Replies

1. 
   Patto | Feb 02, 2005 05:07am | #1

   I assume that the cardboard you are referring to is the playing surface? attached to the metal with soething like contact adhesive?

   In that case I would not glue it, but would make it a slightly loose fit in a groove in a frame like a floating panel. No adhesion problems and you would have a small lip to catch any pieces that were knocked over.

   other wise, what metal are you using. there is a magnetised rubber or vinyl sheet you can get (not sure where) that will help hold the pieces (need to get all of the magnets in the pieces the right way up). This can be glued to a sustrate like ply with contact and is found on some of the 'travelling' sets I have seen.

2. 
   JeffHeath | Feb 02, 2005 05:17am | #2

   Z

   I've had excellent luck glueing metal, including copper, to wood using Roo glue (brand name).  I get it here at a local woodworkers supply, but I'm sure it's available on the net.

   Also, before finding Roo glue, I used to use epoxy.

   Hope this helps.

   Jeff

3. 
   douglas2cats | Feb 02, 2005 05:18am | #3

   One other possibility is to have holes in the central core of the board with round rare earth magnets laid into the holes then glue the playing surface over the core. Just be careful to align the magnet poles the right way when you insert them. It might give you even more holding power and would keep the pieces centered in the squares. Lee Valley has a pretty good selection of sizes.

   I love the smell of sawdust in the morning.

1. 
   mvac | Feb 02, 2005 08:36pm | #6

   FYI - http://www.rare-earth-magnets.com/ - National Imports

   If you find 'em any cheaper, or with a greater selection of sizes, shapes, etc., let me know. I have a lot of found wood that I needed a strong metal-finder for before jointing or planing. I bought 5 1"x.25" discs @ $2.70 each, plus about $3-4 shipping, epoxied one into a forstenered hole, and just stacked the rest on top (believe me, they're not going anywhere. It's found 1/4" nail fragments as far as an inch deep.

   Hope that helps,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

1. 
   JohnWW | Feb 03, 2005 04:50am | #8

   Could you give a more complete explanation on how you use the magnets to search for hidden nails?

   Thanks, John W.

1. 
   mvac | Feb 03, 2005 06:15am | #10

   "Could you give a more complete explanation on how you use the magnets to search for hidden nails?"

   Well, John, bear in mind that I'm not a physicist, but I can give an example. (If you want the technical explanations, they can be found at http://www.rare-earth-magnets.com/. Very informative 'though a bit over my head...).

   Rare earth magnets have tremendous holding power, which also translates into weight-lifting power, relative to "regular" magnets. I mentioned in my earlier post that I stacked 5 1"x.25" rare earth magnet discs back-to-back, with just one epoxied into the wooden handle I used. These things are unbelievably powerful. See the pictures, they describe it better than I can. I'm lifting a steel chair and a steel stepstool with that little 5" handle and the 5 REM discs. I think that's pretty impressive.

   To use the metal-finder, I simply slide the magnets, handle down, over the wood - usually all four sides, unless it's a thin piece. I can feel a definitive "tug" - kind of like a fish nibbling at the bait - and confirm the presence of metal by passing over the same place a couple of more times. It's pretty much that easy. If there's a hole, I can try to knock the piece out the other side with a punch. Usually, though, it's just easier to cut the piece and dispose of the cutoff containing the metal.

   Hope this helps, and feel free to let me know if you need more info.

   Regards,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

   
2. 
   BenM | Feb 03, 2005 03:57pm | #11

   Even with the thousands of posts and responses that are on this site there are very few nuggets of gold to be mined.  Your metal detector invention is one of them.  Excellent! You should send it in to FWW Tips.

1. 
   mvac | Feb 04, 2005 01:01am | #13

   Thanks, Ben.  Actually never thought of it, but I may do that.

   Cheers, and thanks for the compliment,Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

2. 
   mvac | Feb 06, 2005 07:34pm | #14

   Ben,

    

   Just wanted you to know I took your advice and submitted the metal finder to PopWW (I know David Thiel from calling him a lot for advice). But before I submitted it, I cleaned it up a bit and used a stain/poly mix for a finish. Here's how it looks now. Thanks again for the encouragement.

   Cheers,

    Mitch

   "I'm always humbled by how much I DON'T know..."

   
4. 
   WillGeorge | Feb 02, 2005 06:00am | #4

   Sort of off the subject, but I once made a chess board for a handicapped friend once.

   He wanted recesses.. Worked great for him.. I just put this here because I couldn't figure out why magnets were needed...

1. 
   bmwz3coupe | Feb 03, 2005 06:06am | #9

   Her dad recommended the magnets first so that is the direction I am building , but the idea of recessed holes has come up and the her dad will have to give me feedback on which might be better after she has tried this board first.

5. 
   jackplane | Feb 02, 2005 05:39pm | #5

   construction adhesive or contact cement.

6. 
   Lilshaver | Feb 02, 2005 08:51pm | #7

   Any brand of the polyurethane adhesives will work. Spread the glue on the plywood and lightly dampen the metal side just before joining. Contact adhesives will also work.

7. 
   datachanel | Feb 03, 2005 04:36pm | #12

   Hello, 3M's Polygun, a hot glue gun, has sticks available for it that work fairly well for wood to metal connections. I have used it in the theater for attaching wood details to steel frames. Beware, it is a high temp heat gun and can cause some nasty burns if the user isn't careful.

   Datachanel

   Doing things the hard way