Building Platforms

[Dave777]

And there's always Superglue. Tesco do these huge Value things in their bargain bins where you get something like 15 tubes for £1. Not as good quality as the proper stuff I find, but I've successfully used these to superglue the life out of something and get materials to stick together that normally might not. At that price I'm not afraid to blob the stuff on and take a 'one tube - one use' approach.

[Edwin_m]

I found that PVA wouldn't fix Plastikard to wood very well, it dried OK but separated with a gentle tug. I may be doing something wrong here but I found UHU worked much better.

[Chubber]

If PVA , let down by about 25% water is brushed on to plasticard and allowed to dry,you'll have no problem PVA-ing card or wood to it.

 

Hope this suggestion helps,

 

Doug

[MarkC]

bookmarked - some good stuff on this thread

[gordon s]

Found this thread last night as I'm in the middle of building platforms for ET. I've followed the suggestion from dasatcopthorne and used 6mm mdf strips to form the base and 2mm mdf for the top. I'm happy with the result so far, but still a little unsure how to deal with the top surface. I played around last night with some individual rectangles of white plasticard and stuck them down to create edging stones and they are OK, but not wonderful. Perhaps they'll look better once painted.

 

I seem to be drawing a blank with the platform surface itself. Here I've had to compromise and haven't included an inner slope or drains, primarily for time reasons and I'd rather build something to develop my skills first and then perhaps replace it at a later date once the layout is up and running. Should you lay the platform surface first and add the edge stones afterwards or just mask off the edging and then paint?

 

I may opt for a tarmac type finish and sprayed up one of the platform sections last night with suede finish that will need to be overpainted with a dirty black, but have heard of wet and dry paper being used as a surface.

 

If I go for a slab surface, are there any reasonable looking plastic sheets than can be used for edging or a slabbed surface? Most of the embossed ones I have seen on the web appear to be heavily embossed and not really suitable. Maybe it's just the pics that are exaggerating the patterns.

 

I have to remake this first test piece as I broke off the ramp last night, so now is a good time to try alternatives and I'd welcome your suggestions.

 

[steve22]

Gordon S, I've made a short platform entirely out of Depron (the foam plastic they use instead of newspaper these days for your fish and chips). You can buy it in multiple packs of large sheets, various thickness, so it works out 'cheap as chips'. It can be scribed very successfully as paving slabs, stonework and brickwork, etc. as it retains the scribed marks. My fault was also scribing too deeply but I just wanted a test piece. I've taken several pictures of the platform I made but I can't seem to resize them for this site. I'll maybe try to take pictures again at a lower resolution and see if I can post them. The result weighs practically nothing but can be glued to a baseboard if you wish. Or make the base from some form of timber and clad thin sheets of Depron on top and sides and scribe away. I'm also experimenting with Depron for a track base (underlay) You can sand it for the chamfer but generally you do need to be careful as it does tear very easily and I've yet to master the art of cutting vertically and true to a line.

Steve.

[gordon s]

Thanks Steve. I have some sheets of Depron here that I bought when I thought it might be OK for track underlay. It wasn't to be as I found some issues with solvents etc, all of which were resolved, but I found it dented too easily and probably wasn't suitable for track underlay. I hadn't thought about it for platforms. The colouring/texture would be perfect for a platform surface, but the 3mm thickness would be too thick for the edging. My other concern would it was too fragile on exposed edges and would break off.

 

I would like to see some pics though if you can resize them.

[theoldmansminion]

just out of intrest,

 

 

is it better to ballast, and or weather the track below adding the platform?

[gordon s]

I guess it's each to their own, but I'm ballasting all my track and weathering the platform side walls before adding the platform surface.

[Karhedron]

Am working in N so the biggest challenge is going to be the gravelly surface at the ends, anyone got any ideas for convincing 2mm fine gravel.

I have been quite pleased with the finish of the Tamiya textured paint. They produce a light and dark pavement colour which includes fine ceramic particles that give a decent impression of asphalt and similar surfaces. I have used them in the car park as my platforms are Ratio and have a pre-textured surface. You can see pictures of the sort of finish they give here.

 

http://www.model-making.eu/Tamiya-Diorama-Texture-Paint-a-Pavement-effect-Dark-Gray-p-6-1776159.html

 

http://www.model-making.eu/Tamiya-Diorama-Texture-Paint-a-Pavement-effect-Light-Gray-p-6-1776164.html

[ohanlonmartin]

Finally sorted out the make up for my 00 gauge platforms, started with a base of 13mm thick chipboard, then after much searching managed to obtain sheets of 2mm hardboard for the tops and to create the overhang, finished off with the self adhesive sheets printed with the Scalescenes paving download

 

The hardboard tops were stuck to the chipboard with timber bonding adhesive using the bog standard sealing gun you apply sealants with around the house.

 

Next problem was the white edging line and eventually after many failures with insulating tape decided on sticking narrow strips of the self adhesive sheets (plain white) along the edges first and then overlaying with the paving sheets to the platform edges.

 

Lastly made up a gauge from 2mm hardboard which allows me to run along the platform edge with a Stanley knife blade, then remove the cut strip of paving to finish with a white line of 2-3mm visible.

 

Benath the overhang the "walls" of the platforms are finished with Metcalfe red brick sheeting.

 

Probably not the most correct or authentic method but for a rank novice with around 40ft of platform to make up it has proven a quick fix and fairly decent finish, just a quick thanks to John of Scalescens who promptly answered several e-mails with help, usual disclaimer just a very satisfied customer.

 

At this point I have abouth 1/3 of the platforms finshed, by the way all platforms are stright line finishes with no curves but if curves were a feature the 2mm hardboard is extremely easy to work with and I used a tin snips to cut angles where turnouts were located, for curves drawn straight on to the hardboard it would be a doddle to cut those to shape with a tin snips.