Model Railway Basics

Baseboard

The baseboard is the most important part of any model railway. Considering the whole thing has to be fixed to it for a long time!

Generally baseboards are made from Chipboard, mainly for it's strength and durability, it's also quite cheap!

Baseboards that are to be moved often, or to be kept in extreme heat or cold, should be strengthened with bars across the underside as pictured below.

 

This is the baseboard with just a frame around the edges.	For extra strength, you can add bars as shown above in red.

The frames can be nailed or screwed onto the underside, as long as they are secure! They are also handy for threading wire through when that stage arrives. 

If you are building a portable layout, or even if you just need somewhere to stand it, you will need some legs.

 

The legs when opened out	A side view of the legs

The legs can be built as shown on the right. Two hinges can then be fixed to the top of two legs as shown on the left. A piece of string on the bottom rung can stop the legs from spreading out any more than needed. 

The base board can then be seated upon two sets of legs. They may not look strong, but they are excellent for their purpose.