Hello everyone, I am planning on starting my new RR soon(8 months behind schedule) and I usually use what ever method I can to build one. But this time I am interested in the advantage of L-girder bench work. I believe it will have several advantages when it comes time to build the scenery. This will be my 5th over a period of 30 years but any info would be appreciated. If you guys have any pics could you please post them? Thanks Joey[^]
If you haven’t read SpcaeMouse’s topic about the L-girder system, it would be a good starting point. http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=67096
It pays to purchase good grade wood. If I were to build another layout I would use 3/4" plywood cut into 3 1/2’’ wide strips for my L girders. Plywood is much more stable than solid wood & really doesn’t cost any more. GOOD LUCK
I used 1x4 white spruce, and ripped some of them in half to use as the crosspieces. They were easy to assemble and work well. Get ones as straight and knot free as possible, and get them together before they warp. Once they are manufactured, there will be very little warping, if any.
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The basic L-girder table consists of four legs, two L-girders and one joist close to each end. The legs should be braced to each other with X struts, and attached to the L girders, braced with diagonal struts or gussets. They do not need to be attached directly to any joists. The table does not have to be rectangular and need not have straight edges. (My new main table is shaping up into a not-quite-parallellogram, no two sides of equal length.)
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L girders can be anything strong enough to support the load they will carry - mine are 16-gauge steel studs (which, technically, probably makes them C-girders.) The requirement here is stability, and in the dessicated air of my garage wood tends to assume distinctly odd shapes. Other possibilities are plywood, engineered wood, heavy angle iron, (I’m sure other people can add more.)
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The strong point of L-girder construction is that all fasteners (screws implied) are driven upward from the underside, so disassembly for modification or layout salvage can be done without disturbing trackwork or scenery. Don’t screw anything from the top down, or you’ll hate yourself for it later.
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Joists are not intended to support the subroadbed directly, so their dimensions are not critical. A few should be structurally sound (to tie the L-girders together) but the rest can be leftovers from the scrap wood pile.
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The subroadbed is supposed to be supported by cleats, vertical pieces screwed to joists (or the flat side of the L-girder,) topped with something through which screws can be driven into the subroadbed from below. Flat areas (yards and town or industry sites) can be sheet material supported by appropriate cleats. The rest of the scenery simply spans the wide open spaces in the framework.
The chief disadvantage of L-girder construction is excessive depth. Assuming only moderate cleat length, the total height from bottom of L girder to top of subroadbed can easily exceed one foot. The good p
There is no advantage other than driving up the price of your layout!
How so, the cost of decent plywood to deck the entire layout would cost more than the stock for L girder and joists, and you still need the material for the frame and legs.
I guess you didn’t read any of the advantages of it if your design can benefit.
Bob K.
On the contrary. I have found L-girder construction to be stronger and lighter than standard butt-joint box frame construction. A 4 X 8 L-girder layout is almost 50% lighter than a butt-joint box frame layout. Use this link to learn more.
http://www.vetmed.auburn.edu/~smithbf/BFSpages/LDSIGprimer/TOC.html#Section%20B
Here’s a couple of photos showing L-girder on my layout.
New benchwork with noting on it yet:
Benchwork where tracks are installed (in the right foreground is a suspension-type helix):
Hope this helps!
Very nice work, this is a good example where you benefit with L girder benchwork.
Bob K.
Here’s a few of some L-girder construction I have been doing recently. I like the strength, stability, and flexibility of design that is inherent with the L-girder design.
Not to rain on your parade; but you could easily have attached the legs directly to the joists and not use any L-girders in the above situation. It appears to me that the L-griders with the attached legs form a table on which you place the joists. I would think that you could have left out the L-girders and saved yourself a few dollars.
Yes I could have, but I prefer to use L-girder which IMHO is still stronger and more stable than it would have been without them. I also added the boards which are part of the fascia after the grid was built. It used the L-girders as the basic support and built upon that. Without the L-girders, I would be trusting the little drywall screws that go into the ends of the 1 x 4s to hold and stay together with me leaning on it over the years. I trust gravity more [;)] It was a lot easier for me working alone to build it this way and assemble the “table” in -place over the L-girders. But it certainly could have been built differently and definately cheaper I guess.
L-Girder allows you to turn and shape and adjust roadbed and scenery supports. Makes it very customizable.
I used L girder set on top of shelving units – there were other considerations like the library – and had very thin strips supporting the Homasote. After all these years, I’m back to a solid top table!
One consideration: make sure the flange on the L is wide enough to acommodate the chuck on your drill. I use a 1x3 which is probably overkill structurally.
One advanrage of L girder is that you don’t have to be a precise carpenter – the joists can go in approximately and still work; you can chop the ends off after installation; they can be moved by undoing two screws.
Make sure they’re assembled square – the lumber may not be.
Watch out for long girders. I made some 16-footers and I don’t know if they can be removed from the house.
joey: thanks for the thread title – concise and adequate.