Track Building (tubes)

[Buggy Driver]

What tubes do many of your tracks use? We are going to build a grass track and want to use some tubes to mark the track. We´ve only found drainage tubes with small holes in it. Do you use those? Or some without holes? Could these holes cause problems, letting water and dirt in and get smelly? Would there be a cheaper place than the DIY store to buy them?

[JCJC]

Old redundant fire hose from your local fire station is good if you can get some, fill with pea gravel from a builders merchants, make any shape you want - heavy & stable, even takes paint.

[B&H Racing]

In the past I know people that have gone done to the docks to get old ship mooring rope.

They gave it away free because it had only a certain life that it can be used for.

[Robbiejuk]

Originally Posted by Buggy Driver

What tubes do many of your tracks use? We are going to build a grass track and want to use some tubes to mark the track. We´ve only found drainage tubes with small holes in it. Do you use those? Or some without holes? Could these holes cause problems, letting water and dirt in and get smelly? Would there be a cheaper place than the DIY store to buy them?

Are you making a permanent track then?

[racingdwarf]

We use 3" orange drainage pipe, comes in 25 or 50m rolls.got holes in but ok just starts to go britle(?) after a few years. Easy to lay and pin down with 9" nails. ship rope realy good but can be hard to get.

[Buggy Driver]

Ropes are a good idea, but sadly there are no docks anyway near. As for the fire hose, I used a lent one to prepare a small temporary track once, so had this in mind, too, but the filling sounds like quite a lot of work. Nevertheless we´re going to the fire brigade, if they have some left it would be worth to think about it again.

So, yes, we are building a permanent track. On Jimmy´s and others pics drainage pipe looks good and easy at the same time, so if it´s affordable we´ll probably use that. I think I´ve seen drainage or whatever pipes on building sites, so we´ll have a look over there, too. Maybe they have some in spare or can name us a good supplier.
If these holes don´t make any problems it seems to be easy to get enough of it. Getting a little bit brittle over the years won´t be a big problem I guess.

Thanks so far for your input. Do you also have any tips of how to easily build a rostrum? Kind of like on Pidge´s track, so not to be build, but ready-to-run. Thought about some old trailer or type of car of the junkyard. We´ll build it if we won´t find anything, but would be nice to just have to get and place it. Some sort of small container you can stand upon with just a railing to be attached.

[antnee]

Go to a Builders merchants, they will be cheaper than a DIY place

I have seen people use lorry trailers as rostrums