[Ravensoul]

anyone know what material is good to make a gaming board. And is there any sites dedicated to making gaming boards if so please post sites.

 

[Beaky]

A site our gaming club has relied heavily on for inspiration and terrain ideas is called Terragenesis.

Its a great site with many ideas and suggestions. Find it here

http://www.terragenesis.co.uk/[/img]

 

[Beaky]

Well, it all depends what you mean by a gaming board.

If you are building a small (4'x4' or smaller) table, then I suggest using 1/8" or 1/4" hardboard and bracing it with 1x2s.

If you are planning to make a 4'x8' table, then you will need a little more strength... If you can leav it set up, then plywood and 2x4s make a great, solid table.
If you need to transport it, or break it down, then use 2'x4' sheets of hardboard (put 4 in a row and they make 4'x8'!)

You can buy this stuff at your local Home workshop (DIY)store (Home depot, Lowes, etc)

For terrain etc on the boards, I suggest using the pink (or blue) stiff polystyrene sheets of insulation. Use a hot knife to cut shapes, etc and flock the whole table with the medium of choice (Sand, grass-flock, white-spray, etc)

 

[Ryan El'Jonson]

I've got to make a table soon and was having a think about this earlier.

I need a bord that can be stored away easily so naturally a pair of 2'x 6' or 8' is where i'm going. I'm thinking of a real sturdy piece of kit, 3/4" or even floorboards. Thin ply will warp in time and has a tendency to bend if stored upright. Floor boards are bloody heavy but with the tongue and groove, it'll make a nice join. Maybe hinged plywood sheets could work...

 

[Jezlad]

I've got to make a table soon and was having a think about this earlier.

I need a bord that can be stored away easily so naturally a pair of 2'x 6' or 8' is where i'm going. I'm thinking of a real sturdy piece of kit, 3/4" or even floorboards. Thin ply will warp in time and has a tendency to bend if stored upright. Floor boards are bloody heavy but with the tongue and groove, it'll make a nice join. Maybe hinged plywood sheets could work...

Let me know when you're off to buy the wood Ryan, i'll come along. I need to get a table sorted out soon as well. Need to practice for the Finals in March.

 

[Xabre]

I had been considering a board/table. My thought was to take two three-by-four boards, and get hinges that run along the sides so the whole thing can fold over.

The easier version wo uld be to drill a few holes and put pegs in, just slide em against each other so they don't shift.

 

[FrozenOrb]

My board is made from a 6' x 4' piece of MDF that sits permanently on a table (when not playing I find this invaluable for storing a mountain of my stuff on, so the table and space it occupies is always being used). I bought it as 8' x 4' but I cut it down to 6' and then glued one of the GW grass mats to the board.

 

[SauronsLackey]

My gaming board is a piece of 3/8" plywood over a 1x4 frame. It's very strong and durable and I attached it to the wall with hinges so it lifts out of the way when not in use. I recently added wall panelling to the back of it and stained/varnished it so when its up, it gives the room a very clean look. The whole board cost under $60 to build including the sand and paint. It really depends on the situation your board is in to determine the ideal material to use.

Eric

 

[marcch]

I made a modular 3 piece board out of 1" thick x 24" wide x 48" long pink insulation foam board from Home Depot. I used two 6 ft x1" (interior measurement) aluminum 'C' channel normally used for corners on aluminum siding as side rails to slide the three pieces into and keep together. The rails and edges of the boards are painted black, and one side of each board is black and the other is green. I can have either a green countryside board, or an urban board, or a mix of the two. The board is the regulation 4 ft x 6 ft, and stacks up into a 2 ft x 4 ft pile 3 inches high. I just stand the rails behind the door. Please remember to carefully deburr the aluminum parts and cut them to 5 ft 11 inches they will be 1/2" in from the ends that way so that nobody gets cut by them). You can then place it onto a regular tabletop, just don't lean heavily on it. I hope this helps.

 

[Red Orc]

Mate, you did know this thread was nearly 2 years old didn't you? I'm betting they've gone to the shops for the wood by now...

:can't complain really as he's just repped one of the posters for good advice cyclops:

 

[Triangulum]

I still think that spending the time on a nice piece of wood beats the insulation method.

 

[Volchek]

I still think that spending the time on a nice piece of wood beats the insulation method.

Having built many modular game boards over the years, I could not agree more. Wood, if built solidly with the right plywood and bracing, is definitely the way to go. It's much more durable than foam insulation.

Using light weight 2x4 1/4" pre-cut panelling and some 1x2 pine shelving supports cut to fit I made a completely modular 4x8 gaming table. using the materials above cost me less than $20 US and each 2x4 section is light enough to hold up on the end of your pinky with no effort. I think each 2x4 section weighs less than 2.5 pounds. It's light, durable, and easily transported in the trunk of my car.

 

[Blue Liger]

A wooden frame with a 6mm top works the best as they are so light plus you can build it in two halves for easy storgae or if you are a talented woodworker or even a not so great one you can then make pin joints in them by cutting a piece out of the frame on one side the putting that block on the otherside opposite and then adding a slightly wider piece so when you slide them down onto each other the lock and wont pull apart when gaming...

 

[Deneris]

Another idea might be to head to the scrap building supplies yard/store; They essentially sell second hand material from demolished houses. You might find a good deal on a good-sized door (as doors are about right-sized for a battlefield) and even a desk/table to mount it on AND have shelves and whatnot underneath...