Ripping up layouts so I could move was always a heartbreaking chore Now I use sectional construction exclusively. If I move (and I certainly hope not), the layout can be moved in sections.
Below is the frame work for my next section. It is made from MDF (medium density fiberboard). I just built the framework last week. It’s very similar to “domino” construction because I read the MR series on that method as I planned this layout. Cabinets are also homemade with MDF.
The other photo shows completed sections bolted together. The section on the right is at a lower level to accomodate the bridge over the Mrs. Hippy River. Also visable is my (now famous) chalkboard fascia. Bridge section is 6 feet by 22 inches. Corner section is odd shaped. To the left of the corner section is a section 4 feet by 22 inches. The section in the first photo is 4 feet by 20 inches.
I think you have done well. If it were me, I’d think seriously of sealing it just to keep the fates from pulling a fast one. While the material is likely to do well over time, unsealed it will expand and shrink to an extent that “may” affect how your tracks stay true if the humidity ever does manage to get away on you for several days…it happens!
I used 1/4" MDF splines for roadbed, and have yet to regret it. Mind you, I always have two dehumidifiers set to control humidity in the basement to about 65% average over 24 hours. No issues.
Hi. I have MDF as the base for my layout. I have had it in a spare bedroom for four years with absolutely no problem. I like it much better than plywood and it is only marginally more expensive.
Regarding Nevin’s question about weight. I’ve not weighed it, but I guess it’s about 10 to 20 % heavier. There may be a web site that actually tells you.
I would go along with the suggestions of sealing the MDF. I’m not a fan of the product, but if you don’t mind the weight and used properly it works fine. Selected pieces of #2 pine (not HD crap) or ripped 3/4 birch or luan are by far a better material. I may be real biased being a carpenter.
That looks more like particle board than MDF. MDF does not show any sort of chip material on the cut edges, and it’s usually a darker brown color with a very slick looking surface.
MDF is a heavier material. But, so somewhat is 3/4" ply. (I know…as compared to what…lol concrete???) I tend to have to lift and move things myself, so I do not care too much for heavy.
I have seen whole stacks of 1/2-3/4" ply have a warp. I have not seen a stack of 1" MDF warp. It doesn’t seem to come in any different thickness where I am. Trim worked pieces also seem relatively stable.
While out scouting about for a mobile or modular home, in one office we came to there was a small bucket of water with a piece of MDF sticking out. There was a sign that pointed to that fact that that piece had been submerged continuously for X number of years, our floor can stand up to…is long lasting…etc… There was extremely very little if any noticeable difference, there was no “swollen bumps”, and without calipers I could not tell you if in fact there was any difference between the wet end and the dry end. The dry end was dry, so it had not “wicked” up the wood as particle board would have.
The chemicals and resins it is mixed with are the key to its stability, and , apparently some of the cause for weight.
If it was lighter in weight, and I could get different thicknesses, I could like it…but only if I was painting it…a stained piece would still require good old fashioned trees.
Well, yes and no, R.T. If one predrills, as one normally does with one’s materials when using screws of the general or wood-type, MDF does a fine job of taking a screw.
I used screws exclusively in my spline roadbed where two splines were meant to diverge for a diverging route, and also to fasten the splines vertically down into the tops of the risers. In the latter case, I used a pilot hole with a countersink bit so that I could recess the heads.
It is true that you will have little success if you merely attempt to drive a screw into the polished, or shiny and smooth sides of MDF…that stuff is darned near impenetrable!
Take some free advice and seal the MDF. Bugs like MDF as much as they do other wood products. But how would I know, I work in a wood shop where furniture is built.[:)]
I like the benchwork you did a lot. It looks really stable and the pieces are small enough that each module wouldn’t weigh too much to move after completion.
My question is: did you lay track and build scenery as if the modules weren’t modules with the plan to cut the joints later if disassembly was required? Or did you build your modules as independent completed pieces like N-trak?
Do you have a picture of a “seam” between pieces where the scenery/track is completed?
I’m interested in how everyone’s different methods play out to completion… especially since I’m almost there with the planning of my next layout.
Actually, it was a carpenter who suggested MDF to me. It’s lower cost was a factor in my decision. I do not have any problems with moisture or insects damaging the material at all. None of my MDF is sealed including the garage cabinets.
Regarding connections between sections, the layout is not modular in the sense that, the sections are like N-Trak’s where the modules can be rearranged becasue of common end track pieces. To move the layout, I would have to cut through scenery, track, and wiring. After the move, I would have to splice all that back together.
One hurdle at the new location is fitting my around-the-walls layout to another place. The measurements of my layout room are unique and not likely to be found anywhere else. Therefore, I would have to make changes to the layout and to the new layout room. I figure that making those changes will be less time consuming than starting over with another layout.
Besides, I could not stand tearing up another layout.
After reading all of the preceeding posts, I am even more certain that I have chosen the best course - STEEL!
Invulnerable to moisture.
Doesn’t know how to warp.
Totally resistant to ‘critters’ which munch cellulose.
Lighter than equivalent wood, and WAY lighter than fiberboard.
Find that last improbable? I would, too, if I didn’t have a 5 by 12 foot table that, when newly framed (before adding subgrade, roadbed and track) could have been lifted with one hand by an arthritic not-quite-70 year old. The equivalent in fiberboard would have had me hunting for a fork lift.
The steel in question is steel stud material, not structural I-beams. Its strength is more than adequate for the rather light loads imposed by model railroad construction. It cuts easily with tin snips, assembles quickly with little tiny screws and can be recycled if the layout ever has to be dismantled or heavily modified. (By ‘recycled,’ I mean re-used in layout construction, not sent back to the mill as scrap.) Even the screws recycle!
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - on steel stud C works like L girder benchwork)
Glad you like steel. I’ve seen some write-ups on steel for layout construction. I’m using MDF and have no problems with moisture, warping, or ‘critters’. Weight is not an issue because I’m building sections small enough so it does not matter. It’s easy to cut and to work with.
