Well, as ever with these things, family and work life have got in the way of the pleasurable hobbies, so time has been limited, but I have turned my attention to baseboards, how best to make them and how to store them.  Yes, it sounds like the start of one those 'Baseboards for Dummies' books!

Open-top, open-plan baseboard

I have done baseboards in the past, the quick and simple way, some 2" x 1" framing to give a study frame, then ply or chipboard on top. They have worked fine, but are not exactly lightweight and definitely fall into the 'flat-earth' category, in that you can only go up, not down.  I wanted this project to take on a different feel for a number of reasons.  Some parts of it (around the goods warehouse) are certainly flat, but the roads may not be.  That pushed me towards an open-top, open-plan baseboard, where the frame and cross-bearers have no top and the track bed baseboard is a little wider than the actual track width, which allows the scenery to built up around the railway.

Although the topic is dealing with curved baseboard edges, this image from @peter220950 posted on the aforementioned thread shows the style that I am thinking about, although as a straight board, rather than with a curved edge.  This set me thinking however, in terms of supporting the railway, is there any benefit to diagonal supports over straight ones?  I would be interested to hear anyone's views or thoughts on this.

I was thinking more straight boxes for the cross-bearers, rather than the diagonal version shown here, purely because it would be easier to cut 'notches' out to position the track bed or roadway.  The thought that I have is to have the baseboard laser cut this time.  I quite enjoy carpentry, although I don't claim to be any good at it!  But with needing to get the interlocks between cross-bearers right, I have concluded that my CAD design and the accuracy of a laser beam is far better than my woodworking skills!

Layout storage

This has brought me to consider storage, as that will have an impact on baseboard size.  In a family house, space is at a premium so any layout will need to be packed away between use.  That brings with it a number of challenges for a layout builder, none of which are insurmountable, but have to be considered at an earlier stage.

• The need to pack it away means that it needs to be as lightweight as possible
• The storage location needs it to be somewhere out of the way, where detail work will not get damaged
• The storage location should also protect the layout from getting dusty.
• When it comes to assembling and removing the layout, multiple baseboards need to go together quickly and easily.
• There is the issue of a stand or 'legs' to consider
• Pointwork needs to be position so that it is not, preferably, next to the edge of the board.
• Wiring needs to be neat, so it does not snag when being moved, and point motors/servos mounted underneath need to be positioned where they will not be knocked.

There are numerous other points and thoughts too, but to me, those are the main things.  It was at this point that I realised that trying to store a 3ft long board, taking the above into mind, was going to be difficult if not someway impossible.  Plenty of potential places to put it, but each one fell foul of one of the above thoughts.  It was then that I came across a post on rmWeb from a chap on the Boxfiles and Diorama's section, where he had build a small model within one of the sturdy plastic containers made by Really Useful Boxes.  

That set me thinking, and having had a good look around I came across some EuroCom boxes that are stackable, and with the addition of a steel frame and casters for around £20 can be made easily movable.   The crates are 600x400mm wide - so around 23" x 15" and either 8" or 12" deep - meaning that for 2FS, it would be quite feasible with some form of a simple stacking system within the crate to stack two 23" x 15" boards on top of each other while ensuring no damage.  The fact that there is a top also keeps the dust to a minimum, and crates are far easier to store than open baseboards!  One other advantage to boards of this size is the ability to lift them out and work on them in the dining room or kitchen, not currently having a specific workbench area.

So I am thinking this is the way I will go forward.  It also means that the baseboards are easily manageable and manoeuvrable by one person.

Connecting boards

The final challenge was how to quickly and easily clip the boards together.  I had thought about using a form of 'over and fasten' clip, where the steel clip on one side has a loop that 'lips' over a stop on the other, but decided against this for two main reasons. Firstly, I am liable to catch my arm or clothes on them and secondly, it would not work if two boards had to be put side-by-and-side and end-to-end.  The idea of pattern makers dowels is great for ensuring the boards line-up perfectly each time, but there is still the issue of holding them together.  A simple bolt and nut is an option, but its messy, time consuming and if two boards are put side-by-side on the table to just do photographs for example, there is no easy access to the underside to put the bolt through.

Then over the last weekend, I picked my iPad Pro up and slotted it onto the keyboard case.  All of a sudden a penny drop moment occurred.  If Apple can hold an iPad in place on a stand with magnets, why can we not do the same with baseboards?  Two magnets that are strong enough to attract each other and not move, but weak enough to allow them to be pulled apart with a little force, could work to hold the boards together, plus it is quick, simple and guaranteed every time.  There is also the option that with magnets that are positioned so they do actually touch each other, along with the brass pattern makers dowels, potentially all the electrical connections between boards could be made this way too (subject to some experimentation) making the setup and break down even quicker.

I concluded that the magnet idea needed some experimentation, so I having had a trawl around eBay, I have purchased 10, what are described as "N52 Super Strong Block Rare Earth Neodymium' magnets.  At 10mm x 5mm x 2mm, they are easily small enough to position two or three along the end of the baseboard.  They should arrive later this week, so I'll report back on the experiment of whether they work and can hold a couple of baseboards together.

Conclusion

So, in some ways not much visible progress, but in other ways things have moved forward.  The one aspect I have not yet thought or considered are 'legs' or a stand of some sort. I have used the DIY style trestles on my American N gauge layout, which work well, but its something else to store and they are quite heavy to move.  I am wondering about detachable or foldable legs of some kind, but I want to make sure it is solid with no wobble being introduced.

As ever, any thoughts, views, comments are welcome, as is feedback form those who have been there and done that - successfully or not!

Rich

Header Image: Ben Brooksbank / Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike license 2.0 - from Wikipedia