Model Railroading > 4x8 Table Top for a Kid

Recently someone contacted me via neighborhood social media, because they found out I'm a model railroader. She said her 8 yr. old wanted a a table top to build a model railroad, as he already had the trains. She had purchased a table at an auction, but it was too small. Could she just buy a 4x8 piece of plywood and lay it on top of the table, she asked. I advised her that even if it was 3/4 in. plywood, it would not be stable enough and likely warp and that I could build it for her if she would purchase the materials. (I am NOT charging her for anything. ) Last Saturday, the three of us met at Home Depot, and I hauled the materials home. We bought the straightest, cheapest 1x4s we could find and Home Depot, ripped the 4x8, plywood down the middle. Later, I also gave them a tour of my model railroad. The boy was excited and had a lot of questions! (He didn't like the height of the upper level, as he couldn't see the top deck very well.)

Sadly, his grandpa could have helped him with all of this but is suffering from cancer. I will probably be adding casters to the table legs so that the layout can be moved around to access all sides. And most likely I will rig something up to attach the tabletop to the table for safety reasons. He is gung ho (no pun intended) about going to DCC with sound.

Since neither of us have access to a pickup truck, and I would be likely transporting the finished table top in my automobile, I built it in two, 2 x8 ft. sections that would bolt together (sort of a semi-permanent). I built pads where the carriage bolts and fender washers mate to bring the two sections together. Despite a scare that some model railroaders have put out there about drywall screws being fragile, I have been using them for years without such an issue. (Just don't use them with treated wood.) My only regret is that I used the same length screws on the pads as I did the framework, with the screws sticking out a little. (I plan on grinding them off this evening.)

It was fun, and I was happy that I could help the young man get started, especially during this holiday season! I still had some old softcover, beginner books and was glad to give them away. One of those books was Lynn Wescott's "An HO Railroad that Grows" that is dated, but much of the same Atlas track is available and it sets up in stages, perfect for this young lad. (I'm not sure if anyone uses dyed sawdust for grass these days, however!) 

Victor Baird

 



Edited 6 time(s). Last edit at 01/10/25 20:07 by wabash2800.

---

---

Two more, closeups of the 1/2 in. x 5 in. carriage bolts with fender washers. The entire assembly, bolted together is very solid. If you are not familiar with carriage bolts, the bolt is round but square on the backside of the cap of the bolt. The square is larger in diameter than the bolt itself. Therefore, the cap end is hammered into the hole. This holds that end of the bolt when you loosen or tighten the nut on the other end. It gets its name, because it was used in the manufacture of carriages, mostly to attach metal to wood.

Victor Baird



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 01/10/25 20:08 by wabash2800.

---

---

Great!
There is a bonus for being a model railroader: you pick up skills and tools that can be a big help throughout your life.
I hope your young buddy got to put his hands on some of the tools and start down that road.

Why such over long bolts? Don't you have any shorter ones out there? upkpfan

They protrude 2 in. when the the two sections are bolted together. The combined frame and pads are  3 in. wide. They only had  3 in. and 5 in. available that were close. (Of course, 3 in. would have been too short.) It's under the layout, so not an issue. 4 in. would have been nice.

Victor Baird

upkpfan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why such over long bolts? Don't you have any
> shorter ones out there? upkpfan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/25 20:12 by wabash2800.

---

If I worked with him I would like to show him how to do things and let him get hands on experience by doing the work. His mom will likely be involved. She contacts me with questions and the two have already visted the hobby shop. And I recommended the local NMRA divsion for clinics etc.

Victor Baird

railstiesballast Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Great!
> There is a bonus for being a model railroader: you
> pick up skills and tools that can be a big help
> throughout your life.
> I hope your young buddy got to put his hands on
> some of the tools and start down that road.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/01/25 20:11 by wabash2800.

Is everything in life perfect? NO. Stay with this project because you are doing something wonderful (and you know it!)

Yea, please keep us posted on your progress.

Regards, Jim Evans

Carriage bolts are the way to go, My layout is built in 5 sections in case I ever have to move and I use them too. Very nice that you are helping this family. 
 

i have  one in my garage you could have

Thanks Dan, but this has already been built. If I know of anyone else that needs one, I'll let you know. It would be worth the dirve to see you and your layout again. The kid would have liked to see your layout too.

Victor

dan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> i have  one in my garage you could have



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/02/25 19:21 by wabash2800.

Update. It appears the table she purchased to lay this on is too flimsy. I am in the process of making legs and the associated bracing with casters right now. The legs will bolt on and there will be more reinforcement in the corners where the legs attach.

Victor Baird



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 01/02/25 19:22 by wabash2800.

Yes, it is a little more work than I bargained for but well worth it to see the excitement the young lad is experiencing. 

Victor Baird

wpdude Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Is everything in life perfect? NO. Stay with this
> project because you are doing something wonderful
> (and you know it!)

Victor,
God bless you for being an example of the true Christmas Spirit.
Charlie

Here we have one happy 8-year-old and yours truly.  Right away he started putting things on the table. <G> I will probably be involved with some other things too, but I am going to let him do most of the work and perhaps teach him a little geometry, carpentry, math, electronics, art, etc. That was what model railroading did for me. He and his mom have already been perusing YouTube. 

So, I delivered the table today and re-assembled it. Initially, an old table was going to be used to support the table-top, but it turned out to be flimsy. Again, she paid for materials, and I built a set of nice, sturdy legs. I used two 2x4s and one 2x8 in each leg with 1/2 in. bolts and fender washers. I also added 1x4 braces on the ends. T-nuts and casters with a 440 lb rating were attached to the legs. In addition to hammering the T nuts, I epoxied them in with JB Weld.  Though a spare bedroom is set aside for the layout, being able to move the layout around will obviously help the little fellow work around the 33 in. high, 4x8 table-top layout. 

Victor Baird



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/10/25 19:55 by wabash2800.

---

---