Thanks for tuning in to the first episode of Model Railway Basics! Don't forget to check out the trailer to see more of what's coming later in the series: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3c8rU5tmSO0.html
Thanks. As a beginner with poor woodworking skills, this was great in showing me to make the box using the plywood top. And I have made my first module this weekend.
I love getting messages like this! That's awesome David, so glad to hear the video helped you and best of luck with building up the rest of your layout. Thanks for watching 😃
Glad to be of service, I know these were the sorts of videos I wish had been around when I was a beginner so just trying to help out those in a similar situation. Thanks for watching 😃
Thanks Harry, really glad to hear that! The rest of the videos in this series will be released over the coming weeks so you won't have to wait too long! Thanks for watching 😃
Great idea! There's a handy playlist on the channel for exactly that purpose: ru-vid.com/group/PLrxCs5t2FkmxNd-_hB6asSke8Ss-sDgGe Thanks for watching 😃
Hey Olly, that's awesome! Really great to hear that this video is useful for other hobbies too! Best of luck with building your subbuteo table and thanks for watching 😃
I love your relaxed style of presentation. You are too modest...clearly you do not have terrible woodworking skills. Looking forward to future developments. Please remember you offered to share your "hinges" on your fiddle yard.....
Thanks John, well I certainly wouldn't list woodworking as a skill I'm good at but I can get by with simple things like this. Don't worry I haven't forgotten about showing how the fiddle yard hinges - it'll be in the next Modular Layout update when I get round to making that. Thanks for watching 😃
Very informative and above all simple :D I think the only thing I'd change is keeping the clamps on while the glue dries otherwise I completely agree with this method I used a very similar process for my layout. Cheers :)
Thanks! Absolutely, as I said in the video if you want to be safe you should wait for the glue to dry but as I needed to get this filmed in a day I had to move quickly. The tacks do hold it all together even without the clamps but if you don't mind waiting then as you said, you might as well keep them on. Thanks for watching 😃
Thanks! Building a baseboard is often the first stumbling block people come across when starting a model railway so hopefully this will demystify the process. Thanks for watching 😃
Thanks Tom, that's great to hear. There's plenty more videos in this series so I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone makes of them. Thanks for watching 😃
Hi great videos Guy, At the moment I have three 4ftx2ft mdf boards off the shelf from local diy store & 18mm baterns bracing them all together. I have covered this with 6mm expanded polystyrene sheets . 2ft of this is resting , now screwed down to a wardrobe tuned on its side at the back with back & side boards. At the moment I am waiting to cover the polystyrene sheets with 3 different grass mats from Jarvis scenics. I might just have an Airfield in the centre with a loop & sidings. I look forward to watching the rest of your videos.
Hi Jeffrey, awesome! Sounds like you have the start of a great layout there. Best of luck with the rest of your build and there's plenty more of these videos to enjoy in the meantime. Thanks for watching 😃
👍👍Love your videos, very informative the touch of humor makes the videos entertaining as well! I'm from across the pond, I follow a number ok modelers from the UK, getting different perspectives is quite helpful! I do use Metric for measuring my layout, so much easier and accurate then fractions! After seeing your videos and others I wish I'd built my layout differently..."Module style" and built around the walls instead of the 10' 10' one I have, Which had to put in a hole in the middle to be able to reach all parts of my layout. Yikes I just built without much thought put in first! Keep the wonderful videos, always waiting for your next one to come out, Thanks! 🚂🚂
Hi Dave, really glad to hear you're enjoying the videos. The modular railway has certainly worked well for me as someone with limited space for a layout. It did take quite a lot of figuring out though to make sure everything would fit together in any configuration! Thanks for watching 😃
Nice, yeah I'm not all that good at woodwork either but something simple like this I definitely think is achievable for most people with a little bit of guidance. Thanks for watching 😃
Absolutely brilliant! New subscriber to you’re channel and loving the content you have taken the time to create for all to enjoy! Great advice and great tips! As much as I wish I had the space to create my own layout, I am really limited by space so creating a modular layout has really planted a seed! Really looking forward to next episode! Once again, thanks for the great content! ...... ps great 🧦 😃
Thanks Sam, really glad to hear you're enjoying the videos and thanks for subscribing! Modular layouts are definitely a good option if you want something a bit bigger but are limited by space - and they don't always have to be huge either. I've seen people with modular layouts made to stack in wrapping paper boxes! Thanks for watching 👍 (Life's too short to wear boring socks! 😉)
Hi David, as I mentioned in the video I was using the 25mm stripwood because I need my layout to be as light as possible, which is why I recommended something thicker like 2x1 for more traditional layouts. That said both solenoid and servo motors will fit under these boards no problem but if you've got the option it's definitely better to have a bit of extra room if you don't mind the added weight. Thanks for watching 😃
What about larger baseboards? I plan to build a layout in a "portable train table" style fitting on 8' x 5' (8' x 4' + 8' x 1' ply sections). With this size I am of the belief I may need a central brace lengthwise as well as cross braces for stiffness. The thing is I need legs on this and I want them to fold up inside so I believe I need quite wide and thick outside bracing and narrower bracing on the inside to allow room so that the legs can fold up into the space. The reason I need this is because I will build in my garage and will then transport into the house and so the legs need to fold to get them through the doors. I'll probably put wheels on so that it can be moved around the room as necessary. Thoughts?
The process is the same regardless of the baseboard size, you can add a central brace or use thicker wood. For my layout I have separate trestle style legs that the layout sits which works well. Thanks for watching 👍
Although I have built my layout in the last couple of years I am watching this now as I might learn something bee. Can I ask where you got the Sausage ? Cheers
Thanks Charlie, yes you never know when inspiration might strike for another layout... or perhaps an extension 😉 By sausage I presume you mean the BR totem I used for the logo? (...or did I leave my lunch in the background of one shot!) If so I'm afraid I don't know. I've had a Photoshop file of that blank totem hanging around on my hard drive for years but it's been so long I have no idea where I got it from. A quick Google search for a blank totem brings up a few results though so you might be able to download one there. Hope that helps and thanks for watching 👍
Thank you this is very helpful for a newbie like me. Question though: if I am planning a river running through my layout, is it best to cut the shape in the baseboard and raise part of the board for the train to run on; or is it better to use polystyrene on top of the baseboard and then to carve the river? Is there a RU-vid episode you can point me to please?
Glad to help! Either way would work, it partly depends on your wiring. If you need point motors under the track on the raised section then having a wooden top is an easier way to do it rather than trying to recess everything into polystyrene. Alternatively, if the river is the only thing you want below the level of the track but the rest of the landscape is to be relatively flat (or rise above track level) then you could cut a recess into the baseboard for the river. There's no real right or wrong way of doing things although unfortunately I haven't done on a video on this yet to be able to point to you. Hopefully that helps though and thanks for watching 😃
silly question but you mention cutting the plywood down to the size of your baseboard, but what is a standard size for a baseboard? How big would a beginner layout need to be?
That's totally up to whatever kind of layout you want to build. For a typical train set style circuit layout 6'x4' is pretty typical but a bit limiting. Other prefer to do long thin layouts where they can run trains into a station and back out again - or just do some wagon shunting. The best thing to do is come up with a design for what you want and then see how much space you need... if you're like me you may have to compromise. Hope that helps and thanks for watching 😃
I love this! Not to easy but not to hard. But something is bugging me. If I was to make lets say, a mainline how would I do that to this? I mean you have these hill boards that you put at the end of each boards to make it connect but for only one track? Could I have two? And how would that work?
Hi there, so you don't have to build exactly the same size of baseboard that I make in the video. If you wanted a mainline you could make, say an 8x4ft baseboard and have a few circuits so you could run multiple trains continuously. The corner boards with the hills on are part of my modular layout which is also another option if you want to make a more portable or temporary layout. Yes you could easily have two tracks or even three and four on these - you'd just design it like any other layout and then split it up into sections. As long as you plan it that way from the beginning you'll know how much space you need for the tracks and then how much is left over for scenery. Hope that helps and thanks for watching 😃
I'm new to the hobby and have been given a 00 set. My question is, can you build this in 4 sections? I don't have room to have set up all the time. So I need to set up each board and connect together. The carpentry side I'm good at, it's the track I'm worried about. Many thanks and great video
Hi there, yes you absolutely can. You may want to check out my series "Building A Modular Model Railway" as I'm doing pretty much exactly what you describe. If you're worried about the track in particular this video might be of use: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-IFPBPS6nOMU.htmlsi=rpBLbnW7p5s4B9o5 Hope that helps and thanks for watching 😃
You'd don't have to build a big layout if you don't have space. There are lots of small shunting layout designs out there and I've even built a layout in a suitcase which can be stored under a bed. Thanks for watching 👍
I've generally used stripwood on my layouts (mainly because it tends to be cheaper where I am) but it doesn't really make a huge amount of difference, especially for a 6x4 layout. Thanks for watching 😃
Good video thanks, little bit confused re the bracings you added when you said be careful not to put them where the point motors are going to be...how do you know where they are going to be if this is the very start of the project ?
Hi Paul, usually if you're building a baseboard you've got an idea of the track plan you want to put on it so that you're sure it'll fit. While it doesn't have to be exact, generally if you know one area will have a lot of points it's best not to put the bracing there to avoid headaches later on. It just needs a little forward thinking. Hope that helps and thanks for watching 😃
Haha, awesome! Maybe invite your neighbours over to play with the layout when it's done, that'll win them back 😉 MDF is Medium Density Fibreboard, it's ok but personally I'd say plywood is a better bet, especially if you have that ready to go! Best of luck and thanks for watching 👍
Hi Jon, 25mm for this particular layout since it was designed to be portable/lightweight. I wouldn't go any smaller than that but for a permanent installation thicker battens would definitely be good. Thanks for watching 😃
There isn't really one, only that using nails is the traditional way of doing it and some modellers think that's the only way of doing things. But you can absolutely use screws for baseboards, I do all the time. Thanks for watching 😃
Tradition, speed, lack of a drill - take your pick. I agree though, I use screws for all my layouts. This video is from very early on when I first started the channel and I was avoiding trying to upset anyone 😅 Thanks for watching 👍
Hi Steve, I have to be honest they were just generic panel pins from my local DIY shop - I don't think they were any particular brand. As long as they're big/long enough to go through the top surface and then grip into the frame you should be ok. Thanks for watching 😃
Hey Ryan, these baseboard were build as part of my modular layout where I’m using Homebase pine trestle legs to support each section. Hope that helps and thanks for watching 😃
@@ThatModelRailwayGuy I'm building a layout where i need to be able to take it down - if im on my VR headset or whatever. These Trestle legs sounds great
Hi Ken, Pine Wood trestles from Homebase! They used to be really cheap and since they're mass produced they're all exactly the same height. Thanks for watching 😃
@@Twisty2012 Hey Susan, I don’t personally - in my case the layout just rests on the frames. I know some layout builders prefer to make the legs as part of the baseboard but I think that requires building the legs from scratch too so that they fit your design. Thanks for watching 😃
As far as I can tell there isn't really any reason for it 😂 It's just one of these things that people have got into their heads that keeps being repeated as a bad thing to do. I suppose with screws you've got slightly more chance of the wood splitting but if you're drilling pilot holes that shouldn't happen anyway. As for how secure it is, it's actually the wood glue that does most of the work - the pins/screws are more belt & braces really. Personally I find it much quicker to build using pins but as I said in the video, I've used screws in the past. In fact I build a baseboard last week with a combination of both nails and screws and it's absolutely fine. Thanks for watching 👍
@@ThatModelRailwayGuy Great, thanks for replying. I'm planning on starting a layout this year, and had always assumed screws would be better because there's less chance of them pulling out. I'd not planned to use glue, so will keep that in mind. I'm looking at a larger board (1.2m x 2.4m) so will use larger wood for the supports, and that may make screws a better option.
No problem, like I said in the video you can pick it up from most hardware/DIY shops. Failing that MDF can work too but I'd personally use ply given the choice. Thanks for watching 😃
It's more of a dig at those who complain that you've done it wrong no matter how you do it. Nails seem to be the more traditional way of doing it but screws are just as good. Thanks for watching 👍
"Proper modellers" will complain about anything if you don't do things exactly the way they do 😉 I'm joking of course but there does seem to be some division over whether screws or tacks/nails are best. Thanks for watching 👍
