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(I debated whether this should go in the Swap Shop threads, but as I have no intention of purchasing soon, I though it would be better here)

I am thinking of buying a gaming board, that would be suitable for ease of packing/moving.

I do not particularily want to spend the sort of money that GW for its' Battle Board.

Can anyone provide suitable links to sites selling such items?

Many thanks

Andrew

Buying a 6x4 piece of wood, some sand, some glue and some paint is cheaper than anything IMO. I have built my fair share of epic boards with just that and bits and a lil clear resin

I built my own for around 40 bucks... It's made from a single sheet of standard (US sized, so 8x4) plywood, I think mine is 1/4 inch ply.... might be half inch though.. the plywood was cut into 2x2 squares, and reinforced with 1x2 stock pine, screwed down on edge for more support, etc. some brass decorative fasteners, and dowels to hold alignment and stability, etc.

And because it's 8x4, I can accommodate larger games at home.

My board cost me $20. Full sheet of 12mm MDF (8'x4')
Cutting it into 4 pieces cost me nothing (I have a saw and can cut straight lines.) 4 pieces 4'x2'.

My terrain is all modular and collected over 25+ years (I can do around 6-7 tables' worth of 25% terrain in various themes).

Spend $400 on a table? Not on your nelly, fella.

My table can do 4'x4', 6'x4' or 8'x4'. It's painted both sides (green on one side, grey on the other). Roads are painted onto the grey side, and the boards can be rotated/re-oriented to change the layout.

I stole the idea from an old WD back in the days of Epic (the edition they released the Eldar fliers for epic).

Cut a piece of plywood down to 4' x 6', framed it with with 1"x3" pine. Threw some dirt into some brown paint I had in the garage for texture and rolled it on. Took me about two hours, another two for the paint to dry. If you were to spend money on that (I didn't, had the materials in the garage from another project) you could get away under $35.

Don't know how to saw or haven't the equipment? A friend of mine bought three 4'x2' pieces of MDF board (5/8s inch thick) for I think $11 a piece. They're thick enough that it's not a hassle to put them side by side on a table and play a game. He hit his with some spray paint (no texture). White for snow on one side, desert brown for (yeah) on the other. And 4'x2' boards travel real well too.

So the general consensus is that it's pretty easy to get a board to play on for real cheap. When you're ready to spend some money on your board, you got options.

Mine is simply the GW battlemat (this is probably their best product). It's cheap ($50au), flocked on heavy cloth and can be rolled or folded for storage. I simply place it on 2 6x2 folding tables. The tables are actually 2.5 wide, as with the mat on them, there's about 6" on each side of clear space, good for drinks and such.

I'd considered all kinds of boards, but just went the cheap, simpler way. I'm considering a zuzzy urban mat to compliment it, but that will be done when I've done all my 40k terrain and start on Infinity terrain.

-Loki- wrote:Mine is simply the GW battlemat (this is probably their best product). It's cheap ($50au), flocked on heavy cloth and can be rolled or folded for storage. I simply place it on 2 6x2 folding tables. The tables are actually 2.5 wide, as with the mat on them, there's about 6" on each side of clear space, good for drinks and such.

I'd considered all kinds of boards, but just went the cheap, simpler way. I'm considering a zuzzy urban mat to compliment it, but that will be done when I've done all my 40k terrain and start on Infinity terrain.

I see that it comes folded in a box, how hard is it to get rid of the folds in it? I'd prefer to roll it so that it lays straight on the table.

I never could completely get the folds out, but it's not a huge issue. They're actually quite soft for folds. Simply placing a gaunt on one flattened it.

Mine is folded back up (though nowhere near as tightly as GW did to fit it in the box), as the folds didn't really bother me. My main issue is cat hair - my cats love sleeping on it. I need to pack it away, they're just attracted to it.

ZUZZY makes some pretty cool mats, throw on some buildings and you're good to go. http://www.zuzzy.com/dr-tf-001_terra_flex_gaming_mat.html

Making your own is usually the best route though.

-Loki- wrote:I never could completely get the folds out, but it's not a huge issue. They're actually quite soft for folds. Simply placing a gaunt on one flattened it.

Mine is folded back up (though nowhere near as tightly as GW did to fit it in the box), as the folds didn't really bother me. My main issue is cat hair - my cats love sleeping on it. I need to pack it away, they're just attracted to it.

Aerethan you could probably flip that mat over and iron the folds out from the back. Then just roll it up from then forward.

A friend of mine made me six 2"x2" boards out of MDF. One sheet with a frame underneath to give it strength. they look similar to the GW ones. They stack away in my cupboard out of the way and cost next to nothing. Make your own is my advice.

I purchased three 4'x2' MDF boards, 5/8" thickness from home depot. They're actually 49" wide, not 48", but that's fine.

I then bought the Woodland Scenics ReadyGrass Green Grass Vinyl Mat 50"x100" (here) and cut it to fit these boards.

I used regular PVA glue to attach it to the boards. Easy. They have a few different colors and sizes

I did that about 4 years ago. It's showing some wear (scratches) and I've had to glue down the edges a few times, but they stack nicely, are fairly light, and I can put them away when I'm not gaming.

I hope that helps.

This is my trick. Lots of kitchen/dining tables almost have the width (6') but not the length (4'):

Bought a pack of these: Twenty quid in the UK

http://www.diy.com/nav/decor/flooring/wood-laminate-flooring/laminate_flooring/B-and-Q-Value-Burning-Beech-Effect-Laminate-Flooring-10-pack-W-19-5-x-L-128-5-x-T-0-6cm-10937562

They usually come with some kind of tongue and groove joint to secure them, but check them out in-store. Store very easily, and will fit on the back seat of a car easily enough.

The above pack covers a 6' x 4' area. You could, if you wanted, paint them, add rivers or roads. We just lay a mat on top and blu-tac it down.

Thanks guys, Zuzzy looks good, but that postage is a nightmare.

While all the suggestions on making my own are appreciated, the materials simply arn't available down here. A sheet of 6*4 probably costs the same as GWs own board. For example a plank 6*1 of 12mm chipboard is £13.

Cheers

Andrew

I'm in the process of designing a table, I plan to use to use thin plywood (like 1/4"), and sandwich insulation foam between two pieces. This should be lighter than full MDF, stronger than just foam and stiffer than just using thin plywood. One side will be grass with a woodland scenics mat glued down, the other will be urban with the option to paint roads or use a modular mat. I'll also do 4x4' pieces, and I'm devising a modular border using notched 2x4s that will hold the two pieces together while also helping to keep dice/minis on the table. I should be working on it next week depending on work and the weather...

I'm chatting with the sign makers two doors up for my urban cityscape mat (they already do pvc banners) and it's a simple grey/black street layout.

I'd ideally like 1800mmx1200mm.
If they can do it, I'm looking at $45 per for a 10 order (and I know I can sell them at this price).

I have a mat which rolls up in a long cardboard tube. That avoids creases. It needs something on the corners to hold them down. If you want to be fancy you can use tablecloth clips, or just put some terrain pieces in the corners.

My solution is the felt mats by Hotz http://www.hotzmats.com/felt_purchase_mat.html (e.g. Dirt Planet for 40k and European Fields for Fantasy) and then add hills and stuff separately and completely modular.