4" thick on a Hessian cloth base.  You could bend it around corners for a curved backdrop and it would stay curved without danger of damage from all but the heaviest impacts.  If it was new and had never been waxed, it took paint well without any colour bleed.  It came in rolls 6 feet wide (and possibly other widths) so the chance of picking up a long, narrow off cut from a commercial installation was probably pretty good.  John Allen was probably familiar with another of its hobby uses as well - lino cuts for printing (not a whole lot different than wood cuts.)

The last time I was able to buy Battleship Linoleum (for a bench top) was in 1966.  The dealer who sold it to me told me it was the last piece he had and was ever likely to have.  He all but gave it to me, just to clear it out of his store room.  Seems it had been displaced by 1/8" thick solid lino tiles that are still used today in high traffic areas.

Jim

[pdlethbridge]

I remember the battleship linoleum we had on our ship.To this day I still wonder why it was called battleship linoleum when it was on an air craft carrier

[Woody Elmore]

From the fix it shows I watch on TV I have learned that most linoleum is now produced in Great Britain and Europe.

I think that untempered masonite, the thinnest available, would make a better backdrop.

[mabloodhound]

The old type linoleum is being produced again and would work fine.   Linoleum doesn't have any engraved pattern.    However, if you're considering vinyl, forget it.   It moves too much with temperature changes and just won't hold a good shape.   Go with the masonite or as some others have, thin plastic sheets used for signs.   You can get the sign quality plastic sheets in 4'x8'.

[Jim Banner]

I use both sheet styrene (available in 4' x 8' sheets) and hardboard (Masonite is one brand) for both flat backdrops and curved corners.  The styrene works particularly well for outside corners as you can laminate multiple thin sheets to give a thick sheet with a permanent curvature.  For inside corners, I like gluing hardboard to the adjacent walls, stopping 24" from the corner.  Then I cut a piece 37-11/16" long and snap it in place in the corner.  The tension in the hardboard will hold it tight in place for years.  A little Spackle and sanding quickly makes the joints invisible and they stay invisible as the sprung hardboard takes up any difference in expansion/contraction between the hardboard and the drywall.

In a couple of cases where the rooms were being prepared specifically for model railroads, I rounded the corners with drywall on a 4' radius.  The owners then painted background scenery on the drywall from table height to ceiling before before framing the layout.  The curved drywall gave super nice "invisible" corners.  If/when the layout is taken down, taking out the curved corners and replacing each with a couple of sheets of drywall will not be a huge problem as preparations for this were made when the rooms were being framed.

Jim

[ebtnut]

I glued vinyl over the masonite for two reasons - one, it gave a nice smooth surface to paint (the "back" side, of course) and it reduces the number of joints you have to treat if you get the stuff in like 20' long rolls.  As I recall, I got some cheap stuff on sale when Ames was going out of business.  It was 6 feet wide x 20 feet long.  Cut it down the middle and I had 40 feet of backdrop with only one seam to hide.  I used Liquid Nails to glue it to the Masonite sub-base and a wallpaper roller to get it down smooth and tight.   

[jward]

i have used masonite in the past, butwas unable to curve it. as i rent, permanently fastening it to the walls like jim suggests is out of the question.
vinyl is what i have, working for a flooring distributor, i was able to get some leftover from one of our dealers at no cost. i may try laminating it to masonite, and letting it curve around the corner on its own.