I’m looking for suggestions for making bends in 1/8” masonite that are sharper than its designed capabilities. I’ve use narrow pieces to try a 8” radius and just before it gets to where I need it — it snaps. I'm talking about a backdrop piece that will be 30” high and I don’t want to ruin that large a piece. If you’ve experienced this and managed a solution, please share it with me. Rick
Well I did it once by reducing the thickness of the bend section by evenly sanding the back side along the bend and lightly spraying water on it. It has to be done slowly so you might want to make something like some plywood pieces cut to the radius you want to hold it while its forming.
I've seen folks in the construction trades produce bends in materials like drywall and plywood by scoring the backside of the material with a series of shallow cuts. They can produce some remarkable curvature but even those materials have thier limit before they break. Masonite and moisture do not get along very well in that the materials making it up tend to become unbonded and deteriorate, resulting in crumbling. Still possibly dampening it slightly and the scoring may be able to produce the desired curvature, hopefully with out debonding the material. I would 2nd a jig of some type being used to hold the shape as it dries. Thin veneer grade plywood may be a better option for the area.
If it's for the backdrop, could you use sheet styrene for that section? My backdrop is .040 sheet styrene all around, but you could blend in a piece of styrene for the extreme curvature section.
Simple solution..Use Linoleum!!! You can get long pieces at most flooring places that are leftovers CHEAP,they're usually cut nice and straight,the back is canvas,perfect for painting,it's easy to work with,not like Masonite,which is horrible to nail through,and you can bend it tighter than you'd even immagine bending Masonite.It's also not dark like masonite,so less paint needed to cover,and,you may be able to find a piece that's big enough to do the entire backdrop in one piece! Ask any flooring place,they could probably fix you up,even if they don't have a piece on hand,they would certainly be happy to save a piece from a job and sell it to you rather than throw it out.I bought a 30 foot by 20 inch piece for 15 bucks..
That’s why I said “lightly”, but I probably should have used mist instead of spray. Also you only mist the outside not the inside. I’ve never had a problem but masonite isn’t that great of stuff and I’m sure there is better stuff. I recently used luan to make a curved bridge for my O-scale layout and I like it much better to curve and its cheap. The only thing is that there are bad ones and there are good ones. Around here Home Depot has good sheets, but you still have to go through the stack and it might be different where you are.
I used a mist bottle and was able to bend my Masonite backdrop into a nine inch radius without any problem. Sounds like the Linoleum or styrene would be better. I would use one of those if I had to do it over.
My problem arose not from the bending but shrinkage after it was up for several months. I now have unsightly open seems on both ends. I would take the styrene suggestion. It can't shrink and bends well.
This is why I prefer to use as long a section as I can without joints, but it depends on how big the layout it is.
Styrene is prohibitively expensive compared to Masonite,and doesn't paint well.Once again,use Linoleum canvas side out,no problem with painting,bending,shrinkage,nainling,humidity problems,and you can get 50 foot long pieces,no joints.The only time I use Masonite is for deviders.
Linoleum sounds like a great option. I used styrene because I found a great deal on 4' x 8' sheets a few years back from a plastics distributor here in town (Cincinnati, 3M Plastics), less than $20/sheet. I picked up 6 or 7 sheets of .040 and .020, used some for my backdrop and am using the rest for my scratchbuilding projects - figure I have a lifetime supply now . For Layout #2 (or my planned expansion of the current layout) I'll definitely consider linoleum. As far as sytrene being difficult to paint, I haven't had any issues at all. For the backdrop, I prepped the sheets by lightly sanding with 100 grit sandpaper, and then applied latex wall paint via roller - very easy and effective.
On my layout, I used 90 degree sections of plastic pipe of the correct radius. Makes quite a nice sharpe corner.
I see several of you are supportive of linoleum. I have a bit of that stuff, but before I jump into it, I need to know your solution(s) for the “drapery effect” that goes along with linoleum. Please.
Never built a RR with a facia,I've usually built them in rooms where I also had vintage RC cars,RC helicopters,RR paintings,ETC,on the walls.I'd probably use Masonite for that,since seams,ETC,don't matter.Linoleum is great for backdrops because it bends very smoothly,the back is fantastic for paint,and you can do huge backdrops with very few seams,and it's cheap. Soupac,On my backdrop,I built a sub framework from lattice on the wall,I ran three strips across,one top,one right at the top of the benchwork,one between.The top needs to be dead level!!! I started in a corner,then worked my way to each end,tacking it with a brad nailer and leveling it as I went along..Here's a pic of my benchwork the first week I started working on it a few years ago..
Perhaps I should have mentioned that my backdrops reach between the ceiling and the lowest benchwork level of 40”.
Oh 40”, I don’t think you want to use Linoleum. My only problem with Linoleum is that it still needs to be supported especially in warm areas. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen the stuff warp and come off wall around baseboards or even stretch on floors. I’m curious as to how long you Linoleum guys have had your backdrop in place.
I glue the linoleum with construction adhesive. Where the linoleum isn't supported by a wall, I use 1" x 1/4" aluminum strapping to create 3 or more straps to glue the linoleum to. I drill and countersink holes into matching straps at the same intervals. When I screw the straps to supporting benchwork or walls where I want coved or convex backdrops the straps all take the same bend radius. I have some pretty complicated backdrop geometry that I did this way on sections as long as 40'. I have some photos around somewhere if there is any interest. md
You wouldn’t have to do that at all with the 1/8 Plywood although I did glue a piece of ½” molding strip around the top to keep it straight. But my layout is moveable and not fastened to the wall. I’ve been around construction over 40 years and have seen countless remodels with Linoleum being the #1 one eyesore after it ages. I have a small roll of the stuff sitting in my garage and its almost unusable because of the warping. I was saving it to use as a temporary floor cover or maybe as a water barrier some place.
