How heavy are baseboards?

[Halton Boy]

Hello everyone

I am planning an O gauge modular layout to be built on three 1200x600 9mm plywood baseboard kits.

 

Each baseboard will have cork topping, track and ballast.

 

Under the board will be DCC points motors.

Above the board will be Dapol ground signals.

 

There will be no trees etc on the layout to make it easier to reach across the board to pick it up.

 

I will need to store the layout and then carry it into the conservatory and put it on trestle's to operate it.

 

Please can you tell me how heavy these boards will be when completed.

Light, medium or heavy?

Is it practicable for one person to carry a 1200x600 board through the house without damaging the board or myself?

 

I will have to make the back scene buildings and main buildings removable when I have time to build them.

 

I do not want to order expensive baseboards and find that I cannot move them.

 

I do have all the woodworking machine tools to produce boards, but no time to do the work .

I was hoping to retire, but I am now working six days a week.

 

I would order the baseboards with the cork and track fitted.

The idea is to set the boards up on a Sunday and just shunt wagons until I have more time again.

 

Any help is much appreciated.

Ken

 

[YT-1300]

11 minutes ago, Halton Boy said:

Hello everyone

I am planning an O gauge modular layout to be built on three 1200x600 9mm plywood baseboard kits.

 

Each baseboard will have cork topping, track and ballast.

 

Under the board will be DCC points motors.

Above the board will be Dapol ground signals.

 

There will be no trees etc on the layout to make it easier to reach across the board to pick it up.

 

I will need to store the layout and then carry it into the conservatory and put it on trestle's to operate it.

 

Please can you tell me how heavy these boards will be when completed.

Light, medium or heavy?

Is it practicable for one person to carry a 1200x600 board through the house without damaging the board or myself?

 

I will have to make the back scene buildings and main buildings removable when I have time to build them.

 

I do not want to order expensive baseboards and find that I cannot move them.

 

I do have all the woodworking machine tools to produce boards, but no time to do the work .

I was hoping to retire, but I am now working six days a week.

 

I would order the baseboards with the cork and track fitted.

The idea is to set the boards up on a Sunday and just shunt wagons until I have more time again.

 

Any help is much appreciated.

Ken

 

There are too many variables to give an accurate answer, the main ones being:

 

Your own strength

Your gait

The route you'll need to carry the boards

The baseboard kit components

How much track you'll be laying

How much ballast you'll be using 

 

Ultimately the only person who can judge how heavy something will be and how easy to move is yourself

[Hibelroad]

As has been noted there are many variables but medium to heavyish would be my guess. If you have something of the required size to hand, sheet of mdf, ply or cardboard, you could practice carrying it about to see how cumbersome it is then imagine how it would be when heavy and covered in delicate things. Generally this size is about the limit of what one person can handle safely. 

[aac]

9mm ply is quite substantial, so aim off for heavy, and awkward to manoeuvre. Ìf you are buying in the boards as kits, ask your suppliers. They will know the weight because of shipping costs. 

You could attach two drawer handles, about 70 cm apart, to the front of each of the boards so that you carry them two-handed from A to B with the board hanging like you're carrying a mattress (but far less flexible!).

 

aac

[Dagworth]

I’m working with 4ft square boards at the moment, 9mm ply on 3x1 softwood frames. While they are not too bad for weight it’s more a matter of how to hold them to move them. They are awkward but manageable, though half the time I’m moving them up and down stairs. 
 

Andi

[Hal Nail]

To give an idea, Arun Quay uses boards smaller than those and is built from a lightweight polstyrene and ply construction in order to make it portable.

[Vecchio]

will be approximately 10-12kg, depending on the ply you are using. The handles are a good idea, I rather put them close to the ends (as you need two people for that anyway) but put a third one at the centre of gravity (normally the middle, but if you have heavy stuff at one side it may change) so you can also lift it on your own if needed. . 

 

Found a photo of my green fiddle yard. Those are sandwiched (scenic side against scenic side), and have a weight of 18kg (I used 6mm ply) for 2 boards in their frame. 

You see the handles on the side of the 2 top packages. Worked a treat yesterday at Royston. 

 

IMG20240414113219 

Edited April 14 by Vecchio

[7mmin7foot]

 

FWIW,

I used 9mm ply and softwood for my last HO Swiss layout... they were very heavy to be honest in hindsight.. were massively overkill and very heavy.

 

With my new O gauge layout, I went for some G&H ( Grange & Hodder) laser cut ply boards... but there are other makes available.

These are all 6mm  laser cut ply boards... and super light in comparison to my own home built efforts..

 

Bearing in mind, I have 5 Heljan locos. that are massively heavy compared to my HO stuff.. it handles them with ease.

 

Given you are making your scenics removable.. do you really need 9mm ply ?

 

A 1200 x 600 sheet alone will be almost as heavy as a completed G&H board.

 

Yes, kit boards are expensive, and lead times are usually long, but timber these days is really expensive.

 

Personally, now I have experienced kit build boards,  I would never go back to making my own boards.. but the choice is yours.. 

 

Here's some pics of mine during assembly.

 

Steve

 

Edited April 14 by 7mmin7foot
text

[Halton Boy]

Thank you everyone

The handles are a good idea.

As you have said 1200x600 is the maximum size, so maybe I should look to have smaller boards, but more of them.

900x200 would be easier to move, but now comes the problem of points on baseboard joints.

If I go for a non standard size the cost will increase.

 

So the layout is 3600x600mm ( 12'x2') with a 1 metre cassette fiddle yard that is only 300mm wide.

 

I based the layout on White rose kits that are 9mm ply. 

I have looked at two other manufactures as you have advised.

 

I could keep the size at 1200mm but reduce the width to 400mm.

 

I could go to Wickes and try lifting their sheets of ply.

 

One idea that I have been thinking of is a layout that was just track, but highly detailed.

Points rodding, point levers and buffers.

But not Inglenook Sidings.

Thank you all for you help.

Ken

[melmerby]

2 hours ago, Dagworth said:

I’m working with 4ft square boards at the moment, 9mm ply on 3x1 softwood frames.

Personally I would've use more 9mm ply for the frame as it's lighter and more rigid than 3x1 softwood.

That's what I used for the individual sections on my layout, where each board is 4' x 3' and the frame is 100mm wide strips of 9mm

 

Each board will take the full weight of my not insubstantial bulk. (80+kg).

[Dagworth]

1 minute ago, melmerby said:

Personally I would've use more 9mm ply for the frame as it's lighter and more rigid than 3x1 softwood.

That's what I used for the individual sections on my layout, where each board is 4' x 3' and the frame is 100mm wide strips of 9mm

 

Each board will take the full weight of my not insubstantial bulk. (80+kg).

I don't have the equipment for working ply to the level of accuracy needed for making frames, the board tops were recycled from a festival so all I had to do with them was cut them in half with a jigsaw. Softwood frames allowed me a lot more flexibility for terrain changes where the landscape is below the track board within my own skill levels.

 

Andi

 

 

[brossard]

Baseboards are pretty heavy, but awkward as well.  IMO, it wouldn't be wise for one person to move boards, especially up and down stairs.  You should phone a friend.

 

I made end plates for mine that bolt on to protect rail ends.  These have handles.

 

John

[Michael Hodgson]

20 minutes ago, brossard said:

Baseboards are pretty heavy, but awkward as well.  IMO, it wouldn't be wise for one person to move boards, especially up and down stairs.  You should phone a friend.

 

Ideally yes, but that may defeat the object if it has to to be moved frequently between operating sessions, or to do work on it.  If that's the case you should think about ways of making it easier to move - perhaps a wheeled trolley so that you dont carry it as far, or removable wheels so you can push it like a porters barrow and you're not carrying the whole weight.

 

It hadn't occurred to me that you mught be talking about stairs - that would make a big difference to the practicality.  How far you're moving it is also an issue.  Your access corridor has to be clear, so the further that is, the more likely it is that you'll have obstacles to clear out of the way.  It's not just damage to yourself or the board that you have to consider - it's also the risk of damaging anything else like furniture or doorways en route, especially if this is frequent.

 

It's also worth bearing in mind that as one ages one loses some strength and something that you can only just manage today may become a problem after a few years.

 

If in doubt, reduce your module size.

[brossard]

Quite right Michael.  When the board is bare of scenery, moving it single handed may be OK, even if you do drop it - no harm done.  As it gets more developed, you may wreck the scenic items if you drop it (how do I know?).  I did mount my boards on a workmate vertically to do the wiring.  Trying to wire underneath and on your back is one of the levels of Hell that Dante didn't mention.

 

Yes, my layout is in the basement so there are stairs to negotiate.  I let other more brawny people do the lifting.

 

John

[Halton Boy]

Hello everyone

Grainge & Hodder do 1200x400 standard boards.

I will have to rig something up so that I can test how portable these would be.

The boards would be stored in a down stairs room and taken through the lounge to the conservatory.

They cannot stay in the conservatory as my "line manager" will not allow it.

In the summer they may be outside on the patio along with me!

Here is a plan for a shunting layout.  The signals are only there to show what it will look like:

The three boards will cost about £140.00.

I will build the fiddle yard board myself.

I have just thought if I buy a fiddle yard board that is 1200x400 this will cost me about £46.50. I can then move this about to see if it works.

If it does not work out I can always use it for another layout one day.

This brings the total cost of the four boards to about £186.00.

What do you think?

Ken

 

 

[7mmin7foot]

Boards solution seems ok to me, they  will be fairly light and 400wide will be much easier to move about.

 

BTW, the G&H boards have  dowel points already made / drilled.. they supply wooden ones too.

In your case though, as you will be assembling and dismantling so often, you'd be better off sourcing the metal versions for better accuracy.

 

The only down side, will be the lead/ waiting time... unless they have improved  on that.

Worth the wait and cost in my experience...

 

Steve

[Dunalastair]

A very different approach, but high density foamboard might offer a lighter approach, though when edges are protected the advantage might diminish.

[melmerby]

3 hours ago, Dagworth said:

I don't have the equipment for working ply to the level of accuracy needed for making frames, the board tops were recycled from a festival so all I had to do with them was cut them in half with a jigsaw. Softwood frames allowed me a lot more flexibility for terrain changes where the landscape is below the track board within my own skill levels.

 

Andi

 

 

I'm not especially skilled in woodworking

I used ply on edge around the edges of the baseboard, glued & screwed

Makes a pretty rigid structure.

[Emma H]

I have just had 5 baseboard kits delivered from Grainge & Hodder. Each one is 1200mm x 750mm with a parcel weight of 26Kg. Delivery time was 7 weeks from order placement.

 

The quality of the ply and the laser cutting is vey good.

[Halton Boy]

Hi everyone

Yes the metal dowls would be a good idea.

 

I did use Sundeala board many years ago to clad the walls of an office.

You can buy it with a material surface covering.

 

Thank you for the reassurance Emma.

 

I am thinking of using ModelTech O gauge  ProTrack rail aligners at all the joins.

That would be seven pairs. I am not sure how they would work on the angled join.

It looks like part would overlap the edge of the board.

 

What I need to do now is put some track on the floor and check that the layout plan is interesting to operate.

Thank you for your help

Ken

[Andy Hayter]

It has been mentioned obliquely but the route you will carry these is important.  Doorways are a real challenge getting you and the board through at the same time.

 

You suggest the route is at one level, without actually saying so.  In that case I would consider building a small dolly say 60-90cm long and a bit wider than your boards with 4 castors underneath.  Sit the board side on on the dolly and push it through to its destination.   You then only have to lift on and off at each end.  It may seem excessive for a few metres but it will save a lot of effort.

Edited April 14 by Andy Hayter

[melmerby]

10 minutes ago, Andy Hayter said:

It has been mentioned obliquely but the route you will carry these is important.  Doorways are a real challenge getting you and the board through at the same time.

 

You suggest the route is at one level, without actually saying so.  In that case I would consider building a small dolly say 60-90cm long and a bit wider than your boards with 4 castors underneath.  Sit the board side on on the dolly and push it through to its destination.   You then only have to lift on and off at each end.  It may seem excessive for a few metres but it will save a lot of effort.

I did that some years ago for general use, having seen removal men, scene shifters etc using them.

For castors I used those heavy duty ones with ball bearings on the swivel and large plastic wheels

e.g.

https://www.diy.com/departments/unbraked-heavy-duty-swivel-castor-wc47-dia-80mm-h-107mm-max-weight-70kg/5010952855356_BQ.prd

 

Well worth the effort

[Halton Boy]

Hi Andy

I have a tall sack truck but it is not allowed on the carpet.

I have two door ways and a large sliding patio door to go through.

The patio door has a raised threshold.

When I worked as a maintenance manager my staff used skate boards to move cupboards etc during office moves.

I would purchase lots of them from office supplies companies.

 

I have two skate boards that I purchased from Aldi. I could balance the end of the board on a skate board and lean it towards me.

I could use a cargo strap to anchor the board to the skate board.

I used to be pretty good at moving things on skate boards.

I will fit four carrying handles to each board.   

 

I have revised the plan to allow more box vans in the loop:

I have allowed 300mm for the engine and 280mm for the box vans.

Thank you for your help.

Ken

 

 

[Andy Hayter]

The sack barrow would not help much even if you were allowed to use it.  You would be taking the boards through the door on the wrong axis but one skate board might just do the job.  I suspect 2 would be messy when you get to that raised threshold.  

[fulton]

My baseboards are built with a permeant back board, I use 12mm ply, when not in use or for transport they rest on their backs, using a four wheel skate I can move, the medium to heavy 4' x 2 ' boards with ease, through doorways or across an exhibition hall, stairs or steps are of course a problem requiring two sets of hands, you can just make out the boards on their backs in my van, the backs do take a bit of a bashing so do need to be robust.