I am building a layout in an area where there are frequent electrical storms and outages, I am planning on using a Digitrax DCC system. Can I plug the Command Center and Power supply into a UPS (uninterrupted Power Supply) similar to one you would plug your home computer into?
My son and I have built over 150 feet of road bed using hardboard and hot glue! No waiting! I'd like to
address the question in this month's questions column. What would be the best
way to do this???? Thanks for your great new age publication!
Richard Todd
(The best way to respond to something in a story or column is to use the "Reader Feedback" links at the top or bottom of the story)
My son Ryan and I use hardboard spline for all our main line trackage. We use 1/8th inch material from Home Depot. The center piece of spline needs to be 8 feet long. All the rest can be 3 or 4 feet long. We have the store split the 4X8 in half to make 2-2X8 pieces. For the shorter pieces of spline, we have them cut the sheets into 2-3X4 pieces plus a 2X4 piece. This makes cutting the spline pieces MUCH easier.
We use an inexpensive portable table saw to cut the strips 1 inch wide. Some variance is OK, because we plane the top smooth. . Once uprights are in place, we use 2" drywall screws to keep the spline in place. When you do this, there is nothing but flowing curves! Where straight track is needed, We hot glue 3 pieces to either side of the center spline to straighten it. Once the center spline is the way we want it, we tack it in place with hot glue. After that, one of us runs a strip of hot glue on a 1" X 3' piece of spline and the other one presses it onto the center spline. We use an inexpensive power planer, from Black and Decker, to smooth the top surface. The last step is to spread DAP Alex Plus caulk, pin down the cork, let it dry, spread some more Alex Plus, and lay our flex track.
All of this is detailed in an article I wrote for Railroad Model Craftsman. It was in the December 2011 issue. The article is 5 pages with 16 photographs. I believe it will answer many of your questions.
Doing sub road bed this way uses a minimum of material, and goes up fast. There has NEVER been any warpage on our RR! IT is incredibly strong and quiet. Plus, there are no spring clips or waiting over night!
I have some as yet unbuilt areas on my layout where I intend to use hardboard spline. Not so much for the flowing curves as those are equally easy to create in XTrkCAD and transferred to sawn plywood (the method used thus far in my layout construction). The feature of spline that I especially like and the reason why I am using it in the areas I am is its strength and ability to span large distances without support.
I actually used spline construction in one area of my benchwork. It made creating curved benchwork easy. And it is incredibly strong. I don't know that I would trust the construction to hot glue but I hope that works out for you over the long haul. Assembling spline with conventional liquid adhesives is messy business as I found out. But the end result is strong as steel.
An issue I encountered, and why my whole railroad is not spline, is the requirement that a planer or sander must be used on every bit of it. Where my track passes through the backdrop or in hidden track under the benchwork there is not sufficient headspace for the tools. Added to this is the challenge of getting the sub-roadbed level side to side. Hand planing or sanding offered me no means of guaranteeing level other than trial and err. With cookie cutter plywood I was able to adjust each riser to zero bubble. As I discovered building the benchwork spline there is no adjustment twist possible, or at least within reasonable force, with curved spline. It's pretty dang rigid and resists being moved out of its original plane.
The pic below is 6 layers of 3-1/2" x 1/8" hardboard laminated together.
Morals of the story at least for me.... Spline is great sub-roadbed in specific applications but is not a universal do-all solution. And spline is handy for more than just roadbed.
I was first introduced to spline roadbed by Rod Loder (of CTC machine fame) and he used yellow hot glue to demonstrate the process.
When I finally got around to trying it myself 6 months later, some of the splines Rod did with hot glue had delaminated, so I immediately went with cold yellow carpenter's glue instead and have never seen a delaminating problem. It's messier, but it's a lot more dependable as far as I'm concerned.
Joe Fugate
Publisher, Model Railroad Hobbyist magazine
There is a lazy man's approach to gluing. I often use hot glue as the clamp and white glue, carpenter's glue or two part epoxy as the main event. If you look at the pic in Allan's post above, you'll see two pieces of plywood glued together. If I had done that gluing I would have drawn five small circles about the size of a nickel around the piece, roughly one at each corner and one in the middle, then around those circles, I'd spread white glue. Then into those five round holes I'd quickly, quickly, place hot glue; bring the two pieces together and quickly clamp at both ends for about two minutes, remove clamps and you would have the two pieces glued together. Obviously the white glue won't kick in for quite a while, but for the short haul the hot glue holds the pieces together and acts as a clamp while the white glue dries. You can use this technique with L girder as another example.
With L girder I'd work with a buddy and four clamps, two for me and two for my buddy. I'd make all the L girders in one shot. Again the same principal, some round circles down the wood, spread white glue around the circles, quickly place hot glue in the circles and clamp in four places. Then onto the next piece, but before applying the hot glue, I'd remove the clamps from the first piece to use on the current piece - repeat, repeat, repeat........
Just to keep the record straight..... there is no glue used in my benchwork with the exception of the spline piece. All frame members are mechanically fastened with steel nailing angles all holes filled with #6 x 3/4" screws. Some of the angles can be seen in my photo. All joints are assembled in this manner. Unconventional method I know but it works fantastic.
Again with the exception of the spline, I don't rely on glue for anything structural in my benchwork. FWIW it is solid as a rock and hasn't moved a bit in 3 years nor do I expect it to move in the next 30. You can lean on it, stand on it, accidently bang your head hard into it many times :), and it does not budge. And if need be for modification, I can disassemble it with a screwdriver!
Everyone's situation is different. Model railroading is all about finding what works for you.There is hot glue laminated spline roadbed on our RR that has been in place for 8 years. We use ordinary hot glue sticks. (it can be purchased in 5 pound boxes from Amazon.) Early on, we learned that the spline HAS to be pressed together while the glue is hot and liquid. This is one of the reasons we started using the 3 foot length spline, after the center spline was in place. We discovered that the length of the laminations isn't critical as long as the ends overlap. We discovered this while looking at a glue lam beam, being installed to support the floor of a house.
Clearly, hot gluing spline to make sub road bed isn't for everyone, or every situation. All of our staging is on poly iso roofing insulation under yards and spline main line. It is true that planing the spline is necessary. My son and I found it an easy skill to acquire. Over may years, I have used plywood, osb, (what a disaster!), Homasote, just about anything mentioned in the model railroad press. The spline on this RR has remained strong, silent and stable without sag.
I offered my thoughts as a way to promote discussion. Learning new ways of doing things helps us all grow. (Many of the "new ideas" on our layout have come from my son!)
Comments
Can you use a UPS attached to a DCC sytem.
I am building a layout in an area where there are frequent electrical storms and outages, I am planning on using a Digitrax DCC system. Can I plug the Command Center and Power supply into a UPS (uninterrupted Power Supply) similar to one you would plug your home computer into?
I use a UPS...
I have a Digitrax system and what you said is what I do... I think Bruce Petrarca would say it is a good thing.
Ken Glover,
Date: Mar 23, 2021 - Now working on using my 4 TOMA modules in a 13' x 11' bedroom.
HO Digitrax, Soundtraxx PTB-100, JMRI (LocoBuffer-USB), ProtoThrottle (WiThrottle server)
View My Blog
A UPS is an excellent choice.
A UPS is an excellent way to protect any sensitive electronic device. I would recommend one for a DCC system for sure.
They are not good for high current items like Laser Printers or Compressors.
- Bill
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Modeling the BNML in HO Scale, Admin for the RailPro User Group, & owner of Precision Design Co.
Spline
Richard Todd sent a message using the contact form at
http://model-railroad-hobbyist
My son and I have built over 150 feet of road bed using hardboard and hot glue! No waiting! I'd like to
address the question in this month's questions column. What would be the best
way to do this???? Thanks for your great new age publication!
Richard Todd
(The best way to respond to something in a story or column is to use the "Reader Feedback" links at the top or bottom of the story)
spline roadbed
My son Ryan and I use hardboard spline for all our main line trackage. We use 1/8th inch material from Home Depot. The center piece of spline needs to be 8 feet long. All the rest can be 3 or 4 feet long. We have the store split the 4X8 in half to make 2-2X8 pieces. For the shorter pieces of spline, we have them cut the sheets into 2-3X4 pieces plus a 2X4 piece. This makes cutting the spline pieces MUCH easier.
We use an inexpensive portable table saw to cut the strips 1 inch wide. Some variance is OK, because we plane the top smooth. . Once uprights are in place, we use 2" drywall screws to keep the spline in place. When you do this, there is nothing but flowing curves! Where straight track is needed, We hot glue 3 pieces to either side of the center spline to straighten it. Once the center spline is the way we want it, we tack it in place with hot glue. After that, one of us runs a strip of hot glue on a 1" X 3' piece of spline and the other one presses it onto the center spline. We use an inexpensive power planer, from Black and Decker, to smooth the top surface. The last step is to spread DAP Alex Plus caulk, pin down the cork, let it dry, spread some more Alex Plus, and lay our flex track.
All of this is detailed in an article I wrote for Railroad Model Craftsman. It was in the December 2011 issue. The article is 5 pages with 16 photographs. I believe it will answer many of your questions.
Doing sub road bed this way uses a minimum of material, and goes up fast. There has NEVER been any warpage on our RR! IT is incredibly strong and quiet. Plus, there are no spring clips or waiting over night!
Richard Todd
Spline
I have some as yet unbuilt areas on my layout where I intend to use hardboard spline. Not so much for the flowing curves as those are equally easy to create in XTrkCAD and transferred to sawn plywood (the method used thus far in my layout construction). The feature of spline that I especially like and the reason why I am using it in the areas I am is its strength and ability to span large distances without support.
I actually used spline construction in one area of my benchwork. It made creating curved benchwork easy. And it is incredibly strong. I don't know that I would trust the construction to hot glue but I hope that works out for you over the long haul. Assembling spline with conventional liquid adhesives is messy business as I found out. But the end result is strong as steel.
An issue I encountered, and why my whole railroad is not spline, is the requirement that a planer or sander must be used on every bit of it. Where my track passes through the backdrop or in hidden track under the benchwork there is not sufficient headspace for the tools. Added to this is the challenge of getting the sub-roadbed level side to side. Hand planing or sanding offered me no means of guaranteeing level other than trial and err. With cookie cutter plywood I was able to adjust each riser to zero bubble. As I discovered building the benchwork spline there is no adjustment twist possible, or at least within reasonable force, with curved spline. It's pretty dang rigid and resists being moved out of its original plane.
The pic below is 6 layers of 3-1/2" x 1/8" hardboard laminated together.
Morals of the story at least for me.... Spline is great sub-roadbed in specific applications but is not a universal do-all solution. And spline is handy for more than just roadbed.
Alan
All the details: www.LKOrailroad.com Just the highlights: MRH blog
When I was a kid... no wait, I still do that. HO, 28x32, double deck, 1969, RailPro
I don't trust hot glue
I was first introduced to spline roadbed by Rod Loder (of CTC machine fame) and he used yellow hot glue to demonstrate the process.
When I finally got around to trying it myself 6 months later, some of the splines Rod did with hot glue had delaminated, so I immediately went with cold yellow carpenter's glue instead and have never seen a delaminating problem. It's messier, but it's a lot more dependable as far as I'm concerned.
Joe Fugate
Publisher, Model Railroad Hobbyist magazine
Read my blog
There is a lazy man's
There is a lazy man's approach to gluing. I often use hot glue as the clamp and white glue, carpenter's glue or two part epoxy as the main event. If you look at the pic in Allan's post above, you'll see two pieces of plywood glued together. If I had done that gluing I would have drawn five small circles about the size of a nickel around the piece, roughly one at each corner and one in the middle, then around those circles, I'd spread white glue. Then into those five round holes I'd quickly, quickly, place hot glue; bring the two pieces together and quickly clamp at both ends for about two minutes, remove clamps and you would have the two pieces glued together. Obviously the white glue won't kick in for quite a while, but for the short haul the hot glue holds the pieces together and acts as a clamp while the white glue dries. You can use this technique with L girder as another example.
With L girder I'd work with a buddy and four clamps, two for me and two for my buddy. I'd make all the L girders in one shot. Again the same principal, some round circles down the wood, spread white glue around the circles, quickly place hot glue in the circles and clamp in four places. Then onto the next piece, but before applying the hot glue, I'd remove the clamps from the first piece to use on the current piece - repeat, repeat, repeat........
To glue or not to glue
Just to keep the record straight..... there is no glue used in my benchwork with the exception of the spline piece. All frame members are mechanically fastened with steel nailing angles all holes filled with #6 x 3/4" screws. Some of the angles can be seen in my photo. All joints are assembled in this manner. Unconventional method I know but it works fantastic.
Again with the exception of the spline, I don't rely on glue for anything structural in my benchwork. FWIW it is solid as a rock and hasn't moved a bit in 3 years nor do I expect it to move in the next 30. You can lean on it, stand on it, accidently bang your head hard into it many times :), and it does not budge. And if need be for modification, I can disassemble it with a screwdriver!
Alan
All the details: www.LKOrailroad.com Just the highlights: MRH blog
When I was a kid... no wait, I still do that. HO, 28x32, double deck, 1969, RailPro
Hot glue?????
Everyone's situation is different. Model railroading is all about finding what works for you.There is hot glue laminated spline roadbed on our RR that has been in place for 8 years. We use ordinary hot glue sticks. (it can be purchased in 5 pound boxes from Amazon.) Early on, we learned that the spline HAS to be pressed together while the glue is hot and liquid. This is one of the reasons we started using the 3 foot length spline, after the center spline was in place. We discovered that the length of the laminations isn't critical as long as the ends overlap. We discovered this while looking at a glue lam beam, being installed to support the floor of a house.
Clearly, hot gluing spline to make sub road bed isn't for everyone, or every situation. All of our staging is on poly iso roofing insulation under yards and spline main line. It is true that planing the spline is necessary. My son and I found it an easy skill to acquire. Over may years, I have used plywood, osb, (what a disaster!), Homasote, just about anything mentioned in the model railroad press. The spline on this RR has remained strong, silent and stable without sag.
I offered my thoughts as a way to promote discussion. Learning new ways of doing things helps us all grow. (Many of the "new ideas" on our layout have come from my son!)
Richard Todd