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Finally: My own gaming table

Discussion in 'Scenery' started by Knauf, Feb 16, 2020.

  1. Knauf

    Knauf Transhumanist

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    After browsing through all those flimsy (and surprisingly expensive) foldable plastic gaming tables online, I dedided to go to the hardware store and build one myself out of good old wood. This is about 60€ worth of material:

    - 2 MDF panels (122x61x1 cm)
    - 2 hinges
    - Screws
    - 6 wood laths (200x4x2.5 cm)

    Final dimensions are 122x61x7cm (folded), so it's really not difficult to store either. And then there is also the smell. I love the smell.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]



    Now only the legs and some fittings are missing:

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    So this thing set me back about 80€ in total, which is about half what I'd have to pay for one of the ready-made tables online, but this thing is much sturdier ... and admittedly a tad heavier as well. in hindsight, 5 mm thick MDF would have worked as well, while cheaper and lighter. Slimmer wood laths could have reduced weight a bit further, but I prefer things to be sturdy and don't mind if it's heavy. If that's a factor for you, consider using 5mm MDF.

    The legs I ordered are just 10 cm tall, since I'm planning to set this on our dinner table for gaming sessions. But since the fittings are there anyway, you could just order a longer set of legs to make this a standalone piece at whatever height you're comfortable with.

    The 10 cm space between the surface and the gaming table is nice for storing gaming utensils such as templates, sheets, dice etc.

    Next update (hopefully) around wednesday. I hope you like it!
     
    #1 Knauf, Feb 16, 2020
    Last edited: Feb 16, 2020
  2. Florian Hanke

    Florian Hanke Does not know how to stop building terrain.

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    I already like it a lot – how heavy is it as it is?
     
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  3. Knauf

    Knauf Transhumanist

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    Thanks :)

    I don't have a scale here, so I can't give you the exact weight, but the two halves of MDF are 5.3 kg each (according to the supplier),
    so I'd estimate it's around 12 kg in total.
     
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  4. Florian Hanke

    Florian Hanke Does not know how to stop building terrain.

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    Thanks! So I guess going for 5mm with the same volume of supports (thinner) is probably around 6,5-7 kg. I may try that one, but would like to see how it works for you with the "muffen".
     
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  5. Nasca

    Nasca Member

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    Looks good!
    Is the idea behind it to attach the legs for playing and off for storing it?
     
  6. Knauf

    Knauf Transhumanist

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    Yup, exactly. I will have to screm them on/off, but that also makes them exchangeable. This way I can accomodate different elevations/surfaces.
     
  7. Mob of Blondes

    Mob of Blondes Well-Known Member

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    Or even 3 mm. Just put framing strips on all edges and other in middle (6 short strips instead of 4). Also rotating the strips, so the small edge is on the surface, should give a stronger result at the cost of being thicker.
     
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  8. Knauf

    Knauf Transhumanist

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    It took a bit longer than expected but the table is now complete!

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    The screw-on legs came with flat threaded fittings which were much easier to attach than the ones I originally ordered, so that was a nice stroke of luck. They are slightly elevated, however, so I can't fold the table entirely anymore, but that's not really an issue for me (there is a ~2cm gap now).

    If you want to do it properly, you should probably use threaded sleeves/screws, but in my case they were splitting the wood, so I was glad to use the alternative.

    The gaming mat also arrived and it looks spectacular (Deep Cut Studio - Neotokyo).

    Now I just need to set up my airbrush somewhere and get my terrain painted ...
     
  9. Mob of Blondes

    Mob of Blondes Well-Known Member

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    Drill a smaller hole first. Some products even tell you which bit to use, like some chair leg plastic pads that had a nail and I had to install recently. For wood screws use generic table if nothing in label, or (last resort trick) find the bit that lets you see the threads of the screw but barely center part.
     
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  10. Florian Hanke

    Florian Hanke Does not know how to stop building terrain.

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    Congratulations! One question, for my own table-building needs: since the hinge is in the middle underneath the table, if you push on the ends, is it in danger of closing? Or do the table legs have enough friction on the table below it / the mat exerts enough friction to prevent it from happening, or do you use a small mechanism (don't know the name in English) to have it not accidentally close? Thanks :)
     
  11. Knauf

    Knauf Transhumanist

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    Thanks! The rubber plates under the legs provide enough friction for the whole thing to remain stable. Also, the edges of the MDF plates along the middle section push against each other when opened and the table folds towards the surface it's standing on, so this is not a problem. To further strengthen stability, one could use screw clamps to force the two center laths against each other (one one each end should be plenty), but it's pretty stable as it is.

    Yeah, that's how I was told to do it as well and I did pre-drill a hole (with a size 8 wood drill bit), but either the hole was too small or the wood is too low quality to resist the force of the threaded screws, which in hindsight are much too long (I bought M8 x 27mm but M8x13mm would have been easier to use and plenty strong).


    So my conclusions for people who want to build a similar table:

    - use slimmer MDF if you are concerned about weight. 5mm seems to be a good compromise between strength and weight in my estimation.

    - practice using threaded sleeves/screws before using them on the assembled table
     
    #11 Knauf, Feb 28, 2020
    Last edited: Feb 28, 2020
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  12. Chango50

    Chango50 I´m back!

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    I found this video with interesting ideas for your table, do not know if it was posted before, cheers!
     
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  13. Knauf

    Knauf Transhumanist

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    Got a game lined up for saturday, so there will be some pictures coming up. Here's a little preview from my most recent purchase.
    crane.jpg
     
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