Bachmann Online Forum

I just bought my son the Red Rock Express kit which came with a circle of 18" radius steel (black) e-z track.
Does the steel track all have the black roadway, with the silver track on the gray?
Are the two tracks compatible?
Does anyone have any reccomendations on how best to expand his trainset without going overboard?

Thanks in advance for your help

Dear Geoff,
Although both are compatible, you will find that the nickel silver track stays much cleaner, as it doesn't oxidize extremely.
Have fun!
the Bach-man

Dear Geoff,
You don't have to spend a lot of money to expand a bit.  Add 2 or 3 straight sections on each side to make an oval, and a couple turnouts for sidings to park extra cars.

Put the layout on a piece of smooth 3/8" plywood, then your son can slide it under his bed when not in use. Finish the board with latex paint or cover it with felt or some other type of material, even a piece of smooth carpet.

My layout is only 42" X 86", and it holds lots of trains.


Regards.

Thanks Bach-man, I'll bear that in mind, especially if we decide to setup in the garage.

Thanks Yampa Bob. Your layout looks like fun!
Did you attach the track to the board? If so, how? Any tips you could share?
We've been having lots of fun with it on the wooden floor, but we will have to find a long-term home for it soon or we'll end up with it set-up in the doghouse!

Thanks again, Geoff

My son and I went with the Grey roadbed. We are currently building a 4x8 and we needed track.  We went on to Ebay and found some great deals!
I will put in a plug for the guy I like working with He has an Ebay store called "thefavoritespot"  His prices are very fair. We are building a DCC systmem so all of our switches and engines (that are DCC) will run off the DCC controller.  Let me know if you have any questions.
Have fun!
Robert

The surface is 1/2" Homasote, painted with satin latex, laid loose over a light weight plywood platform. The support is a folding picnic table.

The track is fastened to the Homasote with Atlas track nails. It's easy to push the nails into the Homasote, yet holds securely. The railing is anodized aluminum stair tread nosing by Macklenburg Duncan, slipped between the plywood and Homasote.

Bob, has your layout been warping at all? I'm get a couple of dips in the edges near the wall, not enough to derail trains, but you can see it if your looking for it. My homasote is screwed to the ply and supports.

Homasote is hydroscopic, it contracts and expands with changes in humidity and temperature.  When we bought the homasote sheet, we made sure it was completely flat, then sealed both sides and all edges with satin latex paint. 

Notice the homasote is not fastened down on our layout, it "floats" on the plywood platform.