wayne young Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Hi all, where can I obtain a good fair size balsa building board. Am trying to get into tradional building but need a board as space is limited. I have searched on Internet but had no luck.. Many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Hi Wayne, I assume you mean a board for building with balsa - not a building board made from Balsa? That wouldn't be so good! Put "Board" into the search box you will find a great many threads on this topic already with all the advice you'll need. BEB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greybeard Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 I use Balsa building boards (they are made of balsa) that I brought from SLEC. They are very good as fixing pins can be pushed in and pulled out easily but hold in place as they should. Not cheap but very good value in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles' Elder Brother - Moderator Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Well, you live and learn! BEB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dylan Reynolds LaserCraft Services Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 I looked at SLECs balsa building boards at Gaydon, nice idea, but with them being so flexible surely the surface you put them on would have to be perfectly flat otherwise any bows, bumps and dips would transfer through the board to whatever you are building? just a thought... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greybeard Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 They are a little flexable but quite flat, as I use mine on a flat surface the flexing is not a problem for me. Glueing one to a piece of MDF board would make one rigid enough to move around. I'm building my DB SE5a on one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Cotsford Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Old kitchen worktop makes a good stable base and puts a smile on the Missus face as she gets some new counter tops in her domain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kc Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Balsa building boards are quite expensive! Much cheaper is ordinary Plasterboard from B & Q etc which makes an excellent building board that takes pins well. Having some smaller boards as extras for tailplanes etc is worhtwhile . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Vinten 1 Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 As kc said plasterboard is the best pins go in very well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Laughton Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 As mentioned already SLEC make balsa building boards in different sizes as do Great Planes - I think the latter are available from various on line hobby shops including SMC Edited By Jon Laughton on 04/11/2012 20:14:58 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Molineux Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 I bought a sundeala board. It's what notice boards are made of, Designed for drawing pins etc. You can get it from places that sell model trains. I think they use it to pin their tracks to? Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted November 4, 2012 Share Posted November 4, 2012 Plasterboard is awesome! The best building surface I have tried; and I have tried a few! Very stable, very flat and takes pins far better than you might think if you havn't tried it. I am now a convert and can't imagine ever needing to change. I sit it on a work bench made from kitchen work top extracted [with permision] from a skip! I also tend to cover my work area with cardboard, It leads to a quick clean up mopping up all the glue that I spill. I'm also increasingly cutting on cardboard rather than a cutting mat. I'm inclined to think that cutting mats blunt scalpel blades much faster than a bit of card! Edited By GrahamC on 04/11/2012 21:40:39 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wayne young Posted November 10, 2012 Author Share Posted November 10, 2012 Cheers guys comments taken on board have ordered a balsa board from slec and also have got plaster board so will give that a try as we'll many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymaz Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 I have an offcut of kitchen worktop. Then screwed on top some plaster board. The worktop is thick chipboard and so wont warp. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Concorde Speedbird Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 I use a door. CS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymaz Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 Corr.I bet thats draughty in your house Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Concorde Speedbird Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 I do not build vertically. It is a door on a bench, in the shed. With some cork tiles on it. Works extremely well. CS ne...1...door dept Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Bott - Moderator Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 I thought plster board couldn't be as goood as people said, until I tried it. Now it's all I will use. Flat, stable, takes pins well and the pins don't move. Oh and it is much easier to push pins into than trying to get drawing pins into a plastered wall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kc Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 J Perkins list Sundeala in their catalogue. But why buy a board when house builders throw away offcuts of plasterboard big enough for our purposes? I use clips & screws to secure wing spars to plasterboard. They are glued up in a length, drilled and then sawn apart. My photo shows them..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kc Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Murphy 1 Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 KC,can i ask what your picture shows? i know the thread is on boards and you show PB being used but i wondered what it is being used for? some sort of jig? i always look for tips and ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Djay Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 I use the table tops made of pine you buy in IKEA. they come in different lengths, and you can buy the legs seperatly if you want to use them as a bench. They are relatively cheap and the surface is flat and hard, but soft enough for pins to be pushed in. When they get too tatty just replace with another. Darryl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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