I have a 4’x6’ map that I want to mount on a wall and I’m looking for tips on how to build a backing for it.
I got 10 20"x30" 3/16 foam boards that I was thinking of spray adhesiving the map to(want to put pins in map), but then I need something to hold the foam boards together. Would some 1/2" x 4" wood be a good idea to build a backing / frame out of? What would be the best method of attaching each wood board together at the corners?
Use the CNC router to create a huge frame (possibly with rounded edges etc.) that looks like window panes with just enough wood to attach the foam to but cut out enough to not weigh too much? Does that make sense? I can CAD something up if I’m not being clear.
Sounds like gratuitous CNC use, what kind of wood? Plywood?
I was thinking of half lap splice of basically a tic tac toe board, I wonder if the wood would be flat/straight enough to be flat after its all assembled and hung on wall.
We used to have an aviation sectional chart framed like that. I believe it was a piece of 1/4 inch plywood in back, and the frame was just that - a picture frame. You could make routed moldings on the plain old router table with the bits we have. The frame wood server to stiffen the thin plywood. Ours had a place cut for glass too, but sounds like you don’t need that.
We do a lot of this in the legal field, but I have some disappointing news. First, you probably want a full 4’x8’ sheet of foamcore, or for something this large, gatorboard. Unless you laminate the foamcore segments together with overlaps (like bricks in a wall) you are going to have some pretty gnarly seams. I honestly don’t know how to get it without buying a 25-pack case (which is how we bought it).
You might try a sign shop, an AV supply (film crews use great gobs of giant sized foamcore) or a litigation graphics firm. (When I was working at the litigation graphics firm, I probably would have let a sheet go out the back door for a pack of beer, if that helps you with the negotiations. It’s a consumable.)
The next problem is going to be the actual laminating. You can do it with spray adhesive, but you’ll have to do it veeeeeery slooooooooowly to avoid wrinkling, and good luck doing it on your first shot without practice. I was spoiled, because we used a heat laminating vacuum press (which would be sweet to have at the space, but I can’t figure out how to justify it.)
We used a custom extruded plastic framing edge, which was cheap and trimable with an exacto knife. My advice based on working with that would be to go thinner and lighter than you might think you want – Shaping 1x2s on the router table with some sort of decorative bead on the top and a rabbit on the inside for the foamcore, with mitered corners and splines should be plenty.
One final piece of advice – check to see if your map is UV sensitive. If it is, sunlight is its mortal enemy. There are UV laminates you can use to protect it, or you can try to find a way to place it away from windows.
A screenshot of something close to what I was suggesting to route out as a frame for mounting the foam. The support pieces would be the only pocketing operation, the rest would be cuts. I don’t think it’d take too long.
The CNC router is awesome, with Allen’s help I just picked up a 4’x8’ sheet of plywood, threw it on the table, and with Alex’s help I had a much lighter precisely sized piece of wood in a matter of minutes
Of course I got to this point and realized that I never actually took the map out of the tube and measured it, I’m just trusting that the specs on amazon are correct…
Not to pull this from woodshop too much, but while I was looking for some poster hangers I came across these corner holders. http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:225072 They are pretty sturdy and are designed to hold a poster on the wall with a pane of glass or acrylic in front of the poster. I’ve only printed out one corner so far (takes about 2 hours for each corner plus a little more time for smoothing) but I think the 3D model (without having used the CNC router before myself) could be used on the router to create a minimal corner frame.
-the purring dork
