Benchwork Lumber?
- Thread starter macjet
- Start date
ModelRailroadForums.com is a free Model Railroad Discussion Forum and photo gallery. We cover all scales and sizes of model railroads. Online since 2002, it's one of the oldest and largest model railroad forums on the web. Whether you're a master model railroader or just getting started, you'll find something of interest here.
That is exactly what I'm thinking. I am building mine in 2'X5' modules but that is so I can move it to the new house in a few years. I have not intention of using them for free-mo road use.
Very interesting. Thanks for the information.
Real-world experience.
Actually, most dimensional lumber used in houses is not pine. If you look at a stud, it will say SPF, which means spruce/pine/fir. It could be black spruce, jack pine, or douglas fir. All woods with similar properties, but not likely white pine (or at least not very knot-free white pine) since white pine is prized for furniture, trim and other finished products.
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a commision from some of the links and ads shown on this website (Learn More Here)
wheeler1963
Wheeler's Trains
What reasons do they give?? On the 2 layouts I have built over the years, I used pine both times and never had a problem with the benchwork.
macjet
Member
S2.1 Endplates shall be 3/4" plywood or equivalent (birch plywood works well) to provide sufficient strength for clamping to adjacent modules. (FAQ 2.1, RP2.1.1)
RP2.1.1 Avoid Dimensional Pine Lumber for your frame work. It has a tendency to warp and "cup" with age, throwing off track alignment. It has also been found that plywood (birch plywood works well) warps and twists less than dimension lumber (3/4 inch pine boards). (FAQ 2.1)
I've worked with a lot of wood in my days. I've never cut birch plywood down to make 1x4, 1x2, etc. I'd really like to avoid that. If you say pine is OK then pine it is.
RP2.1.1 Avoid Dimensional Pine Lumber for your frame work. It has a tendency to warp and "cup" with age, throwing off track alignment. It has also been found that plywood (birch plywood works well) warps and twists less than dimension lumber (3/4 inch pine boards). (FAQ 2.1)
I've worked with a lot of wood in my days. I've never cut birch plywood down to make 1x4, 1x2, etc. I'd really like to avoid that. If you say pine is OK then pine it is.
wheeler1963
Wheeler's Trains
macjet, I'm sure that is the "NEW" and "IMPROVED" way of doing it. LOL But that seems like a lot of cutting of plywood. I'm sure some of our other members can give their experiences with pine and or other products. My first layout was the old L girder design. It could hold up a house it was so strong. I'm leaning towards the newer 2" foam with 1X4 design on the one I'm starting now.
macjet
Member
That is exactly what I'm thinking. I am building mine in 2'X5' modules but that is so I can move it to the new house in a few years. I have not intention of using them for free-mo road use.
There's pine and then there's pine. 
Knot free and straight pine lumber tends stay good for its life. If you cheap out with #2 grade and below, you can have some warping problems although not as bad as the fre-mo boys make it out to be. Just get good quality dimensional pine that's already straight and as knot free as possible and you'll do fine. I've built many layouts with dimensional pine for framing and I've never had a problem.
Knot free and straight pine lumber tends stay good for its life. If you cheap out with #2 grade and below, you can have some warping problems although not as bad as the fre-mo boys make it out to be. Just get good quality dimensional pine that's already straight and as knot free as possible and you'll do fine. I've built many layouts with dimensional pine for framing and I've never had a problem.
Doc Holliday
Gentleman Gambler
I used exterior grade 3/4" plywood, ripped into 3.5" widths. Although it was a little work, it was cheaper than dimensional pine and stronger. I have a table saw which made it easy. I topped the frame with 1/2" ply. My layout is an 8' x 11' "L" shape entirely on rolling casters so I can move it away from the wall. It is a little on the heavy side, but when I pull on one end I know the entire things is going to come with it.
Doc
Doc
wheeler1963
Wheeler's Trains
macjet, keep us up to date with lots of pictures as you progress.
macjet
Member
Squidbait
Recovering ALCo-holic
Pine is great for a standalone layout. The Freemo (and most other modular groups) are concerned about dimensional stability. For a home layout that sits in one place for a long period of time, the changes in the pine will be minimal.
For a module that will be trucked around to different locations, indoors, outdoors, different temps, different humidities, you don't want to have to wait hours or days for it to equilibrate to the environment. Plywood is slow to dry/humidify, and is much more durable for clamping together (notice they specified the endplates). Pine is very soft, and a few hits with the C-clamps would make it look like the cratered surface of the moon.
For a module that will be trucked around to different locations, indoors, outdoors, different temps, different humidities, you don't want to have to wait hours or days for it to equilibrate to the environment. Plywood is slow to dry/humidify, and is much more durable for clamping together (notice they specified the endplates). Pine is very soft, and a few hits with the C-clamps would make it look like the cratered surface of the moon.
macjet
Member
Very interesting. Thanks for the information.
MacJet, you frame it square, plumb, and securely with plenty of screws to it and your sub-roadbed, you're not going to have the problem the Freemo boys are imagining. Crap, I don't know where people get all this nonsense. Pine is the most used type of lumber for framing houses. (Guess it is the crooked little man in the crooked little house
.)
.)The stuff used to build homes is not as straight as you think it is...
-mac
-mac
MacJet, you frame it square, plumb, and securely with plenty of screws to it and your sub-roadbed, you're not going to have the problem the Freemo boys are imagining. Crap, I don't know where people get all this nonsense. Pine is the most used type of lumber for framing houses. (Guess it is the crooked little man in the crooked little house
Squidbait
Recovering ALCo-holic
Real-world experience.
Pine is the most used type of lumber for framing houses. (Guess it is the crooked little man in the crooked little house
Actually, most dimensional lumber used in houses is not pine. If you look at a stud, it will say SPF, which means spruce/pine/fir. It could be black spruce, jack pine, or douglas fir. All woods with similar properties, but not likely white pine (or at least not very knot-free white pine) since white pine is prized for furniture, trim and other finished products.
kenw
5th Generation Texian
most housing pine is yellow pine, at least where houses are still being built; that would be the southern US. It is more dense and stronger than the white woods. SPF wood is so labelled because the properties of any of the variants are equal.
dimensional yellow pine is fine, if that is what available in your area (it varies by region). just make sure you buy quality, and it might be a good idea to actually LOOK at it when you buy it. Warping, twisting, cupping and the other standard defects, along with loose knots, are rather easy to spot if you just take the time. If you get your lumber at the Big Box store, you might have to crawl thru a lot of junky #3 wood to find those that you want. If you do this, make sure the bundle has been unstrapped for some time, as a still-bound bundle will not have let the warping, twisting ,etc become visible.
A better choice is to go down the aisle a bit to find the better grade, where almost every stick is fine. The #3 grade 2x4 is maybe $2, the better stuff $4. So a module needs maybe 3 of them? That's a whopping $6 you saved.....
If you are just building a module, heck, buy mohogany. The amount of wood vs the cost of the overall project is insigificant. Likewise, on a module especially, it makes little sense to save $6 using cheap, warped, green lumber (of ANY kind), and then spend a year working on the topside details.
Now, if you REALLY want solid, get some Hardiplank......and a forklift.
dimensional yellow pine is fine, if that is what available in your area (it varies by region). just make sure you buy quality, and it might be a good idea to actually LOOK at it when you buy it. Warping, twisting, cupping and the other standard defects, along with loose knots, are rather easy to spot if you just take the time. If you get your lumber at the Big Box store, you might have to crawl thru a lot of junky #3 wood to find those that you want. If you do this, make sure the bundle has been unstrapped for some time, as a still-bound bundle will not have let the warping, twisting ,etc become visible.
A better choice is to go down the aisle a bit to find the better grade, where almost every stick is fine. The #3 grade 2x4 is maybe $2, the better stuff $4. So a module needs maybe 3 of them? That's a whopping $6 you saved.....
If you are just building a module, heck, buy mohogany. The amount of wood vs the cost of the overall project is insigificant. Likewise, on a module especially, it makes little sense to save $6 using cheap, warped, green lumber (of ANY kind), and then spend a year working on the topside details.
Now, if you REALLY want solid, get some Hardiplank......and a forklift.
Last edited by a moderator:
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a commision from some of the links and ads shown on this website (Learn More Here)