Modelling baseboards

John B · Post by **John B** » Sat Jun 23, 2007 10:49 am

Can anyone please comment on the "best" type of baseboard on which to construct a model.

This will be my first attempt at constructing a model and I want a board that will remain stable and not warp too easily. I will need at least two 8' x 4' boards.

Presumably one of the other essential requirements of a baseboard will be that the board easily accepts drilled holes/fittings/glue/paint/screws/nails etc.

I think even thick plywood would warp, what about MDF, chipboard or other alternatives, any ideas or recommended reading or other resources would be appreciated?

Colombo · Post by **Colombo** » Sat Jun 23, 2007 11:51 am

John,

The Clay Cross Model Railway Society builds layouts out of 9mm and 6mm birch ply. I have done the same.

The 8'x4'x9mm thick boards are cut into sections 4'x2'8" as these can be handled comfortably and no material is wasted. Presumably for an N Gauge layout you could equally well use 2' wide boards or perhaps even 19.2" .

We use 6mm ply for the sides and ends which is cut into 125mm strips at the sawmill to save a lot of cutting and sawdust. The strips are assembled in a form of sandwich construction with 10 or 12mm softwood spacers, which makes a very substantial but light construction. Each board is joined to the next with split hinges and pattern makers dowels. The boards are supported at the joints using trestles which also hold the ends together. Joints are Resin W and panel pins, with screws in the corners.

Each baseboard has an extra transverse bearer underneath. We also use this construction method for open baseboards which have to be landscaped.

Of course birch ply will not take track pins.

I have attached a photo of our current layout under construction. You can see the trestles and the split hinges used for joining the sections. This layout is a fully portable oval. My own is built on the same system.

I hope this helps,

Colombo

mistahjim · Post by **mistahjim** » Sat Jun 23, 2007 11:53 am

Firstly, the tendency of anything to warp is very mch affected by the conditions in which it is kept. Humidity and temeperature extremes will have a negative affect on most woods. Chipboard warps quite badly, and i wouldn't touch sundeala (i've seen it disintegrate). Ply has the advantage of being light and fairly strong if properly braced. These are just my personal thoughts mind, and everyone has their own preferences.

By coincidence, i was flicking through my back issues of Model Rail last night, Dave Lowery wrote an article on baseboard building in MR no. 3 (Summer 98).

rob · Post by **rob** » Sat Jun 23, 2007 4:04 pm

Baseboards are a nightmare!I am not far off cracking into the task myself and having used both 6mm and 9mm wbp in the past, I am considering chipboard this time as the layout will be permanently lodged in the attic(-or a skip,it all depends....)
Colombos method is the Rolls-Royce technique,esp for heavy duty exhibition layouts.One thing I have been struck by in reading accounts in the past is how most people never seem to seal their timber properly against moisture and are then surprised when baseboards warp.Assuming you have used good quality ply,chip or mdf type if you seal it properly then it should not subsequently warp.With ply in particular seal the edges well with a good few coats of varnish-when it was a tree,this is how the moisture got around,up what is now the "grain".It is not so necessary to seal the top and bottom,but it helps -though don't paint or varnish the top so thoroughly that your underlay,scenics etc won't adhere well.Use only spirit/solvent "traditional" varnish and paint,the others all contain water.Paint when all the boards are complete-it helps protect glue and fastenings too.My current layout,permanent,in a timber shed,is 9mm ply with 3x1 bracing,framing and legs and has not warped over 8 years though the quality of timber was not what I would have liked.I put this down to the fact that it has 1 coat of primer and 3 of grey undercoat all over-laborious,messy,but worth it.It also made it easier to see the wiring-(except that huge reel of grey wire staring reproachfully at me while I type).This is why I will use varnish the next time!
Equally,if you think you may have a damp environment pay attention to the glue you use-the blue Resin W is more damp resistant than the green,and if you want real rersistance to damp,buy a boatbuilders glue-I used West System Epoxy on my first layout,6mm ply with 2x1 bracing and it was featherweight,flexible and unwarpable-at least I hope thats how it remains,wherever it is now!I wouldn't use it again though-expensive,messy and over-engineered really.I even used brass screws!Perhaps I missed my place in the history books-first Atlantic crossing by a GCR branchline layout..........

keith byfield · Post by **keith byfield** » Sat Jun 23, 2007 5:15 pm

I spend most winters in NZ. I will be there in early December. In Nelson. There are quite a lot of railway modellers there and I would be able to suggest a few people for you to contact for there local experience. Perhaps you would email me if you think I can help.
Once again i seem to be 'old fashioned' and traditional for I have recently built my layout using sundala (however it is spelled) and pine two by fours. So far works very well in an unheated but carpeted barn. Keith

John B · Post by **John B** » Sun Jun 24, 2007 12:29 pm

Thanks guys you have all been extremely helpful.

Colombo, I want to thank you very much for the detailed comments you have made and the photo showing the system used by Clay Cross Model Railway Society. It certainly is a robust construction and has given me some leads as to where I need to be with my proposed model. I would agree with Rob, it looks and sounds like the Rolls Royce of baseboard construction.

I was really just chewing the fat and trying to work out the best way to stabilise plywood, as large sheets do have a tendency, rather like the notorious BR sandwiches, to curl up at the edges.

Having looked at the quality versus cost/space benefits of choosing "N" over "OO" gauge, I have decided to construct at "OO" gauge. The engine and coach models available, seem to me to be more realistic and detailed than those obtainable in "N" gauge, I guess it is just a personal choice in the end.

I like the idea of bearers underneath and wondered what the ideal spacing might be for, say 9mm ply? I am unsure whether birch ply would be obtainable in NZ, I shall find out soon enough I guess.

mistahjim & Keith, the weather here in Auckland is humid on the whole, though there can be, in a good year, at least two months of dry sunny weather in the height of summer. Moisture may easily become a problem.
Keith, I would be very grateful for the names and contact details of one or two modellers in NZ, it’s always good to have local knowledge and who knows, they may know other people up here in Auckland. So thanks very much for that.

Rob, your comment “Baseboards are a nightmare!” was forthright, my model will not be permanently lodged anywhere, I will have to erect and dismantle it after every use. I shall certainly note your timely comments about stabilising or treating the wood and how that can be incorporated without impacting too heavily on the construction requirements.

I am now left with the perennial problem of how to reconcile the authenticity of a set period (1950’s) model at a railway terminus and having trains running continually, it would seem silly, though accurate, to just send them up and down the lines from the terminus. I shall either have to ignore that part of “authentic” or really bite the bullet and reproduce the station and trackwork accurately but have no continuous running! decisions, decisions!

Cheers

Any additional comments would be very welcome.

Colombo · Post by **Colombo** » Sun Jun 24, 2007 2:06 pm

John,

Our baseboard system was designed for exhibition purposes by a time served craftsman: three people can take it down and put it back up again quite quickly. Baseboards are built in matching pairs so that they can be laid on their sides and bolted together using battens across their ends. They can then be lifted and stacked without much risk to the scenery.

This may be a bit over the top for you. However I chose to follow this system on the basis that my layout may have to move with me one day or I may have to dispose of it. Frankly, I don't fancy putting a chain saw through it; I hope someone take it off my hands as a going concern and so I want to be able to dismantle it and re-erect it elsewhere with the minimum of trouble.

Our birch ply is imported from Scandinavia. It is fine grained and fairly dimensionally stable. I put bearers across under the baseboards at two foot intervals. You need to be sure to miss any pre-planned point motors.

Our timber merchants can also supply light ply which is ply veneer filled with something like balsa wood. This is not suitable.

We use multi-pin plugs and sockets for electrical connections. They are supplied by Kent Panel Controls. However they are pricey and so I have used computer D plugs for my layout to connect ribbon cable together. If I was doing it again, I would try to find some computer ribbon cables with male and female D connectors at opposite ends. I would cut through the ribbon cable and solder the wires to tag strips fixed to each baseboard.

If you have any questions about construction techniques, please ask.

Colombo

John B · Post by **John B** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 11:09 am

Colombo and others,

Thank you for the observations you have made regarding starting out and constructing a suitable baseboard. Battens every two foot sounds about right for what I have in mind.

As you know I am to model Hornsea Town Station and it has presented me with several problems the biggest of which is estimating the size of the layout in order to get all the materials I need.

I cannot obtain plans of the station buildings and layout anywhere so have no idea of scale and will just have to guesstimate it. I have an important and accurate (though not to scale) signalling diagram of the station, this is good as it shows all the tracks, platforms and approximate location of the signalling features.

Should I just start with an 8' x 4' sheet of ply, or should I buy track and create the layout approximately before building the baseboard proper, a sort of dummy run. I shall have to work on the artistic maxim, if it looks right then it is right.

The second major problem should I be true to the scene of the Station as a terminii and not have a circular layout. It would be more accurate but I would not be able to run trains continuously? (Is this important?)

The third problem is obtaining the coaching stock, I have checked out Bachmann's site and there is very little there in the way of coaches that would have run on these types of branchlines right up to dieselisation in January 1957.

Most photos of the Hornsea line don't show cream and custard carriages, some do show the odd clerestory coaches, maroon stock did not arrived on BR until 1957 (and that's when the DMU's took over the E.Yorks. branches), so would the coaches be teak or painted brown or both? Would Gresley's or Thompson's have appeared or would they have been kept solely on mainline routes?

Are there any good suppliers of NE/LNER biased branchline carriages out there?

Any help or recommendations would be great.

jwealleans · Post by **jwealleans** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 12:42 pm

Hi John,

I take it you're in 4mm. Comet and MJT do some non-corridor LNER types - I'd guess both Gresley and Thompson would have been seen. There are also the Ian Kirk kits available from Coopercraft.

For ex-NER and older types, you're waiting for the D & S range to reappear like the rest of us. There is a bloke called John Fozard who does some RTR ones but they're expensive. It may also be worth trying Allan Doherty at Worsley Works - he does 3 mm but will etch them up to 4 mm for you and IIRC offers some NER types.

Bill Bedford is also worth a look - his kits are expensive but I've seen some lovely results using his sides and ends and other people's components to make up the rest.

x568wcn · Post by **x568wcn** » Wed Jul 04, 2007 5:43 pm

John B wrote: Having looked at the quality versus cost/space benefits of choosing "N" over "OO" gauge, I have decided to construct at "OO" gauge. The engine and coach models available, seem to me to be more realistic and detailed than those obtainable in "N" gauge, I guess it is just a personal choice in the end.

Yes it all comes down to space, and my 5ft by 3ft4 board is as big as I can get in, and I can get 10 coach trains in the fiddle yard!