Model railway baseboard joints - how to achieve accurate alignment AND easy assembly.

[@WWIIREBEL]

Very nice!. The idea shown of using the sheet brass pieces (Secret #4) for powering the tracks will help me out, as I'm building a shelf layout with a long girder bridge that's between the shelves.

[@paterpracticus]

Excellent! I had intended to make a slightly better looking version, but as the prototype is still working fine I'm reluctant to fiddle.

[@thisisgeoman]

Thankyou for your insights on this. I've never thought of adding alignment pin's and a locking-mechanism. Thankfully I'm in the process of designing my modular layout, so these tips are more than welcome. Thanks again!

[@paterpracticus]

Excellent! Yes, the alignment dowels are definitely worth it and the loose-pin hinges work better that all the clips I've tried in the past. Good luck with your project.

[@handlaidtracksand3dprinted922]

Really nice work! Will be adding a removable bridge between two layout frames next! I'll remember your techniques!

[@paterpracticus]

Really pleased you found it helpful.

[@robertlucas4739]

Excellent video. Like you, I’ve used the locating pins on hardwood ends on my modules. Rails are cemented to a copper clad pcb board which is screwed to the hardwood ends to enable minute height adjustments as necessary. Small brass tubing has been soldered to the rail edges at the end of each module and an inserted pin thru the tubing on both modules stops lateral movement. Lastly, over centre latches to front and rear edges of each module tightly binds and secures modules to its neighbour.

[@paterpracticus]

Also a great idea!

[@robd2184]

Great presentation. I’ve always used traditional nuts and bolts on conventional boards - I’m now experimenting with floating shelves and door bolts and cabinet catches are a rather ungainly joining system…. I’ll certainly try the hinge pins

[@paterpracticus]

I have tried spring-clips in the past and they weren't brilliant. The loose-pin hinges are great as they also add to the alignment accuracy.

[@musoseven8218]

Excellent, everyday is a school day, learned something new after 50 years of modelling 👍💜✌️😊😊

[@paterpracticus]

Lots of great products out there. The ModelTech aligners are brilliantly simple - and actually work!

[@musoseven8218]

@@paterpracticus Sadly not available in my preferred scale🤔🤔

[@paterpracticus]

They do N, OO/HO and O.

[@davekirwin]

Nice little video, great practical demonstration without the waffle.

[@paterpracticus]

Excellent! Glad you liked it.

[@andrewdarley8988]

If you replace the sometimes loose fitting pins in the hinges with snug fitting brass rod inserts (and bend an inch or two at right-angle to form a handle) you dont need the dowels as the hinges will lock the alignment in 3 dimensions. I personally use 3 inch brass hinges mounted vertically on the sides of the boards and it works well with no visual intrusion on the top of the board

[@paterpracticus]

Good tip. I couldn't mount my hinges vertically as my baseboard just sits on the tabletop (or around the Christmas tree) when assembled, so the dowels are really useful in my case.

[@SevenWelt]

Hello, Very Nice work from you!👍 Nice greetings from Germany!🖖🍀

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. Hopefully some useful tips there.

[@neiloflongbeck5705]

And to reduce the visual impact of the gap between the boards you can use Gordon Gravett's trick with parcel tape and IIRC isopron filler as used on cars. You cover one end with parcel tape and smear the next board with the filler clamp them together using whatever technique you prefer until the filler has set. Once set you split the boards the parcel tape prevents the filler from attaching itself to both boards and can be discarded. The visual impact of the gap is much reduced.

[@paterpracticus]

Excellent tip! Once I get the other side of the join fully developed I can blend it all in.

[@ngaugefouroaksstreetstatio6932]

Beautifully done, very neat and practical.

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. Glad you enjoyed it.

[@richcatsinthewelder5232]

Nice neat technique, I've not seen the rail aligners before. With a similar issue of joining two boards that didn't have much depth I used magnetic handbag clasps. They do much the same thing as the dowels but being magnetic also hold it together and conduct the electrical connections. Not quite as accurate though.

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. The track aligners are great, but I'm not sure how widely available they are. I also looked at alignment dowels that have electrical connectors, but they weren't really suitable for my solid MDF baseboard. Ultimately, I think it is the combination of dowels, aligners and the loose pin hinges that combine for accuracy.

[@vicenterodriguez6491]

Excelente solución. Muy agradecido por su aporte.👌

[@paterpracticus]

Great! Glad you found it useful.

[@HumancityJunction]

Nice Presentation of alignment products.

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. Hopefully something useful for everyone - regardless of the size of layout.

[@microrails]

What brand is the track tester? Dan in Longview Washington USA. Nice video!

[@paterpracticus]

My one is from Golden Valley Hobbies, www.goldenvalleyhobbies.com/power-control-electrical/gvvolt-golden-valley-hobbies-railway-track-voltage-and-polarity-tester-analogue-digital but there are other similar ones out there. It is really simple and amazingly useful.

[@speleokeir]

A really helpful video. Thank you.

[@paterpracticus]

Glad you found it useful. Hope it will help in your project.

[@beatsinabar]

Nice little learner! BTW, maybe copper tape would substitute for your brass electrical contacts?

[@paterpracticus]

I have used self-adhesive copper tape for contacts between loco bodies and chassis for lights etc. but the slightly more rigid brass has that little bit of spring to it, which helps make better contacts on the baseboard.

[@totokdenmase5051]

how much minimum distance between railways, so the two trains will not crash?

[@paterpracticus]

The rails are 'set track' so the circles have fixed diameters. Because my layout is quite small - with an overall width of 1m - I am using 1st and 2nd radius track, which are 371mm and 438mm respectively. These distances being from the centre of the layout to the middle of the sleepers of each track. This means the centres of the two concentric rails are 67mm apart. This means even on a tight circle, the trains don't crash.

[@eddiemurie]

You could sell these as ready to run Christmas layouts for under the tree? Unfortunately I don’t have any woodworking skills!

[@paterpracticus]

Funnily enough, my layout does double up as our Christmas tree railway. I’m planning a central section for when it is in table-top use.

[@franzbrunner499]

it looks kind of easy, and therefore i'm sure its difficult and needs lots of finemechanical skills (which i don't have) well done, looks perfect at 7:26 you bring the 2 halves together and i noticed half#1 has a dowel with the nose and a dowel with the "hole" -obviously half#2 has the same dowels at opposite position -is there a specific reason for that? could be one half with 2 "nose" dowels, the other half with 2 "hole" dowels, right? thank you

[@paterpracticus]

Yes, you can fit both dowel pairs the same way round, it doesn’t really make any difference. Just make sure you don’t get one pair nose to nose. In terms of skill, as mostly things like the rail aligners are fitted in the ‘assembled’ state, the fit isn’t left to chance, and you’ll know they line up when the sections are re-assembled.

[@ronselliers6951]

Now where do I find rail aligners for G-gauge!

[@paterpracticus]

Ah! You've got me there.

[@bigfella1952]

Great informative video. The fitting of dowels prior to baseboard assembly is brilliant. Is it better to fit one male and one female to end strips, or two of the same.. My new layout has two levels of track work, would you advise two sets of dowels ? The spray of flock is a great idea. Well done that man.. Definitely worth a like and subscribing to your channel. x The Bigfella x

[@paterpracticus]

I think two dowel pairs per joint is enough, even with two levels - they will line up the whole thing fine. The orientation doesn't really matter - just make sure they are in pairs, which might be easier if you do both males and both females either side of the join.

[@RoyBigBoy]

Absolutely brilliant

[@paterpracticus]

Glad you found it useful.

[@philkirk4571]

Really helpful thank you!

[@paterpracticus]

Excellent. I have to put my small layout together and take it apart again for each running (or modelling) session, so I needed something that was quick, but really reliable.

[@matthius519]

what glue do you use for the track thanks

[@paterpracticus]

Most of the track is stuck down using a PVA wood glue, spread over the track bed. The ballast is added over the sleepers while the glue is still wet (check out my ballasting video). For the track aligners, the rails are soldered to the metal layer on the top. If you don’t have a soldering iron you can glue them - I suggest an epoxy, rather than superglue.

[@TwoRailfans]

Very helpful video!

[@paterpracticus]

Thank you. My previous layout's joints were a pain to assemble, but the dowels and rail aligners are great. The hinges also work much better than the spring clips I tried before. Sometimes simplicity is the best.

[@randywise5241]

Cool tips. Thanks.

[@paterpracticus]

Great! Glad it was helpful.

[@dibsyardshuntinglayout]

Brilliant tips!

[@paterpracticus]

Glad you think so!

[@MyEmerson17]

Excellent video thank you

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. Hopefully some useful tips in there.

[@bcsferromodelismo3822]

🇧🇷🚂👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Excellent work!

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. Hope it was useful.

[@johnmartin4650]

Thank you…..I’ve got a circular track….

[@paterpracticus]

Cool. My next mission is to make a centre to my doughnut, and then extend the scenics to the other side of the board.

[@elh3809]

nun ja die idee ist nicht schlecht---ob das ganze PERFEKT ist das bezweifle ich. es gibt wesentlich bessere technische möglichkeiten 2 solcher platten zu verbinden. die elektrische verbindung ist primitiv. das ganze wirkt diletantisch.

[@paterpracticus]

Thanks. I did say it was an experiment, and wanted to do a better job in the future, but perhaps that got lost in translation. Appreciate the input none the less.

[@franzbrunner499]

können Sie da eine möglichkeit aufzeigen -als anfänger suche ich nun schon eine weile für eine gute lösung, und heute dachte ich: "die ist richtig gut"