Post by steeve on May 6, 2019 20:30:36 GMT 1
With my usual reverse usuage of the seasons I have finally got on with proper supports for the intended "in house tabletop" oo-ho layout. Previously I had the oak cabinets closer to the wall and I needed quite a large overhang, supported by ply sheet, for the dogbone curves at either end. This worked ok for testing the models but was a bit flexy and a pain for accessing the drawers. Cutting up standard sheet wood suggested a baseboard width of 83cm for the straight run, easy enough to reach across and perhaps wide enough to allow some snaking past hills and industries. The width increases near the door to 100 cm which will be fine for most diesels and the Rivarossi style "double pivot" articulated but will fail the longer brass locos. I wanted to make the system relatively sympathetic to the wall (why do the french go for this vile interior "pebbledash") and furniture but I could not see the point cutting multiple support legs so battens have been screwed in to wall (and with much thinner screws to the rear of the cabinets) the frames resting on top of these provide cross supports approx every 40 cm. I intend to put half inch ply on top of these and then half inch fibreboard. Although I could cut through that inch of thickness without necessarily runining the cabinet tops the near half of the trackwork and wiring will no doubt rely on surface mounting. This will give me around 10m of baseboard. I do have an idea of putting a diamond drill to the glass door whereupon I get an extra 40m of corridor to play with. I would consider it a joy to have a 100m loop, certainly it would still be simple tail chasing but at least there would be a gap and some possibility of running 10 coach passenger or 50 car freights without it looking too stupid.
Much to my annoyance OFL stopped making this design of cabinet about 6 months after I had bought them. I do have to say that it is a B expensive method of supporting a layout but it does give a reasonable amount of storage and I think that the chosen plain cabinet design will not look dated as and when my children take it over or sell it on. I would add a comment for anyone considering anything similar in that the oak furniture manufactures seem to think that making the drawers only 2/3 the available length is a good idea!
I could still do with hints as to where to get full sheets of fibreboard in the Bellac-Limoges-Poitiers area, Does it have a general name?.
Much to my annoyance OFL stopped making this design of cabinet about 6 months after I had bought them. I do have to say that it is a B expensive method of supporting a layout but it does give a reasonable amount of storage and I think that the chosen plain cabinet design will not look dated as and when my children take it over or sell it on. I would add a comment for anyone considering anything similar in that the oak furniture manufactures seem to think that making the drawers only 2/3 the available length is a good idea!
I could still do with hints as to where to get full sheets of fibreboard in the Bellac-Limoges-Poitiers area, Does it have a general name?.
