This post will cover adding legs to the grid section constructed in Part 1. I use 48″ as the base height for my layout which conveniently results in a normal 8′ 2 X 4 providing two legs. Cut 2 X 4 material to desired leg length. For me this was 48″. For my 30″ bench work, I plan on the legs being 24″ apart in order to allow 6″ in the front for toe room. I also cut a 24″ horizontal brace from the 1 X 4 material. We will cut the diagonal brace later as I did not feel like doing trigonometry. Here is the overall design:

In order to provide leveling adjustment to account for the typical differences in concrete floors, a T-Nut and Carriage Bolt combination is used. I use 2 1/2″ long X 5/16″ carriage bolts with 5/16″ T-Nuts. Drawing diagonals from corner to corner in the bottom of the legs makes it is easy to find center. Drill a 3/8″ hole at least 3 inches deep and seat the T-Nut with a hammer. Thread the carriage bolt into the T-Nut until there is about an inch protruding.

At this point you should have a couple of nice 2 X 4’s with carriage bolts protruding from one end. Lay these down 24″ apart (outside) and using a framing square to ensure squareness, attach the horizontal and diagonal bracing as depicted above.

Attach the completed leg section to one end of the layout section. In my case I am adding to existing bench work so I only attach one leg section and attach the other end to the existing benchwork.

Level the layout section by screwing the carriage bolts in or out until the section is level left to right and front to back. The section now looks like this:

Everyone’s situation will vary according to their actual design but in general remember to use the carriage bolts for leveling and ensure to leave room in the front for a toe kick area. For the peninsula section of my layout I also added additional diagonal bracing along the long axis.

Part 3 will cover how I add the plywood sub roadbed according to the track plan and dealing with the elevation.