MDF Vs. Plywood

[GNRi1959]

As a carpenter of many years and Carpentry Instructor I was never a fan of MDF however our local timber supplier sells Chinese made plywood that is sub-standard and the veneers are prone to peeling after cutting. There seems to be no glue between the layers. I've steered clear of it at all time. I know the pro's and cons of an mdf baseboard but is there any one on the forum who could comment on whether or not they experienced any REAL operational problems with it?

I'm thinking of building a 6'x3' N-gauge layout and considering 12mm MDF on 12mm x 70mm battens - is this adequate?

[derek]

@GNRi1959, my baseboard is made of 18mm MDF and I have never had a problem with it moving/ shrinking/ swelling or warping. It is based in a room in my home so not exposed to conditions that would come with it being in a loft or shed. The frame under is 70 x 30 red deal (probably overkill). But to answer your question , no I have never had any problems with MDF. I wouldn't use WBP (water bonded plywood). It warps like crazy and actually it is never flat from day one in my experience. In my opinion the use of 70x12 battens on edge sounds okay if you use enough cross members. Hope this helps (I'm in the same game by the way)

Derek

[GNRi1959]

Thanks Derek, l opted for 12mm birch ply which will be fixed to a 69 x 12mm timber frame. This should be sufficient and not too heavy.

[Colonel]

Presumably these are home layouts? As an exhibiter, I've long used 6mm ply for lightness. Top and frames, though 12mm for ends, to take baseboard joiners. Keeping baseboard size below 4' x 2' also helps with weight.

 6mm birch ply is lovely stuff, but a lot of it came from Russia, so less easy to get hold of now, for obvious reasons.

 

 

[derek]

12 hours ago, Colonel said:

Presumably these are home layouts? As an exhibiter, I've long used 6mm ply for lightness. Top and frames, though 12mm for ends, to take baseboard joiners. Keeping baseboard size below 4' x 2' also helps with weight.

 6mm birch ply is lovely stuff, but a lot of it came from Russia, so less easy to get hold of now, for obvious reasons.

 

 

Mine is definitely a home layout David @Colonel. It is 13 foot by 9 and made as described above. Wouldn't fancy trying to lift it anywhere