alienx

I set out to buy one of those cheap laminated folding tables and a ceiling tile tonight. It didn't work out so I went next door to HD to look for a table. I ran across a hollow door blank and remembered someone writing that it could be used for building. But I couldn't remember if they meant as a flat table that you could put the building board on, or if they built right on the door.

So long trip to do a lot of looking but no buying.

Can anyone clue me in??

Thanks. Andy

brnyrbbl

The hollow doors work great ( I used old closet doors). At one time I had one that was mounted to the wall with hinges and I used chains attached to the corners up to the wall at a 45 degree angle. That way I could fold the door flat against the wall and used a small hook clasp to keep it there. Worked great!

P.s. if you want a slightly spongy surface, get a roll of "corkboard" and glue it to the surface. works good for pinning down plans when you need to and is gentle on monokote too

alienx

That's a great idea. Believe it or not I don't have a table to put it on. Gonna have to deal with that first. But it looked like a nice big surface to work on and a lot neater than a flaky ceiling tile.

Thanks.

brnyrbbl

A cheap alternative is to get yourself 2 saw-horses and place them at each end if you want it to be freestanding.

alienx

I was thinking of bar stools, but your idea is probably better!! And I can get them all at HD at the same time.

brnyrbbl

Just get the metal saw horse ends that you install on the end of 2x4's. That's the cheapest way to go and stable too. Plus you can cut the legs to whatever length you want to make the table as high or as low as you like. I like them high so I can stand up to work on the models and not get that dreaded "dead hunchback"

Rabbitcreekok

The flaky ceiling tile is only if you are building a balsa kit and you need to use T-pins to hold the balsa in place while you glue it together. If you are building foamies, you just need a large work table. Then the door fills the bill.

Building boards are also made of balsa planks, cork as someone suggested and any other perfectly flat surface that will accept and hold T-pins.

alienx

Gonna check for this tonight. Thanks!

alienx

It actually is balsa that I am going to build. But pretty small and light model so I figured regular strait pins would be thinner and I would use them. Is the door going to be too tough to get a pin in?

Ohiopete

Yes, you'll need some cork or something. I use the door on two sawhorses myself. I went to the local craft store and found a package of 12" x 12" squares of cork (about 1/4" thick) I can lay those out and pin plans on them when I need to. When I'm building foam I can stack them off to the side.

Pete

alienx

Good ideas! I've seen all of these things in the stores. I'm just trying to be smart about how much stuff I am going to have to pile into my apartment's dining room/airplane hanger!!

I pass Lowes and Office Depot on the way home, in the same parking lot. I think I am going to roam back in there and see what they have.

Grasshopper

I built a table out of a hollow core door a while back and they work nice. I found a builders supply place that sells returns and stock over runs. Got a 32" door for $12 that was like new.

alienx

That's a good deal. The 30" one I had lined up was about twice that. But not too bad. I'm just worried about building a "shop" in my living room!!:<

Rabbitcreekok

Just put it over on the side against the wall and no one will ever notice.

Grasshopper

Maybe you should look at it as "Why do I have a living room in my shop?"

alienx

haha you guys are right!! I knew from day one that I would be using that space as a building/battery charging/parts storage area!! Who needs that room anyway when you have a nice couch and a flat screen TV to eat in front of!

Bird

I have had a pine plank for about 40 years that is flat to within 1/32 of an inch. I have friends who need a longer board for a new project and it appears to be impossible to find straight pine now. We were advised to get particle board which turns out to be absolutely straight but so hard you can not push a t-pine into it with your fingers. You have to use a little hammer.
We are thinking or gluing cork or some kind of dense foam onto the particle board.
What have you done that works? Obviously, we want the pin to be solidly stuck in the board but still possible to put in and out by hand. If we could find straight pine, I don't think we would be looking for anything else.
I (and we) will appreciate your advice.
Thank you.
Bird

Huffy01

I went to a hardware store and ask about a pin board to make models . I this stuff could be called Cortex?? It looks like recycled cardboard and has a cloth backing.
You might find work bench plan and DYI information at a hardware store.
Don't forget all the different attachment that could go on or in your work bench vices, clamps and power tools.

alienx

Having finished a plane or two now I can give you my personal opinion, for what it's worth.

I used a Staples brand folding table (like the ones they set up in the cafeteria at school for events. I put a single Home Depot purchased drop ceiling tile on it. I got the tile that had the smoothest back on it. It was not smooth, but no large texture on the back. It worked great!! Cork might also be a good idea but it would have to be thick to hold the pins.

My concern was that the tile wouldn't hold the pins. But this was not even close to the case. It worked very very well. And the beauty is that they are cheap. Use one until your favorite spot has gotten a little soft and then get another one or just rotate it. I did a lot of cutting on mine simply because it was on my work table. But it held up very well.

They are only a couple dollars if I remember correctly. I never had to replace mine, but I only built a couple models on it.

Good luck.

Nitro Blast

One of my favorite building surfaces is glass.

Put a glass sheet on that hollow door building board, build right on the glass. Once finished, simply 'pop' it off the glass. Wax the glasss with auto was between builds.

PaperAirplane

I used an old piece of laminate countertop on top of two sawhorses. I didnt put anything down under the plans because I dont need to pin anything down yet, but I used a piece of wood for the cutting board.

My 2 cents worth.

hillbillynamedpossum

Ceiling tiles work pretty good, but if you want a bigger surface, go to the lumber yard and get a sheet of celotex insulation board. (used to be called "N word" board) Even better get some 1" styro foam. If you do use a door flip it over every so often or it MIGHT sag. Dont be too proud to beg. I regularly get broke tiles, and broke pieces of foam for free, but then again this is a small town and I know every one and they know me. It also doesnt hurt that my company does a lot of business with the lumber yards.

Get you some clear contact paper and cover your plans with it. I works better than saran wrap and wont skooch around.

Nitros suggestion for glass is pretty good. You can get a sliding glass door that has fogged up free for the hauling off from the glass companies if you chum up with a guy who works there. Even if you have to pay for one (yuck) from the local Habitat re-store glass door glass is great because its tempered. WHEN (not if) you break it, it busts into a million ice cubes instead of swords and daggers, ready to impale you and the cat.

Remember to be patient and humble (Uriah Heep) when scrounging for parts and materials. Its taken us all years to build up a decent shop so we can spend even more years there hiding from our wives.

Possum

Ron

cut a sheet of gyproc to fit the table you are using....lay it down on the door/table...it is white, dead flat, and holds pins well...it is also good for cutting on...when it gets so beat up you can't use it any more....flip it over, and you're good for another couple years.....

riverrat

Mr. Possum!!

Can it be removed without damage to the plans

THANKS!!
Jimmy

birdDog

Hollow core door (salvage) Two El'cheapo dressers (storage and legs) and a big thick mirror (salvage). Just throw a ceiling tile on top when needed. Viola! Straight planes!