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Edit: OK, I'm gonna kill the HTML editor on this board software. Fixing the rest of the tags in notepad now and then re-editing my post.

As promised, I've been working on one of the folding polystyrene boards vaugely descriped in WD 315 (US) and figured it was time for me to give up the goods.

(Well, OK, I just finished flocking the first one, but I've been busy! Not a lazy bum. Mostly.)

First, our friends the polystyrene sheets, cut at the local hardware store. These were done on their board cutter so that each would be even and square.

Next, of the four sections each that each sheet of polystyrene created, we stripped off the plastic coating and painted four in green housepaint, and four in dark grey to create the ?fantasy side? and ?40k? side described by the article. I used a 3? foam paintbrush to get rid of brushstrokes and paint smears, and it did that very nicely ? it also put on very even coats, though I noticed that in my case, I felt green needed one more coat than grey did to go on well.

The GW ?instructions? tell you to go ahead and just tape them together. I personally prefer things not sliding around while I?m trying to edge them, so I went ahead and put down a layer of Gorilla Glue to hold them nicely. This required wetting down the unpainted sides, spreading a layer of glue, and applying pressure for about 3 hours.

Fortunately, it's Hockey Night In Canada, so killing three hours today was pretty easy.

Next, the edging. I just used basic black Duct Tape from the hardware store, lining each strip up so that I could put a slight edge onto the board surface on either side, and then reinforcing each corner with an additional strip for strength. When it?s done, it should look about like this. Here?s a comparison of edged vs. unedged. It adds a lot both in terms of the durability of the board, and the quality of appearance. (Asian roommate provided only for scale.)

On to hinging ? we set the boards on edge, grey sides out (so that the ?surfaced? sides will be protected inside) and used 3? long strips of tape, placed at about every 2 feet of the spine of the board.

Then, fold out the board (SLOWLY!) to make sure the hinges are not too tight or too loose. If everything looks OK, follow by folding it back up and placing a ?locking? strip of tape along the spine to hold them in place, and then open the board and flip it onto the grey side. Attach a long strip down the centre of the grey side to protect the hinge. You can probably also use this as a good spot for a main road in a 40k game if you?d like a grid for setting up buildings. Fold and unfold again to check these ? you may need to take off a little bit of the tape at the edges of the board to make sure the hinges move smoothly.

Good news ? you?re almost done. If you don?t want to try flocking it, you are done, in fact! Go have a frosty one. You earned it. If you do want to flock, just spray or sponge on a layer of scenic cement to one side of your green surface (or grey/black flock if you want to flock the other side, I suppose, but I think wooly asteroid/space rock/concrete is a bit odd) and once it has dried, apply glue to the other side, tilt the excess over onto the glue, and then finish off the side, dry, and seal. Congratulations, it?s done!

Total time worked (not including paint drying or glue curing) was about 2-3 hours or so.

Total cost for the materials for 2 4?x8? boards was about $51, with the breakdown as follows:

Foam Sheeting: $20
Paint: $9
Glue: $5
Brush: $3
Tape: $4
Flock: $10
(I already had the cement, so I didn?t include that in the cost)

To give you an idea of how the finished product looks like terrain and gear on it, here?s a ?test? we did of the two green sides for the first board after they?d dried, but before we put them together any further. 1, 2

The ?single? 4x8 board is nice for ~750 point games, and it?s not much trouble at all to set both 4x8s next to each other for a larger match.

We like to call it "the text mangler".

Where did you get the foam sheeting, and can I order it online? Oh, and sorry if I missed it what are them dimensions of each board? The thickness?

Posted By ph34r on 04/15/2006 9:14 PM
Where did you get the foam sheeting, and can I order it online? Oh, and sorry if I missed it what are them dimensions of each board? The thickness?

Sorry, I thought I had that in there. (Rassumfrassum BB software...)

The sheeting is basically standard home polystyrene sheeting (the blue kind, usually actually has "DOW StyroFoam" stickers on it), available at your local hardware store. I purchased 2 sheets at the local hardware store and asked them to cut them into 4 even sections for each sheet. The boards come out to about 4' tall, 3' wide sections, at just under an inch thick. When assembled, this gives you a set of two 4' x 6' boards, perfect for kill team or smaller scale fights, or you can easily make an 8' x  6' or 4' x 12' board.

It may be possible to order it online from a contracting shop, but I'd personally call around to home supply/hardware stores. Ask them for styrofoam insulation sheets and you should get what you need.