Okay, I'm sitting at home awaiting my shipments to come in from Tower and my LHS's and since I have all this free time on my hands in the evenings, I want to start looking at something to build over the winter (long NJ one). What do you use, besides buying the boards from Tower(or LHS), to build a kit on? Is there something out there that is easy on the fingers (T-pins are hard on the thumbs I've learned!)and maintains its flatness? My workbench in my dungeon (err....basement workshop, at least that's what the Wife calls it) has a nice plywood top, but has many dips and dings from hard useage.

Any ideas are welcome!

BTW, I'm looking at making an Easy 40 as a second plane.............comments?

ceiling tile!

free at some builder supply stores! ask for the ones with dented corners! glued mine to a piece of ply to keep it striaght....works for me....limited budget!

The ceiling tile is a good idea. Under it you want something flat and stable. Contact a local "top shop" that makes counter tops (or the local home store etc) and get some fiberboard (either flakeboard or MDF (medium density fiberboard). These are more stable than plywood with a smoother surface.

As an alternative you can use Homasote 440 that comes in 4x8' sheets as an alternate to the ceiling tile (I like it because you don't have to seam 2 pieces for a wing over 48").

EXCAP232

a door can be used as a flat building surface, topped with a ceiling tile. Most guys here seem to use a hollow core door because they are inexpensive. In my experience, a solid core door is usually better because it is more flat. But, solid core doors can be expensive. What I have done is use a hollow core door, but then use shims under the ceiling tile to flatten it out a bit. This works well and is not too expensive. Others I have heard use a sheet of 3/4" glass. That is something I would like to look into. Not sure how much the glass would cost.

I use a hollow core door. Go to your local home-improvement store, and see if they have any damaged ones. I think I got mine for 10 bucks. Then I built a frame for it to sit on, so it can be in the middle of the room which gives me 360 degree access to it. That comes in very handy when things are being held in place with pins or weights.

wow i must be the odd ball, i use 2 cardboard boxes glued together and taped down to be flat... i find it easier to pitch a box after a wing than deal with the tiles since im what you could cal la messy builder, my old foamcore boards were xpensive and never lasted long.[:@]

The ceiling tiles give off a dust and fibers that I seem to react to, at least I had a hard time putting in the drop ceiling in my basement. Apparently most people aren't bothered by them though.

I use homosote over plywood. I have two benches, one wedged in next to the water heater and bolted to the wall, and another on wheels that I roll around the basement to get it out of the way when necessary.

The one by the water heater is screwed to the wall, and at least the back part is very straight, and as long as the wall doesn't sink in to the ground too far, it should stay that way. The rest of the bench is supported on some metal angle to keep it straight.

The workbench on wheels is built out of 2x3 and 2x4s with the plywood decking. It's actually rather flat, though not 100% perfect, it's close enough.

This same question was asked on another forum--unfortunately, I can't remember which one, and am too lazy to go look. After reading Balsmaster's reply, I could no longer resist throwing my 2ΒΆ worth in.

Nearly 30 years ago, I built two gliders. One had a 36" ws, and the other had a 6' wingspan. Since ARF had not been "invented" at that time, I built them using a piece of relatively flat cardboard. The first was just for practice, using slow drying glue, and dope and tissue. On, the second one, I used a "new" instant glue (CA) and some brand new stuff called "Solarfilm", a fantastic new "iron on covering" :-). Someone I knew had just gotten a new refrigerator, and I cut out a couple of big pieces of that, and used them for "building boards". Both planes flew pretty well, but since RC was outragously expensive, it was out of the question and I was too afraid of loosing them to put the on a hi-start. Ironically, about a month after I completed the second one, I got a job as a tool builder in the aircraft industry, and was introduced to "surface tables" and precision alignment. For those that don't know, a surface table is a perfectly FLAT steel or granite table--much flatter than a slate pool table. The ones we used were 6' x 10' and were perfectly flat less than .001 (a third of a human hair). I also learned what straight really is, and became spoiled. After that, even my drafting board wasn't sufficiently flat for a building surface. Being unable to achieve the perfect surfaces and straightness I felt was needed, I foolishly quit building, and didn't start again until, four years ago. Which brings me back to the discussion.

The best method I have heard is what Bob Violet suggests. a piece of 3/8 plate glass, with a ceiling tile stuck (with spray glue) to the top, sitting on a piece of foam, and a flat workbench.

The method I use is very different than any I have read on either forum. I don't like sticking pins through the wood so this works very well for me. I use a piece of formica shelf board. I have various sizes from 24" to 6'. I start with a clean surface and spray a coat of Elmers or 3M spray glue, and let it sit for five minutes (so there isn't permanent adhesion). I then carefully smoth the plans over the glue. I then very lightly (so the plans don't get wet and streach) spray another coat of adhesive and wait five minutes for it to dry. I then spread a piece of wax paper over that. I press out any bubbles, or raised spots so I hvae a near perfect surface. Finally, I spray another light coat of adhesive over the wax paper. After that coat dries, I can stick my balsa to it. I generally just concentrate on the spar and trailing edge. It works surpisingly well. I have built four planes using this method, and all of my wings are very near perfectly flat. and I don't have any holes in my wood. I have even built the little Guillows models. When I am finished with the building, I use my razor knife to gently lift one edge and carefully remove the pieces without breaking them, but you must use the glue sparingly. I have been very happy with the results. If I have to quit building for a while--and in between builds--I stand the shelf up as straight as I can. For my last project (a Guillows Monocoupe) I thought I would try the more conventional method, and glued a piece of ceiling tile to one side of the board and tried that. I didn't get very far, before I went back to my other method. Now I have the crumbly tile on one of my good boards :-).

Some people live and learn, others just live.

This is easy on the thumbs, works great:

http://www.greatplanes.com/accys/gpmr8050.html

I use drywall.

well at least im not the only one whos used cardboard before, but the way i do it makes it thicker and more resistant to warping.