Wow I'm
tired. I haven't updated my blog in almost a month and for that I'm
sorry. I promised to show you a painted example of the heavy armor.
Trouble with that is I actually have to paint them. I honestly
haven't found the time. I have them assembled and primed but I have
gotten no farther. It's the story of my entire miniatures collection.
It grows but I can never seem to complete an army.
So what has taken my time?
Well a gaming table actually.
My gaming
group got together shortly after my last blog post and while drinking a lot we
decided it would be quite nice to build a gaming table.
I can’t
stress how much alcohol was involved in this decision because it has proven
quite the undertaking. We aren’t the
most graceful or skilled carpenters on the planet. In fact I’d have to say our
skill level with “Craft (furniture)” is roughly -4 ranks averaged between us.
However
with several pints of Guinness anything is possible.
So I was
tasked, possibly as a cruel joke, with coming up with a perfect gaming table
design.
So that I
did.
After our RPG session we drank and discussed options
and the materials we could use. We
hashed out our basic needs and what level of complexity we were talking
about. Some of my gamer colleagues and I
even field tripped to local home supply stores to see potential materials for
the build.
Afterwards, armed with all this critical
intelligence I sat down with another beer and google sketchup to plan. I put the design together in google sketchup so
that people can take a look at it in 3d.
At its core the table design we came up with is
modular so we can reformat it to fit our needs.
Made up of 3 separate segments, the two outside segments are
self-supporting and hold up the central segment.
The first section is a relatively small table sized
at 32”x48” followed by a center projection section also at 32”x48”, and the
last section with a size of 48”x48”. When
combined, this will make a single table 4’ by 9’4” table suitable to fit our
large 10 person gaming group. In the
center of this large table is an LCD projector rear mounted to display dynamic
content on the tabletop itself. The
entire surface of the table is covered in plexiglass mounted on piano hinges so
maps and gaming aids can be put under them and wet or dry erase markers used
directly on the table top. In all, great
for RPG gaming.
Or we can remove the projection section to make a 4’
by 6’8” table. This size is perfectly
sized for table top wargaming, having a standard 4’ b6 6’ surface with 4 inches
on either side for models in reserve or removed from game.
Or we can separate the 4’ by 4’ table giving us a
single square table. This is perfect for
traditional 4 player board games or smaller skirmished based table top games.
The 2’8” by 4’ table also works for smaller board
and card games with 2 to 4 players. Or
it can be tucked out of the way for entertaining.
The frame of the table is sturdy design using 2x2
and 2x4 lumber to distribute the weight.
Along the outer edge of the table are mounted
K-Rails, a snap fit rail system traditionally used in garages. Here we use it
for mounting shelving to expand the surface as needed. The K-Rail system acts
as both the lip of the table top and lets us mount temporary table space around
the outside of the table as well as mount cup holders, dice towers, and other
amenities wherever we sit.
Kobalt makes K-rail shelves, baskets, and so on
that, with minor modification, can serve the needs of any gaming group without
trouble. Our basic design mounts a 12”
by 18” piece of 3/4th inch particle board onto two flat K-rail
brackets with a piano hinge at the back to mount plexiglass. This simple structure adds a single seating
place with enough room for the player to roll dice and store their character
sheet under plexiglass and use markers to track health and so on. Other designs can be made and the player or
group could customize these shelves to whatever they need or simply go without
them entirely.
The structure is supported by its two end
sections. Each one is mounted on a set
of 4” by 4” legs mounted on locking casters.
The legs are 30” long with 2” casters, once flush mounted with the top
the table stands roughly 32” high. This
is a tiny bit higher than a normal table for sitting but slightly low for a
standing counter top. We found this was a good medium for both standing and
seated gaming. The casters make the
table easy to move around. The large
size and sturdy nature of the legs allow the table to support the center
section of the table for the projector. This
insert is pinned on with aluminum pipe. Though
it may support a side seat it is mostly intended to simply mount the projector. Minor modifications could make this table
free standing or mount other equipment like an LCD TV or monitor.
So that’s the design. Lets see some pictures.
Needed
Supplies
1/2" Masonite x1 32"x48" + x1 48"x48" + x2
2" strips 48" and x2 2" strips 28" long
1/8" Plexi x2 32"x48" + x2 24"x48" Note: the
largest plexi we found was 32” x 48” if you can find bigger it might be a cheaper
build. This is the most expensive part,
doesn’t count any plexi for K-rail place settings. Roughly 250 bucks here, literally costs as
much as the entire table (minus projector).
2 part epoxy 1
tube Used to glue
plexi to hinges.
2” Flush Seat Wooden Screws x100 Used to
mount the K-rails
2x2 53'6" ~7 boards Cuts are
below.
2x4 39'2" ~5 boards Cuts are
below.
3/4" Aluminum pipe 3' holds table sections together
3/4" U-bracket x16 holds up the pipe that holds
table sections together
3” Flush Seat Wooden Deck Screws x100 Used to build the frame.
4x4 20’ ~2 boards Note:
alternatively you can use folding table leg kits but each section will need to
be self supporting.
Casters –locking x8 screw on
casters best.
Cotter pins
x8 Ace has
them individually, need to get ones that will fit the pipe bought to hold
tables together.
Glass
Mounting Kit x1 not sure on
this, you need to mount a mirror at a 45 degree angle for the projector to get
a focal length of 5 feet not sure on the fittings needed for that, I assume,
duct-tape
K-Rail Track 26'7” ~8 six foot
rails
L-brackets x32 used to
mount the legs. Note: not needed if you use folding leg kits
LCD projector x1 standard
long throw projector that has rear mounting settings.
Mirror x1 Minimum
12"x12" preferably larger 16” or 18”
square would be best
Piano Hinge x6 12" Sold individually
White Craft Paper
32"x48" this is the
projection surface, you can use craft paper, tracing paper, or any other semitransparent
surface with an opacity of around 70%. You can buy drafting paper that has this
opacity and ½” grid lines.
Wire Cart +casters no top x1 used
to mount the projector, could be a board with casters honestly, just needs to
be flat and can mount a projector and mirror.
Wood
Cuts
2x2 - x6 48" - x6 29" - x4 45"
2x4 - x4 32" - x6 41" - x2 48"
4x4 - x8 30”
masonite - x1 32"x48" - x1
48"x48" - x2 32"x2" - x2 44"x2"
K-rail - x4 48" - x4 32"
Shelves
K-rail flat mount brackets - 2 per seat/expansion
shelf
MDF - 18" x 12" per seat/expansion
shelf x1 8'by4' MDF board cut down into segments
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