Baseboard Top painting

[millerhillboy]

Just had a friend of my father complete some new baseboards for my new project, made from a nice birch ply and very solid.

 

Just wondering what is the recommendation in terms of painting the following

• the top surface, i.e the track and scenery surface.
• the underside, i.e wiring
• the frame

 

I'm mostly interested in what type of paint would be best, and should it be sealed with varnish over and above the painting.

 

thanks

[Miss Prism]

Don't paint it.

[millerhillboy]

any particular reason you say that, I think I'd rather have a finished look to the boards unless there's a reason not to?

[DCB]

Paint it a nice gungy grey colour where the tracks go.   That way it won't matter if you don't get round to ballasting it for 30 years or so.

 

Don't see a need to paint underneath at all, if you used new wood.  I would put a sheet of thin ply underneath to hide a birds nest of unruly wiring or run it in plastic trunking.

 

Hardboard looks nice as a facia, curves nicely.      

[meil]

any particular reason you say that, I think I'd rather have a finished look to the boards unless there's a reason not to?

Blackboard paint. Nice matt black.

[iamjamie]

Blackboard paint. Nice matt black.

 

The only thing about dark matt finishes is that they can show up scuffs and finger grease quite well...

 

For the edges of the baseboards a nice satin finish works well. A bit of a halfway house between gloss and matt, but you can easily rub off any marks or smudges with a dry cloth. I like the look of plain varnished wood too! Very classy if you get it right! I'd generally only worry about varnishing for the aesthetics of it... It can help your boards withstand a bit of scuffing and marking if you're moving them around a lot, but it's not going to help with any serious nicks and scratches.

 

For the inside and top, I wouldn't personally do anything (unless it's MDF, which you should seal everywhere! But I avoid MDF when at all possible for anything!). On the top you'll find you end up painting it all anyway when you're doing base coats for scenic finishes etc... If it's a long term project that's going to take a while, but you want to look "finished" and neat at all stages, a nice light grey works well. And the paint for all of this... just standard emulsion you'd get from a DIY store.

[DCMarvel]

Paint it something that resembles what you have planned for scenery, such as matt black where roads or cinder areas will end up and brown for most areas to resemble soil or mud, and places that will definitely be grass such as embankments do a mid green. Use remnant emulson paint or buy some matchpots. Doing this means when you get round to adding scatter material, if you miss a bit or it doesn't stick, the blemish is disguised to a degree, It also helps you get a feel for the finished item before you start using scatters.

There is no required reason to paint the boards, especially ply as it isn't likely to be effected by anything you stick to it or may get spilt on it, just a cosmetic effect really.

If you have a front edge fascia trim do it a nice gloss in a colour that represents the location and era of the layout, such as a maroon for LMS or a light green for LNER etc.

[s.e. charles]

any particular reason you say that, I think I'd rather have a finished look to the boards unless there's a reason not to?

many good opinions and each has a valid perspective.

 

painting could affect the adhesion properties of glue if you will be dependent on it to anchor track, scenery, supports for mechanics.

 

painting could affect your attitude when it comes time to work on the layout. just like approaching a clean workbench, you may be more encouraged to continue the project if you have a neat place in which to work.

 

there's no definitive answer, but it lies in your situation (do others share your hobby space? is it in public view? or can you close the door and it's concealed?).

 

sometimes doing something low stress and relatively uncomplicated can encourage thought and creative solutions. just the act of looking at the baseboard with "tabula rasa" may spawn ideas yet unimagined.

 

my suggestion follows a combination of above:

 

1. pick a water based paint in a matte finish/ neutral color of light grey or light brown.

 

2. paint all the surfaces which will be seen with this paint but not full strength - thin it a bit with either water or proprietary thinner medium (ask the paint dealer)

 

3. the first coat will make the grain of the wood raise; knock this down with fine sandpaper wrapped around a wood block.

 

4. paint the fascia a full strength coat for cosmetic purposes.

 

5. vacuum/ wipe dust away.

 

6. know that none of the surfaces are the final product. things will change as you construct. you now have a fairy respectable base which will allow your efforts & progress to look like you have accomplished something at the end of each work session.

 

7. leave the undersides unfinished for now, but do consider the dust panel suggested above when the project is near completion. attach with screws for future access.

 

8. post progress pictures!

[Steven B]

Painting the underside white (undercoat is enough) can help:

1. It makes it a bit brighter/increases contrast when working under the layout.

2. It's a good, clear surface to write on so you can label points, wires etc without having to worry about sticky labels coming unstuck or pen/pencil marks fading into the wood over time.

 

I'd also agree with the comments about painting the top in roughly the same colour as what will go on top (i.e. greys & greens).

 

Happy modelling.

 

Steven B.

[terrysoham]

If the layout is to be located in a room in your house where the temperature and humidity will not change significantly then I agree that there is no necessity to protect the wood. For all other circumstances particularly for normally unheated locations such as lofts and garages then I would paint or varnish all surfaces particularly if there is mdf involved. In such locations there is a risk that the boards will warp. As mentioned early, white paint applied under a baseboard is an excellent idea.

Regards

[millerhillboy]

It will be generally stored in the house, or a cupboard in a house when not used but it is possible it might have to spend some time in the internal garage.

[RJD]

I have a dedicated space for the layout and painted the prosceniums and ceiling a very dark matte brown. When lit, the layout is the only focus of attention and the effect is almost theatrical when I turn the overhead light off.  A trick I learned from a painter is to put a coat of shellac on the bare wood - it keeps the grain smooth.  If I scuff the paint, I can touch it up easily.   I have a challenge with pure black; it seems to dominate more than it should.   

[iamjamie]

I have a dedicated space for the layout and painted the prosceniums and ceiling a very dark matte brown. When lit, the layout is the only focus of attention and the effect is almost theatrical when I turn the overhead light off.  A trick I learned from a painter is to put a coat of shellac on the bare wood - it keeps the grain smooth.  If I scuff the paint, I can touch it up easily.   I have a challenge with pure black; it seems to dominate more than it should.

 

Pure black can be very high contrast against the layout. Something I learned from a theatrical designer was that he used a dark blue/grey for the proscenium and other masking as it was easier on they eye. You still get a nice framing effect, but the frame itself doesn't dominate... Using brown, as you already have, follows that same logic.

[Miss Prism]

any particular reason you say that, I think I'd rather have a finished look to the boards unless there's a reason not to?

 

If, as the OP states, the wood is good birch ply, there is no functional need to paint it, which I felt was the concern in the OP's question.

[Theakerr]

Over the years I have found that a painted surface attracts significantly less dust.  Probably because an unpainted surface has many areas of angular surface roughness that dust can attach itself to.  Of course once the scenery is down it becomes academic unless you have hidden sidings.  I used a dark green or dark brown latex paint.  

[Pete the Elaner]

I don't care what wood you use, a coat of varnish will help protect it against dampness. If not, what harm will it do?

Dampness from environment & also from watered down glue holding the ballast & scenery in place.

Don't most people use watered down adhesive to hold the ballast in place?

 

I like the idea of white paint to write on for wiring details etc.

As for the tops, in the real world mud is dark brown. What better way to start the layout off than by copying the prototype?

[DougN]

Just tripped over the topic. I painted my layout in deluxe "hurricane grey" now I am not sure if you have the same colour it as I am in Australia. I have found it is good as you tend to not use much glue when gluing down scenics. I will tend i the future to paint over the Cork bed also as as bear spots tend to disappear with the grey. It also tends to hide bear patches in the same way theatrical scenes tend to be black as they hide in the shadows. I would also paint the underside too now as all timbers, ply included, tend to accept moisture from the atmosphere. Yes good quality ply may still bow on the side that has accepted the moisture so movement canstill be an issue. My boards are MDF but it is quite different to the material the UK receives. Ours is a hard flat cardboard coloured board which is quite heavy and tough. I have seen it curve when damp. This is also the other reason to paint the top surface as paint, glue and spills won't affect the underlying substrate.

[The Johnster]

I painted the original fiddle yard board on my blt a dark matt grey/brown so that it merged visually with the scenic part of the layout where it butts up to it; actually this is not the board join but a foot or so over it, the same dark matt grey/brown being the base colour of the scenic area.  Then I decided that 3 roads in the fiddle yard were not enough for me and put up another board beyond the first, and at a 45 degree angle to it owing to the room geography.  This board I have not bothered to paint as it has no visual impact on or direct connection to the scenic part of the layout, just another 4 roads offstage.  Those of you who are clever will realise that this means I now have 6 fiddle yard roads as one of the original ones is now the approach for the new yard, and this will suffice for all my foreseeable needs.

 

I don't think there is need to seal wood used in a domestic indoor environment, inside the living part of the flat, but I might think differently if I were using an attic, shed, or garage outside of that environment.  I am starting to have a bit of sag in the middle of the scenic board, but I doubt that painting it has made any difference to that, and plan to install an extra support to relieve it.  Painting, in my view, is only necessary if you need to seal the wood, or for scenic merging, or if you like for decorative purposes.  My unpainted fiddle yard board is easier to see what you are doing on for coupling and uncoupling purposes, and I suppose there is an argument for painting such boards white to improve this further.  

 

Where I did paint the boards, I used trypot emulsion; went on easy and was cheap and easily mixed.  White underneath is a good idea if you need access for wiring and point/signal motors; my layout is ultra simple and has no underboard wiring, but I can only get away with this because it is a very basic blt!

[millerhillboy]

As a follow up to this topic I decided to go with black frames and a white underside. Does look quite neat if I do say so myself.

 

[griffgriff]

Birch ply or not they look rather (large 2' square?) So I would have a little more framing for strength and support.

 

Griff

[Kris]

Good choice of colours. Looks very good.

[millerhillboy]

Birch ply or not they look rather (large 2' square?) So I would have a little more framing for strength and support.

Griff

They are 3ft square each. They were built by my father's friend and I just left him up to him as he's very good with that sort of thing. Yes they are high quality birch ply at my request and they do feel extremely solid but you've got me worrying now!

[griffgriff]

They are 3ft square each. They were built by my father's friend and I just left him up to him as he's very good with that sort of thing. Yes they are high quality birch ply at my request and they do feel extremely solid but you've got me worrying now!

I didn't mean to worry you. I'm a belt and braces kinda guy, in my opinion it's much better to prevent warping first rather than fix warping after, just think you only need a couple of degrees of deflection to experience problems.

 

Griff

[The Bigbee Line]

Maybe see where Point motors etc will go and add some extra braces at that stage. Otherwise Sod's law says they will be in the way. I think painting baseboards both top and bottom gives them a professional look. Plus it stops any damp creeping in.

[millerhillboy]

Maybe see where Point motors etc will go and add some extra braces at that stage. Otherwise Sod's law says they will be in the way. I think painting baseboards both top and bottom gives them a professional look. Plus it stops any damp creeping in.

Thanks bigbee , sounds like a good suggestion.