Building boards

I use Blue foam. Its ideal except CA attacks it. Eventually it gets scrapped.

Yes,

My 4' x 8' table has a full sheet of sheetrock on the top.

It requires some effort to push a T-pin into it. But they hold well once inserted.

It needs firm support from underneath as sheetrock is pretty flexible, and the edges are tapered. So don't build too close to the factory edge.

Wrap any cut edges with wide masking tape to prevent the gypsum from crumbling.

I use sheets of ceiling tiles. Pins hold reasonably well, they are cheap, and readily available. I hesitate to use sheetrock as the gypsum can stick to teh pins if you leave them in for long. It is allso hard to push the pins in and that can lead to bentpins and broken wood.

It'll work. So will ceiling tile. I put cork over mine. Dr.1 Driver "There's a Hun in the sun!"

That's all I use. A 1/2" sheet on top of a hollow core door is dead-eye straight and the sheetrock holds the pins a lot better than any foam or ceiling tile. The great part is that I never have to worry about "protecting" it from glue or drill holes while building because at about $5 for a 4x8 sheet, I usually replace it with a new one every time I start a new model. It's great to feel "new" while starting a new model with a brand new sheet; kind of like putting on clean underwear right off the clothesline :-)

MJC

I use suspension glass on top of my workbench. This is the type of glass used on tube frame coffee tables. It is very strong, doesn't flex much so only minimal support is needed to level it, and allows me to put plans underneath. To hold parts together I use masking tape, it really works much better than pins and you won't shear balsa pieces with tape.

M.

Same with me on the glass, I have an old shower door on a very flat surface. Easy to clean. Most of the building is done with a magna jig system rather than pins and stuff.

I have found that a glass top is impervious to most modeling chemicals, solder drops, etc.

Red S.

I use celotex which is like ceiling tile but comes in 4X8 sheets like sheetrock. I then attach it to a hollow core door and viola, nice, flat, light weight building board. I've had this set up for several years without replacing the celotex or the door.

Jim W.

The pins prolly wouldn't stick in very well. When the pins are removed it might leave lots of residue.

I use a ceiling tile. The one I bought had some texturing, so I applied a couple of shots of spackling, sanded and sprayed it with a popular sealer. Every plane or two, I re-spackle and re-seal. It will sit flat on a flat surface; curved on a curved surface. :))

You are joking, right?

Ditto here. Been doing it this way for a looooong time. The sheet rock that is. :o) Greg

It's the only way to go...I've used nothing but sheetrock for many years on a flat table.

The ceiling tile stuff or other foam type thingys are just too soft and will not hold a T pin if the pin is in a bind.

Go with the rock....It works like a charm

you can even mix epoxy on it.

Get a sheet of Celotex (insulation board) Same stuff as ceiling tile and comes in 4 x 8 sheets. I've used it for 30 years. Great stuff. Put it on top of a hollow core door. They are very flat.

sheetrock is up to 9-12 bucks a sheet now.

You can spray a light coat of 3M 77 on it (the glass) and just stick the balsa parts to it. If sparyed on lightly enough the parts will hold in place well, but easily seperate from the glass when done. The only downside is scrapping off the 3M 77 after your done. But with a single edged razorblade it isn't too bad.

Wiz

jim breeyear wrote:

I beg to differ. Only last week, I bought a 4x8, 1/2" thick of the better quality sheetrock at Home Depot for $5.49. Cheap by any standards.

MJC

Here in Tampa the same sheet is $9! But then we have the largest building boom in the country going on. Supply and demand I guess. There is a shortage of sheetrock, concrete, steel rebar, etc. Lots of builders are losing money on houses they're building because of the outrageous price increases after they contracted to build the house.