Looking at going ahead and building a semi portable n scale layout on a hollow core door. I have read about doing this before, and it seems an affordable way for a lightweight benchwork substitute. Any advice/opinions anyone can share please? Ie where to conceal wiring? (The previous N scale layout I built was conventional box benchwork).
MR recemtly did a project railroad, the Red Oak series, that was done on a hollow core door. Maybe you can get some ideas there: http://mrv.trains.com/how-to/benchwork/2015/01/red-oak-series-benchwork-construction
See Dave Vollmer’s (portable) N Scale Juniata Division on two hollow core doors.
Hi Alex. The wiring you would have would not be particularly heavy so you could use a router to make a small channel in your top surface or have the door on small pads and use duct tape to hold the wiring on under the layout … whatever you are comfortable with,
Regards from Melbourne (ex Adelaide…)
Trevor
Hi alexstan
Well conciderig AMRA WA branch used interior doors for the fiddle yard on there OO scale Haltwhistle layout they certainly are a viable base to build a model railway on.
As well as he door and some good quality folding legs you will also need some 100mm X19mm wood you will need to run some mounting plates across the door to atatch the legs to, make sure you screw the plates to the frame of the door.
As the name implies the door is hollow and the only solid place you can put screws in is the frame.
In the recent “N” scale project layout that MRR mag did they used high density blue and pink foam on top of the door as the layout base and scenery etc.
They built in a groove in the foam base that runs around the whole layout for the wiring to sit in out of sight once the facia board is fixed to the layout.
A particularly good idea who wants to be under the layout trying to wire it up, and if you plan on exibiting the layout the wiring can’t get caught up on anything and be damaged during transport.
Make sure the door is sealed / painted so it doesn’t warp and twist at a later date or the first time the weather changes and bring the facia boards just low enough to hide the mounting plates.
regardes John
Just a note in selecting a door. Although the older hollow core doors were far superior to those available today, you will find 90% are 30" or 28". Shopping for a 36" door look for birch skin. It is a much stronger door w/o adding any weight.
Bob:
I don’t know how things are in the US building supply business but up here in Canada (eh!) birch veneer doors are custom order. For the price you could build a larger very light weight base using steel studs and plywood.
Dave
Birch on a hollow core door is virtually unknown here in Australia as far as I know but perhaps on some of the more decorative ones around… Is birch relatively cheap in North America?
The input here has been interesting and lightweight doors are of course available here…
Regards
Trevor
Trevor:
Birch, mahogany, oak and maple veneer doors used to be considered ‘builder’s grade’ i.e. ‘cheap’ but no more. If you go into a typical big box building supply store (I’m speaking of Canada but I doubt the US is much different) the vast majority of hollow core doors are essentially fibreboard and they are extremely averse to moisture of any sort. That makes them ill suited to model railroading. All of the now ‘premium’ woods like birch are custom order. If you want a birch hollow core flat slab door 36" x 80" you can expect to pay about $150 Cdn.
I worked in the millwork business (doors, windows and moldings) after I retired and I can attest to the fact that every single customer was taken aback by the prices they were quoted for simple, plain unfinished interior doors. Don’t even think about getting me going on a finished exterior door assembly!!!
Dave
Here in Northern Michigan they appear regularly on craigs list for free in all sizes. You will have to possibly fill the hole from the door handle subject to scenery placement but you can’t beat the price.
I fully agree since that’s what I used on my N Scale layout and IMHO one is wiser if he chooses a 36" door since it allows for wider curves.
[:-^]
Hey Guys,
Don’t give up yet. If you have a recycle depot such as" restore store" you can still find great deals on real wood hollow core doors. A couple of years ago I purchased nine of them. Used some to make sliding by-pass doors for basement closets and a couple in place on the layout… All from Restore Store. and they had more. Go and take a look.
Johnboy out…
Intruguing advice guys, I shall keep all this in mind.
Dave and Trevor, shame that any other hardwood species for door skin is not readily available. The luan is not as robust, however, we’re not walking on these, and a good couple coats of sealer/ paint will firm up the otherwise weak splintery luan.
As brakie mentions, the 36" is a better choice. These however, are rather rare, as the 30 and 28" door widths are far more common and would usually need to order wider widths if not buying from a “solid” real lumber yard or as I deal with regularly, door and window supplier. Difference in $$ is only about $20- $25 and a quality door will generally have actual “wood” edge blocking instead of MDF. Advice from a finish carpenter (40 yrs) if you haven’t figured, just trying to help w/ the builds if I can.
Dave, know exactly what you mean as to entry doors. Only the more custom builds or renovations will ever see these now. Forget an entire house using 6 panel stain grade pine and milled jambs for all interior units, becoming a dinosaur. Over the past several years the $$ for even average quality entry units have my customers “choking” from “sticker shock”. Even the midgrade fiberglass ones are getting ridiculous.
Regarding wiring, one drawback to sandwiching the wiring between the door and the foam layer is that you’ll never have access to it once the foam is glued down.
If you don’t want the wiring hanging under the door, you could put it inside. Routing out some openings on the underside will also allow you to hide switch machines inside the door. To get the wiring from one opening to the next, you’ll need something to ram it through the cardboard spacers that are inside the door. You could try one of these fiberglass rods. They should be slightly flexible but still strong enough to get through. Tape the wire to the end of the rod and ram it through.
Steve S
Hi Steve
Not really an issue to get at the wiring for the needed repair test or aditional wiring simply unscew the facia board drop the wiring out of the inbuilt groove do the work test and refix the facia,
One of those you did only screw on the facia type moments
Wiring through the scenery should be done in one length no joints exept at business end and at the board edge.
Being foam scenery it is easy enough to build in styrene tubes or bigger plastic pipes to get wiring to where it is needed from the channel at the edge of the layout.
regards John
Home Depot has Hard Wood HCD blanks for around $50.00…Carters had 'em for around $40.00.When I was in N scale I bought a 36" x 80" HCD blank at Caters on sale for $29.00.
IMHO the extra $$$ for a 36" door is well worth the difference even if one chooses not to have the larger curves since you can put scenery on the ends…
Question? Guestion?
Would it be possible to build a 2"x2" frame, plywood top and bottom, with the interior filled with 1 1/2 inch styrafoam.
You could make in any size desired, it would be light weight and rigid.
Dave
Sure. That’s how a door is made but that is a lot of work rather than a traditional method of support or just purchasing one.
David Murray, I have actually built custom sized doors for a knee wall attic access for a customer constructing them exactly as you described including the foam inner core. I used 1/4 inch luan plywood for the two skins. Glued the stiles to the skins with yellow carpenter’s glue and the foam to the luan with contact cement. You could build a portable layout table of any size up to 4x8 this way.
Jim