Info and specs on protective foam for engine boxes

[mmagliaro]

I want to buy some sheet foam to line engine boxes.  There are a million kinds of
"foam".  The "green" stuff you can buy at places like JoAnne Fabrics, for example.
The nice, denser gray stuff you find inside electronic equipment boxes.

Does anyone know how this stuff is graded?  And what do I look for?
"Open Cell"  "Cross linked".  I have no idea about the ins and outs of "foam".

Prefereably, I want the denser stuff we find inside the commercial loco boxes.
Gray would be nice.   

Thank you for whatever information you can provide.

[Big Train]

This might be a start:

http://www.pelican.com/cases_detail_storm.php?Case=iM2050

then look under the CONFIGURATIONS header at the lower right corner, you will see a list of replaceable parts. It shows an NSN for Cubed Foam, which means you can probably buy this alone.

If you look here:

http://www.pelican.com/cases_detail.php?Case=1200

under CONFIGRATIONS, Pelican also lists Replacment Foam Set with another NSN

Pelican seems to use two different specifications: 1.3 lb Polyurethane and 1.6pcf Polyester.

I'd prefer to use foam with a known specification such as that used to protect camera gear that Pelican uses.

Why? It won't breakdown into tiny little particles which eventually finds its way into equipment. I used many foam-lined cases during my 20+ years in photography, and I've seen the results when "foam-of-unknown-origin" breaks down due to mechanical abrasion or aerobic bacteria that has an affinity for some kinds of foam.

I've also heard stories of some people having the paint stripped away from rolling stock that was stored using types offoam. Also, some stuff designed as tray liners for tool chests is pretty nasty, too.

Hope this helps....

[Denver Road Doug]

The main thing I would be concerned with is making sure the foam doesn't interact with the paint on the models....either via "sticking" or otherwise causing problems or scratching the models.   For example, the "High Iron" boxes (no longer available, AFAIK) would straight up bond to model railroad cars...I could open the lid and all/most of the Atlas Coalveyors (stock paint job) would come with it.  I would peel them off or sometimes they would just drop (not good!) and it wasn't a pleasant thing to have happen.  I never noticed any major paint damage, but I surmised that after a while it would and I moved to another system.

The boxes I have now (trainboxesplus.com...no longer available) are fine with respect to the foam and paint, but they do tend to "pick off" detail parts since the foam is less dense.   I would like to find some middle ground, but what I have now works ok as long as I am careful.

[mmagliaro]

I place a sheet of plastic (a sheet cut from the side of a ziplock bag) into my engine boxes and then lay the engine
in on top of that, so the engine never actually touches the foam.  This also allows me to grab the plastic to lift
the engine up out of the foam like a sling.  It's a big help with steam engines.  It keeps wires and details from getting snagged
on the foam as you lift it out.   A lot of brass makers seem to package their engines like that, with the plastic sheet
under the engine.  That's where I got the idea.

[havingfuntoo]

Most foams will liberate the plasticizers contained in them over a period of time thus the problems with a lot of paints lifting off the models. Plastic sheet goes a long way to protecting the paint from becoming attached to the foam, a sheet of tissue paper or apiece of silk will protect the model from the plastic sheet and regular opening up and airing the box will stop the liberated plasticizers from building up and having any effect.

[mrhedley]

There was a discussion a few years back on another forum that the compressible type of foam that was used for packaging the Con-cor special sets was degrading the paint.  I had a 'Phoebe Snow" set that I bought in the 80's that I rarely used and kept stored in the original packaging.   Sure enough, when I looked at the cars close up, the painted surfaces showed signs of deterioration that looked like they were painted by an airbrush with too much air pressure.  I don't know the kind of foam that was used, hopefully someone else can, but I'd strongly advise avoiding it.  And I'd also suggest that anyone owning these Concor special sets to check them over, and consider another method for storing them.

[peteski]

Wasn't there a company (Reboxx?) which made replacement foam inserts (using a stable material) for brass loco boxes (as the original foam inserts were prone to disintegrating?

The material Kato uses is some sort of closed-cell foam material similar to what is used in soles of cheap Walmart sneakers.  Thus type of material is also used for many gardener's kneeling mats (which are usually on sale after the gardening season is over).

I am fortunate enough to have access to the gray open-cell foam used for electronic packaging.  That stuff seems to be stable (I have some foam what is over 20 years old which is still stable).

I have feeling that most of the stuff in the craft stores is not very stable (but I have no experience with it).

[sharriso]

Rebox is still there.  I have several of their boxes and foam inserts.  Very good quality and reasonable prices.

http://www.reboxx.com


Shawn Harrison
- Modeling 1850s B&O

[mmagliaro]

Yes, Reboxx is still around, but they don't make anything that quite suits what I'm looking for.
And yes, AVOID that green or white foam from the craft and sewing stores.  It dries out, deteriorates, and
sticks to models.  I have never ruined a model with it, but I've seen boxes lined with that stuff with the foam
all stuck to the paint.   And I've had pieces of it lying around that turn to a crumbly mess after some years.

I looked around the web at a whole bunch of places and finally ordered a variety of types from foamfactory.com
The closed cell stuff looks like what I think I want.  They also had a denser looking stuff called "charcoal" that may be
really nice, but may also be so solid that it won't afford much engine protection, but I ordered some to test it out.
That's really the only way to know.  The prices ain't bad.  For $20-$30 including the shipping charges, I could get
quite an assortment that will last me a long time.