I'm in the process of building my benchwork which will be standalone modules bolted together around the walls. I have a couple built but I'm not sure if I should go ahead and bolt them together in place, or if I need to install backdrop (which I don't have yet) first. How do people attach backdrop hardboard to their bench work? How much space needs to be left between wall and bench work? I'm hoping to get Lowes or Home depot to cut the 4 x 8 sheets into 2 x 8 strips. Then I would attach 1 x 3 vertical supports to connect it to bench work. Can I glue and or screw the supports to the hardboard and then mount it to the benchwork?
I would appreciate any best practices on how to do this.
Thanks, Roger
My Layout Pics
Rodger:
If your layout is going against a wall covered with drywall\plaster \similar wht would you want to put up hardboard? Paint your sky and horizon directly on the wall.
If you ever go to sell, the room will need to be cleared and repainted anyway.
Dave
Dave, The walls in my basement are concrete poured foundation and are very rough. I did clean them thoroughly and painted them sky blue but would like a better surface to paint on. Plus you never know, my backdrops may turn out to be masterpieces (yeah that might happen) and I'd want to take them with me if I move.
Roger
RogerThat...Can I glue and or screw the supports to the hardboard and then mount it to the benchwork?
You can glue or screw the hardboard to the supports, but you cannot screw the support to the hardboard.
If your layout is done as modules, it implys that your backdrop will be added to each module, rather than being a continuous one.Another option would be to install the backdrop first, mounting it on the basement wall. My choice would be to insulate and drywall on a suitable frame (a 'finished' layout room is a much nicer environment in which to work) but if that's not possible, you could strap the walls and use hardboard screwed or glued to the strapping.My backdrop is the mostly on the insulated and drywalled basement walls, but I used 1/8" Masonite to cove all corners, both inside and outside. If you use screws to secure the hardboard, pre-drill the hardboard for all screws and countersink them, too. I used drywall screws and taped and mudded the joints and mudded the screw heads - for a modular layout with a non-continuous backdrop, you'd need mud only the screw locations.
Wayne
RogerThat Dave, The walls in my basement are concrete poured foundation and are very rough. I did clean them thoroughly and painted them sky blue but would like a better surface to paint on. Plus you never know, my backdrops may turn out to be masterpieces (yeah that might happen) and I'd want to take them with me if I move. Roger
Roger:
Sorry about that. Around here basements have insulated stud walls.
Your climate must be better.
>How do people attach backdrop hardboard to their bench work?
Until you know more about what you want to do, consider a couple of spring clamps from the hardware aisle at HD or Lowes for two bucks a piece. If your bench frame is 1x3 or 4, they'll hold it real well and it'll take you and a best friend to squeeze the suckers open. Real strong springs. You might decide they're enough and never attach the backdrop permanently.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_552518-281-1901242_0__?productId=50214655&Ntt=spring+clamps&pl=1¤tURL=%3FNtt%3Dspring%2Bclamps&facetInfo=
Dave,
During the past 20 years I've lived in central NY state and in northern Virginia (DC area). Both locations had basement with cinderblock walls, cement walls or in many cases they had studs and were finished or partially finished. Both locations get very cold weather and can have hot humid summers. Some had insulation between the studs (as my basement does) and some do not, as did my basement up north where the weather was much more harsh in winter. It just depends, probably on when the house was built. Heck, my house in central NY had only foil backed paper between the studs until insulation was blown during the late 90's!
Anyhow, if you have rough walls, then you'll need something to attach the back trop hardboard too. I had a basement where I just put in my own studs that helped support the benchwork and I could attached the hardboard too. You don't have to used 2x4's, you can use 2x2's if the quality is sufficient so they are straight and true.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
I'm building the benchwork in sections, not really modules, but want the backdrop in continuous 8 foot runs. The benchwork uses 1x4 top rails. Is 4 feet between vertical stakes made from 1x3s enough?
Thanks for all the input.
RogerThat...The benchwork uses 1x4 top rails. Is 4 feet between vertical stakes made from 1x3s enough?
Well, it won't likely fall over, but it's unlikely to remain smooth and it certainly won't be stable enough to allow filling the joints between panels. The hardboard will expand and contract, creating a wavy appearance.While it's a bigger expense, I'd suggest studding the walls and then drywalling. You'll end up with a much nicer environment in which to work, and gain a much better backdrop, too. And if the time comes when you have to sell your house, a finished basement, if it's done well, adds value.
doctorwayne RogerThat ...The benchwork uses 1x4 top rails. Is 4 feet between vertical stakes made from 1x3s enough? Well, it won't likely fall over, but it's unlikely to remain smooth and it certainly won't be stable enough to allow filling the joints between panels. The hardboard will expand and contract, creating a wavy appearance.While it's a bigger expense, I'd suggest studding the walls and then drywalling. You'll end up with a much nicer environment in which to work, and gain a much better backdrop, too. And if the time comes when you have to sell your house, a finished basement, if it's done well, adds value. Wayne
RogerThat ...The benchwork uses 1x4 top rails. Is 4 feet between vertical stakes made from 1x3s enough?
LION has FINALLY gotten round to working on the Fascia of him.
As you may have heard, the LION puts all of his wiring on the fascia, ok, let us now call it the sub-fascia, and him is putting a finished fascia over this.
Him is just using little blocks of wood as stand-offs, and to these him glues a super magnet (You can buy the at many places, LION got his free from computer hard drives that him had taken apart. LION has destroyed MANY hard drives this way and him keeps the magnets for the train room, and the pretty, shiny, metal disks on a shelf in the computer room. Nobody going to pirate the data from these things! Not even the FBI! (Well, maybe they could, but why would they want to?)
Lion glued some metal plates on the back side of the finished fascia and BINGO (yeah, yeah, I know most radio commercials say "BANG" at this point, but you must admit that LIONS are different) you have a fascia in place.
Him will still have to screw the curved corners in place, but then there are no electracal componets behind these that will ned to be serviced.
So, You want a backdrop that is moveable. The hardboard, esp the 1/4" variety can easily be held in place with magnets, and will support its own darn self once it is up.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
You certainly can use 1x3s for the suports (as long as they are straight and dry, don't get them at a big box store - find a local lumber yard). I would space them 2ft apart and and add a lateral brace across the top (to eliminate wavyness).
Now as to the height of 8", I think that's way to short. You should try for 12" or even 14" if you think you might be doing some photography in the future, you don't want the top of your backdrop showing in photos!
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
Roger,
I used 1/4" masonite which I had Home Depot rip into 2' x 8' pcs. I glued and screwed (countesunk) the masonite to 1x4 horizontal strips so it wouldn't warp on me. I mounted my backdrop to the wall as my layout is built against the wall, but I have three windows that it crosses, therefore I had to use a separate backdrop vs. using the drywall, which would have been much easier. I also used overlapping splice boards (1x4) at the seams so they would stay in the same plane. I filled the joints but this winter they are all visible again; very cold winter in Tennessee this year! Just remember that masonite will warp if not supported. Even with the seams showing now it looks better than the wall!
-Bob
PS: The masonite 'hills' in the photo are just preliminary mockups of how I plan to show the foreground meet the background.
Life is what happens while you are making other plans!
I agree with the concepts mentioned by DoctorWayne and Modelmaker. I'll add the following:
You'll want to paint all 6 sides of the hardboard (counting the 4 edges) prior to installing in order to seal it from moisture/humidity. As mentioned, hardboard gets wavy during seasonal changes in humidity, even after it has been attached to the supports. My layout is in an unfinished basement with poured concrete walls in the midwest. If your conditions are similar, you need to do some prep work.
You want a lot of supports, not just three or four vertical 1x3s along an 8 foot span. I would do what Modelmaker suggests. Install your vertical supports, then I would install two or three equispaced 8 foot 1x2 or3s horizontally to prevent waviness.
Since this may result in a heavy structure by itself, you might want to make 2 of the vertical supports extend all the way to the floor, so it sort of sits on its own legs, then merely attach the structure to the back of the bench for stability.
I used drywall tape and mud to fill the seams between the hardboard sections. it did crack during seasonal changes but after a couple of reapplications of mud and sanding, no cracks have appeared.
You can use small screws to attach the backdrop to the supports, then mud the screwheads afterwards. I suppose construction adhesive can be used too.
- Douglas
Even if you make your permenant back drops bigger, if you can still see the wall behind, it would look even better if you changed the green to sky blue!