Model Railroad Benchwork Made Easy. MRRTwo Part 1

[@kents.2866]

Here's a trick for gluing wood together. Since wood glue can get pretty slippery. Sprinkle some table salt on your glue, the salt grit digs into the wood but will eventually dissolve in the glue.

[@_steffinwolf_]

Brilliant!

[@billlinge4598]

For more portability (to shows or your local club), use wing-nuts and carriage bolts instead of screws to attach the legs to the base... and R Wissbaum's comment about adjustable legs is also good... I have height-adjustable locking casters mounted on the bottom of my legs via the T nuts. Got all the hardware as standard supplies at my local hardware/home remodeling warehouses... you know the corporate names for the ones near you.

[@davidwilliams1060]

I appreciate that you kept it simple.

[@What_If_We_Tried]

As I am planning my first layout, your videos are very much appreciated.

[@mark.scale.models]

Very excited to see this unfold! I have an HO scale switching layout on my longer term project list too (and am working on a 1x6' n scale one now). Thanks for breaking it down into a series for us to follow along!

[@melkitson]

That looks fairly solid Jimmy. Nicely explained.

[@Trains-With-Shane]

Nice bench work! Do you plan on putting any kind of feet, casters, etc. on the legs? When my brother did his bench work he put little adjustable feet on the legs so he could dial in the level. Which was helpful since he moved his benchwork around from time to time and the floors he's on aren't exactly level.

[@Keith80027]

I added screw in feet too to level on non level areas. Great well built structure for the trackwork.

[@shawnpowell5876]

Great video and tutorial of the new table you're building! I think it's a great height and size. I'm building a L shaped switching layout that's 8'x8'x16" and decided on this to not use up my floor space in the spare bedroom. Thanks again for sharing your videos Jimmy and look fwd to seeing the next one. Cheers from Delmar, Delaware.

[@sams2960]

safety issue: One should never operate a power tool (drill) towards one's body as you did when drilling and screwing the L girder legs. One slip and and it's either band aid time or trip to the ER. Not a lecture, just Been There Done That - learning the hard way!

[@Jason_DPMF]

I like the saying: cut to your buddy not to your body.

[@DinsdalePiranha67]

Having done this exercise a few times myself, I'll say that if you have two drills it can save you a little time. I have a corded drill (handed down by my dad; it's probably almost as old as I am) which I use for drilling holes and a cordless for driving screws.

[@rwissbaum9849]

Since I have NO even floors in my house, I like to add adjustable feet to the legs: Glue and screw a 4" length of 2x2 into the inside corner of each L leg, flush with the bottom. Drill a hole in the 2x2 from the bottom to accept a T nut, pound the T nut in with a hammer, and finally screw in the adjustable feet.

[@neilharbott8394]

What are your thoughts on using a 3x3 across the bottom of the leg for this purpose? I have the same issues with no flat floors, but my thought is that since the leg is then resting on the support structure, it may have a little more strength - of course I may be over engineering it! 🙂

[@rwissbaum9849]

@@neilharbott8394 Truthfully, it mostly depends on what you have on hand, or what you can easily buy. Wood is incredibly strong as long as it is in compression. My current layout is on casters, and the legs are 2x2s connected by 1x3s on either side, flush with the bottom. The casters attach to the 1x3s, so the weight of the legs is transferred to the casters through those side joints, which are - as always - glued and screwed. I weigh over 300 pounds, and before I attached the table top to the L girder frame, I tested the strength by doing dips on the frame (I locked the casters first!). No problem. (Since I made my layout movable with casters, I went perhaps a little overboard with cross bracing on the legs. Not sure the extra 3x3 cross brace adds much if you're not going to move the layout.)

[@jhoodfysh]

Good job Jimmy. I will be able to use some of these ideas

[@evanhizon8112]

I used 2x4 because I did not know any better. In the end, I constructed a table that is so strong that you can put a car on it. lol

[@SteveH-TN]

Thanks for sharing this easy project and detailed information.

[@joeraderblackrockcentralrr]

WELL demonstrated

[@pawpawelizabeth669]

FWIW, I 3D printed some jigs to make sure my screw pilot holes were perfectly vertical. Also put casters on my legs so I can roll the layout (15’ X 10’) out when I need to work on the back. Your floor needs to be relatively level for that.

[@harperlarry49]

Others beat me to it....use nuts and bolts to attach the legs and use adjustable feet on those legs. Great start!! Looking forward to seeing more on this new layout.

[@ralphgreenwood5857]

Excellent Vid Jimmy!!👍😊

[@loispadgett6306]

Thanks it always fun to start watching the start of a new layout. Looking forward to this new series. Will done on the tutorial for the framework of the bench work. GOD BLESS 🚂💖🚂💖🚂💖

[@andycrawford9870]

Go Ryobi! They should pay you a royalty for using nearly everyone of the their battery powered hand tools.😀

[@El_Crab]

love the video

[@dougdunlap5889]

love your videos. my bench work is going up now.1x3 stock 2ft. wide various lengths. cross supports very 2ft . i will use 2 inch foam board on top. do I need to put underlayment for that too? or will that 2inch foam board be enough for HO lay out?

[@shawncrawford5071]

What was the thickness of the plywood used?

[@jackheninger5471]

Using a 1x12 for a layout base instead of a piece of plywood seemed like a waste of money until I did a bit of price comparison, and then you add in the quality of todays plywood and I think you made a good choice. If I ever have the space to expand I will be taking a closer look at cost and quality.

[@petermenningen338]

Check out the laminated shelving material it is competitive in price and does not warp like solid pine.

[@jackheninger5471]

@@petermenningen338 I'll have to make a trip to Lowes or Menards or... and ask about that. I've never heard of it. Thanks for the suggestion.

[@thezfunk]

I was at Rockler talking to the guys in the store and with the price of nice plywood still so high, he said it is cheaper for him to make solid wood drawer boxes right now.

[@scottklusendorf5756]

Easy for those with experience, foreign for dummies like me with none.

[@HumancityJunction]

You are going to need a bigger house if you keep dabbling in larger scales. Will O scale be next?

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

You may be on to something....

[@aaronl_trains_and_planes]

Ever used a Kreg Jig? It is so much faster, and super strong for making the legs and the base. BTW - I'm drinking Death Wish Coffee Valhalla.

[@KerleyExpress]

nice how to

[@airworks7809]

Hah, there us a weather video in your playlist.

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

hahaha! That was random. It is gone now

[@Maurice00PA]

Nice job. What size drill bit did you use for the pilot holes and what size were the 2" screws? Cheers and stay safe.

[@randysrockandrollrailroad8207]

😊

[@Grampa-el3kz]

I carriage bolted my legs on.

[@mikedulle1149]

A 3/8 4x8 sheet of plywood works better!