Model Railway Forum

For my planned layout, I have been talking to the people who built the baseboards for my N gauge layout, which baseboards were very good.

I am told that they are having serious difficulties getting hold of good quality plywood. The birch ply normally used came from Russia, so is now unavailable owing to the sanctions following the war. However, I am told that all the other plywood that has been tried (including far eastern ply) has been not only more expensive but also of significantly inferior quality, with blisters and ripples in the surface, unfilled cavities and delamination within the ply layers and pitted and non finished surfaces.

Has anyone managed to find a good source of baseboard material this year? Is good poplar ply still available?

There a lots of quality ply’s available from the likes of Jewsons etc.

Try talking to a good builders merchant. We recently purchased some and it is an excellent product. Can’t recall what type of timber it was made of.

I get the impression that many companies are using the Ukraine war to increase prices.

Walkingthedog wrote: ↑Sun Oct 30, 2022 9:53 am There a lots of quality ply’s available from the likes of Jewsons etc.

Try talking to a good builders merchant. We recently purchased some and it is an excellent product. Can’t recall what type of timber it was made of.

I get the impression that many companies are using the Ukraine war to increase prices.

Interesting, thank you. Have you found that they have lacked the problems described in the post above?

Plywood is by far the most stable material and I would tend to go to dedicated timber merchants for it if you want quality but you will have to do all your own cutting as unlike the likes of B&Q most will only have rudimentary cutting services for customer orders ie. cutting long timber into shorter lengths. There probably will be some yards that will be able to provide some material cutting services, back in the day I was able to get specific window mouldings made up for non-standard windows but it will cost.

After that MDF is probably your next possibility and a few commercial providers do use that. MDF though is very susceptible to a damp atmosphere and probably best not used in loft, garage, and attic layouts. There is a moisture resistant MDF which is supposed to get round the issue but I have no experience using it in these situations and would advise getting in touch with suppliers regards suitability. Of course there will be a price for it but then again as the baseboard as it names suggests is the basis of any layout skimping on the quality of materials used could leave you with all sorts of problems down the line.

Richard

There are plenty of manufacturers of bespoke baseboards, are they all having supply issues?
Personally, I used 9mm ply from B&Q, cut to size by them and made the boards myself. It’s not the greatest quality ply but with sufficient bracing it’s absolutely fine.

jamespetts wrote: ↑Sun Oct 30, 2022 11:55 am

Walkingthedog wrote: ↑Sun Oct 30, 2022 9:53 am There a lots of quality ply’s available from the likes of Jewsons etc.

Try talking to a good builders merchant. We recently purchased some and it is an excellent product. Can’t recall what type of timber it was made of.

I get the impression that many companies are using the Ukraine war to increase prices.

Interesting, thank you. Have you found that they have lacked the problems described in the post above?

The stuff we got is excellent. Get the best you can afford.

The biggest ply producers are China, South America and Africa apparently.

Several years ago, I purchased two 8x4 sheets of 9mm 'Far Eastern' plywood @ £20 per sheet. I selected the 2nd & 3rd sheets from the stack in the timber merchants as the top one had a few ripples in it. They were as flat as sheet glass when I took them home but the next day I was sea sick looking at them. I ended up burning them. I bought two sheets of 12mm Baltic Birch @ £45 per sheet.
Do not waste money on 'Far Eastern' firewood.

Thank you all. To clarify - my woodworking skills are not up to making baseboards, so I will be having them made. My N gauge layout was built by Professional Layout Services, which is the supplier that tells me that there are significant difficulties in getting serviceable plywood.

As to plywood types - I note the issue apropos far eastern ply. I believe that Baltic birch is precisely the type that is currently unavailable. Has anyone tried poplar ply?

I agree with you GDS When I bought some 10mm from my local DIY shop some time ago because I thought it was cheap. I had the same experience. But I didn't let them get away with it. They ordered some better quality ply for me and I paid the difference and it was worth every penny.

Like I said get the best you can afford.