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So, my first attempt at making a custom table for Warmahordes ended in a resounding failure. The spray paint ate through my foam (pictures going up on my blog shortly). I'm now coming back at the project with a new medium: plywood. My question now is what thickness should I use? I'm debating between 1/4" and 1/2". Both come in 2'x4' sheets at my local Home Depot. What say all of you? Thicker or thinner?

I usually advocate using as thick as possible, as long as its easy enough to move about

Thinner stuff will tend to bow unless its totally supported underneath when in use and in storage.

Now if you are using them to carve hills and the like, then I would think that Thicker for the main board, and then layers of the the thinner to make the steps of the hills.

I use 2 2x4 boards Hinged along the long edge of 18mm MDF and then throw on a cloth flock mat over it.
Its cheap though and I'm looking forward to upgrading to a real board once I move and have space to store it.

I've toyed with the idea of putting hinges on it, but I'm not sure if I want anything permanently fixed to the surface or not. That being said, I'm leaning toward the 1/2" stuff.

Yup, I only put hinges on the board so I could store it away easier.

Te next one will hopefully be a more permanent feature in the house and won't need to be put away so often.

For fixing things to the board, I always feel personally that a well sanded and flocked board is enough, as fixed terrain tends to make games feel to samey.

Well made movable terrain is the best to me I think.

Though a board with real depth is fun to put cliffs, trenches and deep rivers in Maybe a bit much of a project though!

Yeah, I would probably have to wait until I'm not in an apartment until I work on anything too elaborate, regrettably. If I were to add hinges, I'd probably need the 1/2" boards.

I would go 1/2" all the way. I am in the process of making one, the hinges can be a pain if you put them on the bottom. They can scuff up what it is resting on pretty badly, and putting them on the top looks tacky. I am lucky though and my shop has a mill, saved me quite a bit of time by just milling out the cuts to inlet them into the board.

I actually went 1/4" and got fiberboard. So far, it's working nicely. I should have pics in the next day or so. Only one of the boards is primed for texturing right now.

1/4" plywood with a 1"x2" frame will be fine. Much more sturdy then 1/2"-1" plywood, won't bow, and will be lighter.

A word of warning: my friend bought 2x4' boards for his gaming table and they are very rarely cut to exact dimensions. Be careful in your measurements if you are not certain the parts are cut to the dimensions you think they are.

 Dais wrote:
A word of warning: my friend bought 2x4' boards for his gaming table and they are very rarely cut to exact dimensions. Be careful in your measurements if you are not certain the parts are cut to the dimensions you think they are.

I made sure to measure before leaving the store, now worries there. Thank you though.

Don't give up on foam. Some spray paints eat foam but not all. Also once you get a base layer on you can spray that.

Just test any spray paint before going all out with it.

Well, I'm almost done with the table I made out of fiberboard. It needs some finishing touches, but it's almost ready. They next table I make, I'll most likely go with foam again so I can add in more terrain features.

I actually dislike plywood as gaming surface as compared to particle board. I've found plywood has tendency to bit more vulnerable to warping. 3/4-1" thick particle board doesn't bend, is relatively cheap, and is pretty darn heft to avoid accidental tipping. Best of all at least at my local hardware store(s) they tend to sell it precut 4'x2' blocks which are easy to transport even in a small car and make a perfectly sized WM/H table.

 Chongara wrote:
I actually dislike plywood as gaming surface as compared to particle board. I've found plywood has tendency to bit more vulnerable to warping. 3/4-1" thick particle board doesn't bend, is relatively cheap, and is pretty darn heft to avoid accidental tipping. Best of all at least at my local hardware store(s) they tend to sell it precut 4'x2' blocks which are easy to transport even in a small car and make a perfectly sized WM/H table.

I didn't actually use plywood when it came down to it. I ended up nabbing two 2'x4' sheets of fiberboard.