Flying doors are a GO!

[rpierce000]

I have permission from the wife to build a layout on 2-3 doors. These will be laid on their sides and each one will be able to be separately raised to the ceiling.

When lowered I will devise some method of linking them together (Track, physically and electronically). Initially this will be a DC layout, but DCC is definitely in the design criteria.

More details as things firm up. In an unusual twist the benchwork will be built BEFORE the track is designed. This is because the space I have to work in will be dictated by what I can build to fly, to build what I need for the layout.

[The_Ghan]

Bob,

Here's what I built (see attachments), although I ended up building 3 panels wide instead of 2, because I wanted gentler, sweeping curves.  I'm also only working on one half of my layout at present, until I can organise a suspended system similar to that which you talked about.

I sit the layout on folding tressle tables.  If you're using doors you will need stiffeners - I once had a Hornby OO layout on a couple of doors and they did bow.

However, I did need to make one modification: the Maxifix 35s were skewing by about 1mm ( 1/24") when I tightened them.  To get around this, I purchased some 50mm dowel and cut it into 50mm lengths.  I milled a very slight taper - about 2mm - and fixed them into one of the 50mm holes on each joining side.  This meant that when I slot two panels together they meet very precisely, even when the Maxifixes are tightened.  I can get away without and rail joiners where track spans the panels - so long as those pieces of track are glued to prevent any movement.

Have a look at the drawings and tell me what you think.

Cheers,

The_Ghan

[quinntopia]

I sit the layout on folding tressle tables.  If you're using doors you will need stiffeners - I once had a Hornby OO layout on a couple of doors and they did bow.

I'll second that...one of the problems of hollow-core doors is that they will bow.  The more scenery and other weight you put on them, the worse it gets! I discovered this the hard way. 

[Webskipper]

Well, 1/4 inch wood pins will do the trick for alignment.

Kato expander track will fix the gaps.

Have fun!

[The_Ghan]

The bowing was caused by moisture.  Make sure those doors are fully sealed, even if they are solid-core.  That was my downfall.  Three or four years of the doors unsealed on the under side meant warping.  But then, I was 14 ... who's to know at that age?

Cheers

The_Ghan

[cteno4]

i beg to differ. i think it may be in the quality of the doors being used. i have used hollow core doors for years and years and they have rarely warped. we use to create the whole design office out of them with doors, sawhorses and small drawer cubes.

i have two 7' x 2' ones (home depot luan doorskin) here in my office supported at each end by roll around drawer units and they have been flat and true for 10 years with lots of not so light crap piled all over them. im thinking they can take the weight of a small layout and then lift at like 25% in from the ends on the sides and i would doubt they would ever warp. moisture due to scenery could potentially cause problems with warping. painting them first (or buying pre-primed doors) might help this. or varnishing them first might also help. one issue with warping we found with the new thin jrm modules was even though the modules were sealed and totally flat and true after two coats of varnish, we put a coat of latex house paint on the top. this then warped most of the modules up a couple of mm. i was amazed that the latex shrinkage could do this differentially on one side! most of that has come out with time (i guess the paint relaxed or cracked a bit) but it was pretty shocking!

if warping was an issue you could just screw a couple strips of 1" L bracing along the two long sides.

like webskipper said simple dowel pegs should do your alignment. only trick is to drill the holes just right. to do this get yourself a doweling jig (like $15) or you could make a simple jig that would fit over the end of the module and locate the hole in the right place (you can make this so it reverses and it will come out exact).

we use pins like this on our new jrm modular layout and it works great. we just have the track break at the module interfaces and just clip the tracks together once the alignment is started by the pegs. you can use expansion tracks if you want, but be careful these can cause problems if put right near curves.

http://japanrailmodelers.org/photos/newlayoutmodules/index.html

cheers

jeff