bullseye000

Another company quoted me $40.00 for a 2'x5' 16 gauge cold rolled sheet. I have a benchtop that 2" thick and laminated. I currently glue ceiling tiles on top of this but want to change it to the steel. Is 16 gauge too thick or overkill? The plenum material looked good but it was galvanized, I don't think this help me.

n0kjf

I got galvanized so it would not rust and I did not have to try to paint it. The 16 gauge is nice; it lays flat and is relatively heavy. Thicker steel provides better magnetic holding power and will not flex when I pull the magnets off. I was quoted $65 for my piece of steel but when they found out why I wanted it, I got it for free. It helps that I am in the construction industry and "know people". Shop around, try scrap yards too. Flat is the most important quality, then thickness, then size, imnsho. I cannot imagine building without the steel again. If I had more space, a larger size would have been better. We built a Giant Telemaster, bigger would have been better.

makmov

My Feedback: (1)

I got galvinized, too. 26 guage 3X6 for under $30. It's thin so you need to have a good solid bench top below. So far it seems to have worked out well, but I still haven't got it set up perfectly. It's perfect across the 3 ft span but across the 6 ft span I have .94 mm runout or .034 for you inch guys, which I guess isn't terrible across 72 inches but I would like it perfect so I am going to have to start stratigically shimming the substrate,

Idid look at some cold rolled steel but the fab shop said that galvinized would probably better. You would either have to paint the CRS or oil it, which is messy.

Hemikiller

My Feedback: (125)

The E.J. Lind board is/was 18 gauge (.048") steel - 1/20" for you fraction guys. The steel was either electrogalvanized or phosphated. I would believe it to be phosphated, as it is a better paint adhesion promoter and still very resistant to rust, but not to the extent that galvanizing will provide. The 18GA is about as thin as I would use for a building board, any thinner and you may lose the ability of the steel to remain true without being fastened down.

My personal board is 1/8" cold rolled steel that has been phospated. Heavy, but not too heavy and it remains flat without any problems since it has 90* bends on all four edges - benefits of running a sheet metal fab shop

If any of you guys need sheetmetal, let me know, it's what I do day in and day out.

kargo

Finnaly got the granite table top on the building desk, had to hire a little help to move the 3x5x1" piece onto the building desk[>:] A question for you guys, I have 16 gauge steel, how beneficial would it be to contact cement it to the granite? Or is this completely unnecessary?

papermache

My Feedback: (35)

I'm not a magnet builder, but this subject is intriguing nonetheless. I'm actually surprised that nobody has looked into the possibility of the ultimate thing here. - Get a piece of steel plate 1/2"- 3/4" thick, weld on some angle legs and stiffners to it to make a table, and then have the top surface machined to get it dead flat. It might sound awfully expensive, but I don't think it would be too much more than the granite countertop with the galvanized sheet on top. Most local machine shops and fabricators are pretty reasonable, especially with a recession going on.

Just a thought,

papermache

AmishWarlord

My Feedback: (5)

One guy here was going to do that. I think they quoted him $6,000 or so for the machining.

Sheet metal on some kind of really flat surface is best for us.

cd_webb

My Feedback: (6)

Picked up a galvanized 18ga sheet the day before yesterday. I figure pretty much everyone here that's serious already knows this but, just in case... The guy I bought this sheet from volunteered that if I was going to paint, a muratic acid etching would give a primer coat a very good base to stick to. In the absence of muratic acid a longer soak in vinegar will still provide a suitable surface for painting.

BTW, I intend to contact cement my sheet to a hollow core door which in turn will be attached to a 2X4 frame with 4X4 legs. I'll have parts/tool trays along the long sides , a fixture racks on one end and a shelf below. I want this thing to weigh a ton. I hate working on a table that's scooting here and sliding there.

kargo

To simply be a little lazier about it, couldn't I just use some rustoleum and call it good? I'm sure I'd have to repaint eventually, but whats a can of spraypaint?

AmishWarlord

My Feedback: (5)

That's my plan Kargo, I'm going to use mine as a drafting table also so I know I'll have to do a repaint at least every year because of scratches and marks on the white surface.

I'm going to scuff up the surface with some 220 sandpaper then put on a couple of coats of Rustoliem white.

kargo

I had my wife ask the gang at Menards what to do, and they had us buy a can of Rust-Oleum Clean Metal Primer. Clean the surface with a wire brush or sandpaper, wash with soap and water, dry and paint. Or so says the can. I'll use rustolium spray paint after that. Sky blue at the request of my son.

AmishWarlord

My Feedback: (5)

My fixtures are already blue. :P

kargo

ouch

Bill Diedrich

Hey guys a source for a magnetic building board may be easier and closer than
you think. Stanley Door Systems make steel exterior doors, they have a wood
inner frame and are usually filled with white styrofoam. They are availalble at
most home improvement centers nation wide, I know in Louisiana I can get one
from Stine Lumber as they have a shop that prefabs exterior steel entry & patio
doors. Check around you might find a place that has a blemished or scratched
surface at a great price. They come in 30", 32" & 36" widths.

Bill D.

AmishWarlord

My Feedback: (5)

LOL at Kargo

davidyat

Here is what I did. And by the way I'm very lucky to have good friends who help. I started with 2 inch square steel tubing and welded it together. Then my friend who has a grinding shop ground the steel frame perfectly flat. Then I put a 3/4 inch sheet of plywood on it and drilled and tapped it into the steel frame. Back to Bill who ground the wood perfectly flat. Then over to my local metal supply shop, gave them the dimensions and they cut a 24 gauge sheet of steel. Then with contact cement I mated the sheet steel to the plywood. Then off to Harbor Freight for a lot of welders magnetic squares. If you don't have a Harbor Freight outlet, you can go online. Don't know what the shipping charges would be. But this place has all that stuff that's made in China and really cheap. Magnets, clamps, etc.

Tally Ho

makmov

My Feedback: (1)

I just got mine finished and it works fantastic. I never before had such building enjoyment. It IMHO is the only way to go and I will never look back.

box car

Well you guys got me going on this so I went to Lowes got two sheets of metal 16 x 36 and some spray glue all for about $20. Put it on a door I had and a hour later I am back building my senior telemaster having a lot more fun. thanks guys
Ken

balsa brain

I second the ideal about using a steel door but would go with a commercial one that is all steel. These can be had in lenghts of 80, 84 or 96 inches. These things are straight and will stay that way. Two drawer unit kitchen cabinets from Lowes or Home Depot and you are in business. JMHO

Bill

gobigdave

Found this old thread, but I figured I would take a shot. I'm taking the plunge into magnetic building boards. I have a solid core door as a base, and went to a local steel shop and had them cut me a piece of 2x6' 16 gauge galvanized. Unfortunately, the cutting process seems to have stressed the sheet, and my 2x6' sheet will not lie flat. I've tried bending it straight, but no luck so far.

Any ideas? At least around here, sheet steel seems to come in 4x8' sheets, but the cutting process seems to mess things up. Should I go thinner (18 or 20g)? Cement the steel to a laminated MDF board?

em14

Ken,
Caffeeman's web site is one of the very best resources to modelers. I wonder how many use it.
Leo

fredvon4

Big Dave as I said on the other web site... you can put the sheet of steel on top of MDF but if you do -----do not contact cement the entire area...just the sections that need to lay flat to the MDF... humidity changes make the usually stable MDF to expand and contract...by it self (MF) you never see these very small dimensional changes--- but if you laminate anything entirely to one side it will bow or cup as the MDF expands or contracts

em14

I would say Big Dave is correct!

gobigdave

I did the contact cement this morning, and I only did the center section as you recommended. So far, everything is flat as can be. I hope to get building this weekend.

Thanks all!

P.S. I am a regular visitor to Caffeeman's web site. It has a ton of great info. It's also where I picked up my fixtures. I don't have the tools to build them anywhere near as well as he can. They are worth every penny.