Painting a new routed track

[gsnopoint]

Question? When painting a new wood routed track, what is the opinion of painting in the slot the lane color? Is this the preferred method ?

[War Eagle River]

Don't paint in the bottom of the slot, or you WILL be digging it out! Varathane/Polyurethane down in the slot to seal.

[Mitch58]

A lot of guys like the look, I attempted it with the paint but found it to be messy and frustrating and stopped. I have since seen guys water the paint down and apply it from a squeeze bottle then drag a brush thru it but never have attempted it. you would of course want to avoid too much moisture in the slot and the MDF will swell.

[gsnopoint]

Good points. So is it better to not do anything to the slot, leave it bare, and just try to “pinstripe” the lane the best one can?

[Pappy]

Best way to pinstripe. https://www.beugler.com/

[stumbley]

I painted the inside of the slots on my track with no problems. I used UMA paint (urethane modified acrylic) for the whole track and then painted the slots with interior paint. The UMA sealed the slot so there was no swelling. Paint everything before putting down your braid or tape.

[chappyman66]

Third track. Didn't paint the slots in the first one and always had sawdust issues (amazing what guide flags will do).
Painted the slots (standard latex) after routing in the other two, no issues. Built a commercial track, painted the slots with squeeze bottles before braiding.

Take a good shop vac to the slots before you paint and you shouldn't have any trouble. I think it's useful to see the lane colors but additional markings (i.e. pinstripes or dots) help marshalls too. That's my opinion.

[mattb]

I prefer the painted slots and have never had any trouble. I painted the bottom, sides and the gains for the braid. All my paint is regular latex. I actually think painted slots is one of the best ideas to come along in a long time. I've had no trouble with cleaning or anything. My slots are 5/16 deep. This is 4-5 years old.

[stumbley]

My track with painted slots.

[Billy boy]

both times i painted the slots with latex i had trouble with some swelling and also had to do some digging and sanding of the sides.was worth it,track looks great and helps out marshals

[lance]

Lots of wood tracks have the slots painted, some have a color line beside the slot, some have numbers or dots beside the slot at locations around the track.
i think most like the painted slot, since we see that most.

I painted slots on 2 small tracks no problem. Latex paint applied with a thin1/8 or 1/4 brush. don't glob it in, but if you do just spread it out on the bottom and sides of the slot. just takes lot of time .
after its painted, no dust, easy to vacuum dust and dirt, and easy to find screws in the slot.
steps i took was after cutting slots,
1. vacuum and brush track and slot several times, run a screwdriver thru slot to displace built up saw dust.
2. primer or paint track. both sides (backside can be low cost mistint paint) Here you can paint it all with track color, or
2A. paint with white primer like kilns or a light white color. after dried, tape off where curbs will be.
3. paint color in slots. if you want you can paint the gains for braid if you have them.
4. paint track color coat on track surface. and/or 4A. paint infield green. let dry.
5. peel off tape and there will be a white curb between the green infield and the track.
6. install braid or copper tape

[waaytoomuchintothis]

I paint the slot of all my tracks. Built or bought, that's 8 wood tracks. I always use hardware store enamel in little tiny cans. I apply it with a squirt bottle from eye drops (Murine), laying a small bead in the bottom of the slot, and following immediately with a small brush to spread it up the walls of the slot, and brushing the bottom of the slot forward to make sure there is no glop of hard paint left there. I do it before the braid (or tape) is applied. Never had any trouble at all.

I inherited a track that was old MDF, and had been stored in a moist area, as it turned out. We all really liked this track, and I was happy to rebuild it so we could all enjoy it again. The bottom of the slots was within 3mm of the other side of the track, and in no time at all, it disintegrated in my shop, on top of my current track. Tragic. But I can't help but think- if when it was built, the slots had been painted with a thin coat of hard enamel, it might have lasted longer.

Nobody here is going to condemn you for your choice, of course. But those who have watched a track dissolve are going to be downright adamant, like me. Whatever you decide, we're here to help.

[stumbley]

As folks can see above, my track was originally located on a veranda outdoors, in a California city close to the ocean. Painting everything (top, sides, underside, slots) liberally helped to seal it thoroughly. It survived some torrential rainstorms without any problems.

[gsnopoint]

Thanks for all the info !! Being my first track, lots of stuff to go through.

[Broman62]

Get those Testor paint sticks ...color of your choice and stick it in the slot and drag it around the slot and you are done!! And like what was said...paint everything before the braid of your choice goes down!! Show pics and Good Luck!!