Setrack and Streamline track lengths

[Budgie]

Seeing as the standard baseboard size is 4' x 2', why don't Peco offer their track in 2' and possibly 4' lengths, in addition to all the other stuff that they do already? It seems odd to me that to run a straight track across one of these boards I need to cut 1' from a 3' length to add to another 3' length, and so on for multiple tracks on multiple boards.

[Joseph_Pestell]

That would not usually be considered a good way of doing it.

 

Usual practice is to lay the track across the baseboard joint and then cut it (having soldered the rails to a screw or copperclad strip to hold them in place).

[Dungrange]

Ideally, there would be at least one rail joint on each board to allow for expansion and contraction, so I can't see four-foot lengths (without a break) as a good idea.

[Oldddudders]

Yard lengths are bad enough in the post, unless you buy a boxful. Couriers etc would make an even bigger mess of 4’ lengths. Not everyone can collect their track to take it safely home, especially with the paucity of modelshops these days.

[Pete the Elaner]

I have started using 3' boards instead of 4' boards. They may take a little more work with board joins & wiring but are a lot lighter/easier to work with than 4' boards.

 

Even though a length of track would fit almost exactly to 1 board, I still use at least 2 sections to cope with expansion.

[Nile]

Seeing as the standard baseboard size is 4' x 2',

 

Really? Where has this come from? My 3ft long board is clearly 'non-standard'.

[Budgie]

Really? Where has this come from? My 3ft long board is clearly 'non-standard'.

It comes from reading many layout articles in magazines. It appears that the majority of baseboards are 4 x 2. I myself have boards of various sizes like 5 x 2, 6 x 2 and 8 x 2, but the majority of mine are 4 x 2.

[Joseph_Pestell]

It comes from reading many layout articles in magazines. It appears that the majority of baseboards are 4 x 2. I myself have boards of various sizes like 5 x 2, 6 x 2 and 8 x 2, but the majority of mine are 4 x 2.

 

4 x 2 is a dimension easily cut from the standard 8 x 4 sheet without waste. Not difficult to see why it's popular.