Baseboards

[oldrocker]

Hi,

I have done a search but couldn't come up with anything.

What do you think is best, Sundeala or MDF?

Small layout about 10' by 2'6"

Thanks.

[leviathan1949]

Size of layout doesn't really come in to it.
LOCATION is what counts.
Indoors, steady temperature, steady humidity, sundeala or mdf is your choice. Very little problem with either material.
Outdoors, wild temperature variations, wild humidity variations, mdf is your only choice. Above a certain humidity level, sundeala appears to absorb the moisture causing warping of the boards.
If you want to use sundeala as a personal preference and you are going to build this outdoors in a garage or outhouse, then an alternative is to use ply backed sundeala. Make the baseboard frame, then fix a ply board to the frame. Finally fix the sundeala to the ply base.
It does make for a solid and heavy structure but no warping.
Another alternative that I have seen some modellers use is polystyrene. Extremely light and easy to work with. Just need to take a bit of care when building and working the polystyrene. Track is glued down not pinned.

[trains2]

I used MDF simply because it is cheaper and more readily available - you have to go to a specialist timber merchant to get Sundeala I found.

Rich

[ianm42]

Both Sundeala and MDF have fallen out of favour for layout building, mainly down to changing size when they get damp. MDF is also very heavy.

Most new exhibition layout are being built using good quality plywood, using model aircraft type ribbed construction, and ply base only where the tracks will go. The resulting baseboards are light, flexible and stable.

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/history.html

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/base/under2c.jpg

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/base/boxedup1.jpg

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/base/2mod2.jpg

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/base/2modtop.jpg

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/base/under1b.jpg

http://www.daveh.org.uk/hwyard/base/under2a.jpg