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A fellow Wargamer put me on to this website for bases including TOW conversion trays:
https://warbases.co.uk/

I hope to get conversion trays supplied unglued so I can glue a thin piece of steel underneath so my magnetised models will stick to them.

Can anyone recommend a good UK based metal supplier (modelling supplier or industrial fabricator) who can supply v thin gauge steels (0.3 to 0.7mm?) cut to size?

Thanks.

Ok, I'm guessing I'm the only person in the world that's been using mild steel sheet in movement trays. I'm happy to move away from it cos it's hard to work with, v sharp/jagged and also goes rusty.

I've tried using magnetic flexible sheet before but have found it can blister/bulge over time where a magnetised miniature is sitting on it.

However a friendly staff member at my local gaming centre suggested I look at greenstuffworld self adhesive rubber steel sheet. I also noticed GSW also do self adhesive magnetic sheets cut to 20x20, 25x25 and other standard WHFB mini sizes.

So this leaves me with 4 options:

1) As my original plan, order steel sheet in and glue it to the underside of top half of an mdf conversion tray (keeps height increase low for fitting in reallyuseful storage box)

2) Same as #1 but instead of solid steel sheet, use GSW rubber steel sheet stuck to something like thin plastic (still keeps height increase low-ish for fitting in reallyusefulbox)

3) Same as #2 but instead of plastic, use the bottom half of the mdf conversion tray ie the GSW rubber sheet sandwiched between the two parts of the mdf conversion tray

4) Keep the mdf conversion tray intact with the two parts stuck together and just stick GSW 20x20 magnetic squares into each of the openings in the conversion tray.

What are other people doing for magnetising TOW conversion trays? Any of the above 4 options?

Thanks.

Му storage for now are plastic bins and bubble wrap dividers or foam roll packaging sheets.

There was an attempt at a diorama/storage that never got finished. Ultimately went with metal sheets that I cut from old PC case. I don't know if this is what you had in mind for magnetized trays, but the point is that there are no good and cost-reasonable options that I was able to discover. It will ether be expensive and good, or good and take tools and lots of time.
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/803914.page#11333861
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/803914.page#11337712

In the end I opted for option 1.

I managed to find some 0.5mm and 0.3mm galv in links below and cut to size:

M-D Hobby & Craft Metal Magnetic Steel Sheet 12-Inch x 12-Inch-Silver https://amzn.eu/d/hik99Ss

https://www.screwfix.com/p/rothley-smooth-protective-door-plate-galvanised-steel-120mm-x-1000mm/170jp

Good job!

I use cheap sheets of metal for trays, whatever's on sale will do:

https://www.amazon.com/M-D-Hobby-Craft-57355-Galvanized/dp/B00KC0HOUW

With regards to separation, it's hard to beat Liquid Nails. Thin layer of this will create a permanent bond between the metal and a tray.

https://www.amazon.com/Liquid-Nails-LN903-Heavy-Duty-Construction/dp/B000S7ZSTS/ref=sr_1_1

Also, don't know if this will be relevant for you or not. Today I stopped by local dollar store and saw these framed tins. So $ 1.25 for a framed (inside the frame 16x22 cm) tin board, super light.



Hope this helps with your project. Best.

Thanks v much guys. I'll keep an eye out for tin trays in my local hardware store and that Amazon link looks a lot like the one I found so good to know I'm looking in right place. Cheers.

I bought a sheet of galvanised steel from my local hardware store, it was the thinnest one they had but still a nightmare to cut if you don't have access to a guillotine. You can cut it with tin snips, but that curls up one side so much that it's nightmare to get it flat.

So, I don't recommend that unless you have access to a guillotine. I think it might have been 0.65mm thick.

My next attempt I was going to try and buy some shim steel material, but that isn't sold from the local hardware store.