"Why Cork tiles and not Foamcore?" Topic

Just wondering what is the advantage of cork tiles which appear to be somewhat difficult to obtain, and foamcore, that is readily available.

Michael

Michael, I just built a system with cork tiles and I have had foam core pieces in the past. The biggest difference that I have seen is that the foam core tends to dent easily and it is fairly fragile. Invariably someone pushes down with their knuckles or sets a tackle box full of minis with sharp edges down on the terrain and it dents the foam, but not the cork. It's too bad, because the foamcore is so easy to work with and it is cheap. My 2 cents.

Allen

Foamcore is cheap. but it is a pain to work with when making a lot of fine cuts. It eats up blades. Cork cuts easily. Is pretty easy to paint and is also cheap. 5 bucks for 4 square feet of cork. I can make ruins easily. I own a load of foam. But I won't use it for anything that a lot of cuts are needed for. Cork is my preference.

Thanks,

John

you dont have to finish the edges of cork

In some places, like here in NZ, cork is both easy to find (in various thicknesses) and cheaper than foam board.

I don't like foamboard because the edges don't hold a flat surface when overlapping on buildings. It also doesn't go saggy when wet.

Foamcore warps. Nuff said!

I have moved on to terrain mats. Less of a hassle, easier to transport, and nice looking too.

The other thing is that cork is ready textured – just slap on a base coat and a highlight and it looks great.

Cork is a renewable resource, foam is made of non-renewable oil (though doubtless we'll be making oil from yeast before long).

Cork tile buildings tend to be more robust too.

I'm curious about what you all mean about "cork tile". I have seen dark brown tiles with holes, and I've seen the bulletin board tiles that come in various thicknesses from something you can roll up to tiles that would break if you tried to roll them. There's also a discussion of cork floor tiles here on TMP. So what sort of cork tiles are we talking about?

the bulliyin bosrd type of cork tile doesnt cut well at all.
get the flooring stuff.

Warping of foam core is sadly a notable issue. I used to be all about working with foamcore. However, I definitely have some pieces that have warped over time, so now I'm much more hesitant about using it. That's particularly the case for basing terrain, which I think is more susceptible since it's just a flat sheet without any structure.

"I'm curious about what you all mean about "cork tile". "

Something like this, I believe-- link

Has anyone bought from Lumber Liquidators yet?

The cork used by Matakishi and other non-US-based modellers is cork floor tiling, meant (as I understand it) to go underneath the top floor -- the actual flooring -- and the subfloor to soften footing and as a thermal and acoustic insulator. (EDIT -- Oops, no that's not right, see the next post by Andrew Beasley.)

Apparently this stuff is very common and not too expensive in the UK and other countries outside the US. For some reason though, it's not commonly available in the United States. I've never seen it at places like Home Depot for instance.

(The link on the Lumber Liquidators site seems like the right stuff, but since I've never actually touched any myself, I can't say so with any authority.)

The cork used by Matakishi and other non-US-based modellers is cork floor tiling, meant (as I understand it) to go underneath the top floor -- the actual flooring -- and the subfloor to soften footing and as a thermal and acoustic insulator.

Wrong way around donrice – sorry.

The stuff we buy to go under is underlay while the tiles themselves are the surface you walk on here in the UK. To make matter worse they tiles come varnished or plain with the varnish being pressure 'injected' into the tiles not just a surface coat.

Andrew
kings-sleep.blogspot.com

I bought some 1x2 cork floor tiles from Lumber Liquidators this past spring.

I think it is maybe 1/4" thick, maybe 3/16". Anyway, It is sturdier , cuts cleaner, and takes paint better than foam core. It's is also better than the cork you can get at Wal-Mart etc.

Unfortunately, I cannot find unfinished cork flooring like Matakashi uses. The stuff I have has a smooth satin finish on one side. Not a big deal though, still takes paint.

IIRC, it cost me about 1USD per Sq ft.

Here's the stuff I bought from lumber liquidators.

link

I make my ABTerrain Tiles from cork for all the above reasons and more:

link

Michael.

You can spray-paint cork board. Try that with foamcore and you'll melt the foam.

w.

Cork tile vs pin board cork:

TMP link

CC