Building LIghtweight MOdules

[Anonymous]

I need to build six, 2X1 foot modules and a .5X1 foot connecting module. How do I vuild the benchwork to support the modules with height a major concern. I have about eight inches of space in which to store this under my bed including scenery. It will be a small industrial switcher layout. I have considered Woodland scenics layout building style, but it is too tall for the amount of space I need. I was thinking about gluing the roadbed directly to the plywood similar to what Pelle Soeberg (spelling) did, but I odn't know how to model the industrial scenery on the rest of the plywood. And I can't use foam because it is too thick for its strength.

[dehusman]

2x1 foot modules? Why so small? A twin bed is about 3 ft wide and 6 ft long.

You don't mention scale. It makes a difference.

You can also have the buildings removeable and put them in a box on a shelf. By kitbashing them you can make several buildings that nest inside each other so you can put several buildings in a shoebox.

Is your goal litewieght or low profile?
If you want lightweight I would glue 1/8 in plywood to the edges of 2" foam.
If you want low profile I would use 3/4 plywood or 1/4 in plywood with 1/4 in sq wood strips glued to the underside and then 1/4" plywood strips over those to make a "box beam that was only 3/4 in thick but had room for wiring underneath.

Dave H.

[Anonymous]

The scale is HO, and I need Low Profile. I have a 2X6 foot space that I have to put the layout when I am finished (under my bed) and the 2X1 foot modules are because I am not very strong and as far as I know will have to lift them up off the ground to attach them to the supports. And that's another question, how do I build the support structure for the modules so they connect together whie the supports can be folded or put away in as small a space as possible? Thanks.

[Anonymous]

I am trying to picture your layout so I can maybe come up with an idea for bench-work. Six rectangles 12 inches deep X 24 inches long and one 12 inches deep X 60 inches long. All I can see is an 11 foot long mainline with 12 inches for scenery. You want to keep the track a few inches from the edge so a 2 inch buffer to keep derailed trains from hitting the floor and 2 inches for track so you have 8 inches for sidings, buildings whatever. It is do-able but if you went to N scale or 18 inches deep you would have more area to work with.

12 inch wide bench work is going to be unstable, the base is to narrow for any respectable hight. Think of a railroad trestle wider at the bottom than the top. 40 inches high is a respectable hight for a layout. You want 2 inches wide so maybe a 14 inch wide base. I am no engineer, just an old farm buy that knocks things together but it sounds like it would stay upright unless it got a hard push. You should be able to come up with some method to knock the bench work apart and stow it.

Personally I think 2 inch foam would be your best bet for building on. A 1 X 5 piece of plywood is going to flex quite a bit even if you go to 1 inch thick. Foam the same size will stay rigid. Make sure and building over 6 inches high is removable and you should be in business.

Dave beat me on the post and I think I like his ideas better..

[Anonymous]

1X5? you mean 1X2, it shouldn't flex that much. But thanks for the advice.

[dehusman]

A 2x6 piece of 2" foam with track on it might weigh 2-3 pounds. Plastic buildings might weigh another pound or so. Your trains will weigh more than the layout.

Dave H.

[nfmisso]

As suggested above, go with a 2' x 6' piece of 2" thick foam, glue 2" wide strip of 3/16 luan plywood all away around the outside edge - the plywood should be vertical - using PL300 or Liquid nails for projects. Allow this to set up for a week. Next screw metal corner bracket at the plywood corners.

The legs will be bolted to the outside this. You will need four pieces of plywood 3/4" thick, by 2" wide by 30" long., plus four pieces of the luan 3/16" plywood, 26" long by 4 to 6 inches wide. For hard ware, get two pieces of 1/4-20 threaded rod, each 27" long - you can cut it with a hack saw, some washers and 1/4-20 nuts, plus small finishing nails and yellow carpenters glue.

Mark 1" in from each end of the plywood on the foam along the long sides, and 1" in down from the top. Double check your measurements, make a center mark with a center punch or nail, reconfirm your measurements, drill a small pilot hole, then enlarge the hole to 1/4" diameter.

On the four plywood legs, mark in 1" from the end, and 1" from the edge, repeat above ending up with 1/4" holes.

Using the longest drill bit you have drill through the foam as far as possible, then use the trheaded rod, so that it goes all the way through, and sticks out both sides. Install washers, then the legs, more washers and the the nuts. Nyloc nuts are nice here.

Put this assembly on its side. Starting at with the legs at one end, angle them back about 10 degrees from vertical, away for the center. Position one of the 4 to 6 inch wide pieces so that the legs can move no further. Attach to both legs with yellow glue and finishing nails. Repeat at the other end.

Put the last two pieces of 4 to 6 inch wide plywood 1' above the floor attaching to both legs.

Now, you will be able to flod those legs under the table, taking only 3/16" of vertical space, but when the table is up, it will be fairly stable, not as good as a dining table, but good enough for a light portable layout. You can add little catches to hold the legs in the up position if desired.

Another thing to consider is raising your bed a bit. Four pieces of 2 x 6 , 5 1/2 long (thus creating squares 5.5" per side, 1.5" thick would be stable, and provide a significant percentage increase in vertical space.

[Anonymous]

Cinder blocks were the method of choice for jacking up beds in the dorms at school since they were really cheap and didnt require assembly. Extra 8" in one lump is not bad.

[Anonymous]

Ok, I might go the foam route, but I only need to create 6 1X2 foot modules, and one 6inch by one foot connector piece. Except when the layout is fully put together, the modules will be completely separate from one another. I just need a lightweight way to connect them so they won't be jiggling all around whent he trains go over them. But can I use a one inch foam for the 1X2 modules with some kind of plywood strip to connect them all?
Thanks for the advice!

[dehusman]

Why do you want 1x2 modules? How are you going to connect the track, let alone the modules. You will have twice as much weight and bulk invested in a framework to hold 6 1x2 modules together and in line than if you just made one 2x6 layout. You should always minimize the number of joints.

What is the 6"x1' connector piece supposed to connect?

There is something else you are trying to do, some other constraint, that you haven't told us. Your insistance on making 1x2 ft sections makes the construction, design and operation incredibly difficult. Just use a 2x6 piece of 2 in foam. Frame the edges with 1/8 in plywood glued on. You can use paneling corner molding for the corners and paneling edge cap for the edges to dress them up. Glue four blocks of plywood on the bottom of the layout centered about 3-4 ft apart. drill a hole in the middle of each plywood block and glue in a T-Nut. Then put in 1 in bolts in the T-Nuts. Just set it on a table and use the bolts to level it so cars won't roll off.

Dave H.

[Anonymous]

My problem is, is I don't have a table. And I can't lift the whole layout, I am not very strong. The connector piece is because the layout is U shaped with the connector being the bottom of the U. My stipulation is I have to be able to fit this under my bed, actually it is my dad's stipulation. (15 Years, 10th grade)

[nfmisso]

pp2;

as many people have stated above, it is NOT practical to build a model train layout from small individual pieces. Such a structure would be very heavy, hard to assembly and very expensive. The structure that I described above will weigh about 15 lbs complete, the same as two gallons of milk.

[Anonymous]

Ok then, will this be feasible: cut the foam in half, and use the 1X6 pieces because I have to have the U shape.
Question: What kind of foam should I be looking for? I know that there are different types of foam but what should I use? Thanks

[Anonymous]

Those modules sure are small....do you think that you could make them 1X4 at least. You talked about weight. I don't think they'll weigh that much if you use 1x3's, and have a good design, that uses the least material for the most stability. Anyways, could luck building them! and have fun!

[skiloff]

I'd have to agree with two points made: first, jack up the bed to give yourself more space. I did this for my wife so she could get stuff under our bed (actually for me, so I didn't have to trip over it getting up in the night).

The other point is, if you use foam, you can do away with the 1x2 sections and just to three (I think if I read correctly) sections. Building a stand for it shouldn't be too tough, but you could add a few "lip" pieces around the edges of the table for the foam to sit into so they don't shift. I would just say, don't get stuck with one train (pardon the pun) of thought on how you think it will work. There is some good advice that would work well here that would take care of your weight issue. If you can lift a cat, you can lift the foam modules.

[Anonymous]

Thanks, but what kind of foam?

[mcouvillion]

When I lived in Michigan about 15 years ago, I started on a layout using white pine dimensional lumber. I was amazed at how light-weight that stuff was. In Texas, I can get southern yellow pine, and it is much denser (heavier) than the white pine. I don't believe I have ever seen white pine in this part of the country. If I could get it, I would use that for the framing. I'm not convinced extruded foam board is the way to go. My two cents.

Mark C.

[exPalaceDog]

QUOTE: Originally posted by puristpilot2

I need to build six, 2X1 foot modules and a .5X1 foot connecting module. How do I vuild the benchwork to support the modules with height a major concern. I have about eight inches of space in which to store this under my bed including scenery. ...I don't know how to model the industrial scenery on the rest of the plywood. And I can't use foam because it is too thick for its strength.

First, remember that the standard interface for most systems of modulars is a piece of 3" straight track. When you allow for that, your useful length is 21". That means that what you can accomplish on one module will be extremely limited. That is enough space for a single #4 crossover. You might find that 2 48" modules will allow you greater design freedom. You might want to get some layout design software such as Right Track (TM) by Atlas and try some designs.

Second, for the scenery, you will probably need to use flats, just model the front or back wall of the building.

Have fun

[skiloff]

QUOTE: Originally posted by puristpilot2

Thanks, but what kind of foam?

You can get pink or blue insulating foam at most home centers, including Home Depot (where I got mine). It is fairly inexpensive and is very strong. The stuff I get here is made by Owens Corning, but there are others I'm sure. Here is a sample of what it looks like:

http://216.247.85.73/brochure.asp?dealer=pioneerlumber&brochure=14207

[Anonymous]

Here's a thought for holding the modules together and up off the floor. Drill holes through the both ends of every module, one on the left of the 1x2 and one on the right, but both on the ends that will be butted together. Then use my favorite lightweight building material, PVC, say 1" x 72-74". Then using "T"'s and or elbows and proper length vertical pieces create the legs. If the pvc fits in the holes pretty tightly it should be pretty stable. Maybe use Spring clamps like welding clamps to also hold the modules together.

You may want to consider "N" scale. There is already and established method for what your trying to do called T-track modules.

also consider Kato Unitrack or Atlas's similar track for ease of breakdown and re-assembly.

Never be afraid to think outside the box Good luck, Dave