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Thread: Scrabble Board Plans?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
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    Shady Cove, Oregon
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    Scrabble Board Plans?

    My wife and I are avid scrabblers and want to make our own board. We have the latest one commercially available, but it's not so great. Looks good, but has a lot of problems. Unlike the earlier version, the ridges-separator splines don't hold the tiles in place.

    Here is a shot of the current board. Does anyone know where I can find plans for building a snazzy version? Or any suggestions?

    004 (600 x 450).jpg

    Another question: what kind of tools can one use for making such small items as spline separators? Is there a miniature table saw or some such? Seems like this is a general problem: how to work very small items precisely and without danger.

    Best,

    Art

  2. #2
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    Scrabble plans I cant help you, but search on Proxon for small tablesaws, I believe they have two models - both reasonably priced. They are on my "someday" list. (grin)
    Mike
    From the workshop under the staircase, Clinton Township, MI
    Semper Audere!

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
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    Inver Grove Heights, MN
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    798
    No plans, but it looks like an interesting problem. Perhaps a job for a CNC router. I was thinking of using a thin kerf saw blade to cut slots in one direction. Glue in strips of wood the same thickness as your saw kerf. Then cut slots in the other direction, moving very slowly to minimize damage to the strips that you are now crossing. Add strips in second direction, then sand everything flat on top. Not sure how any of that would work, but that was my thoughts. Let us know how you do it.

  4. #4
    I made this one . . .


    I layed out the game board in Adobe Illustrator leaving 1/8" stripes for the raised inlays and then silk screened it onto birch plywood.

    Kerfs were cut for the inlays in one direction and then glued in before cutting the kerfs in the other direction. Spacer strips against the TS fence were used to maintain spacing on the kerfs.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Ashburn, Virginia
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    Scott, That is a amazing. Do you have any more photos of the board.

    I'd like to know more about this design. My wife LOVES scrabble and I'd love to make her a board for her birthday.
    -==--==--==--==--==--==--==-
    Karlan Talkington

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    that my children may have peace." -- Thomas Paine

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  6. #6
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
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    Shady Cove, Oregon
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    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Banbury View Post
    I made this one . . .


    I layed out the game board in Adobe Illustrator leaving 1/8" stripes for the raised inlays and then silk screened it onto birch plywood.

    Kerfs were cut for the inlays in one direction and then glued in before cutting the kerfs in the other direction. Spacer strips against the TS fence were used to maintain spacing on the kerfs.

    Scott,

    A truly gorgeous board! Could you give more details? I do not know how to do silk screening. Any suggestions as to literature, etc, to learn how? How did you avoid blowing out the inlays already in place when doing the crossing kerfs? I assume that you made the strips the same thickness as your TS saw blade kerf. Am I right? And how did you make the frame---and from what type of wood?

    More details would be appreciated.

    Art

  7. #7
    I'll take a picture of one of the misprinted grids today and post it tonight.

    It was all really easy but a little time consuming. I think I ended up figuring that I would need to charge $350 or so if I was making them in batches of 6 or more at a time.

  8. #8
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    I thought about this as well at one point... I think where I was going was cutting a whole slew of small maple squares (both for tiles and gameboard), with the idea of using aniline dyes or something to get the red (pink?), yellow (gold?) and blue bonus squares. That would dictate cutting very small spacers, stacking squares/spacers into rows, then stacking rows into a square. Seemed very time consuming. Then I thought about carving the letters/point values into the specific tiles, and pretty much gave up. Wanted to investigate maybe using a sheet of silver or aluminum and taking it to a laser engraver to get the tiles done, but never got around to it...

    Good luck...

  9. #9
    The person I made that board for didn't really want the tiles colored snd it's used in competitions.

    If I had needed to color the tiles, I figured it would be easy enough just to tint the laquer and apply it to the squares after finishing the rest clear.

  10. #10
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    S.E. Tennessee ... just a bit North of Chattanooga
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    Scrabble Board

    I wonder if it would be reasonable to find someone with a laser to burn the text onto a blank before doing the cutting & finishing ?? Anybody know what type(s) of files those CNC lasers use ?? ?? ??

  11. #11
    Join Date
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    Epilog is the one that I use (next best thing to owning one is having a dad who does) and it will print from just about anything. We use Corel almost all the time.

    Laser time is about $1 per minute + set up or so last time I looked at what anyone was charging. If the burning is done in raster( I think that is the fast one) then it is actually pretty fast.

    Looking at the boards got me thinking about trying one. Since I have access to a laser unit and a CNC router I think it could be done. Maybe use maple plywood and make the kerfs with the CNC. Use a drum sander to get pieces the right thickness, glue them in. Vacuum bag would be handy to. Maybe it is time to start piecing one together.

    Joe
    JC Custom WoodWorks

    For best results, try not to do anything stupid.

    "So this is how liberty dies...with thunderous applause." - Padmé Amidala "Star Wars III: The Revenge of the Sith"

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
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    Hayes, Virginia
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    Art,

    Here is the link to our Laser Engravers and CNC Owners list if you decide you would like some assistance with your project.

    http://www.sawmillcreek.org/engravers.php

    .

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    115
    I would incorporate a 'lazy susan' into the design - makes it alot easier to rotate the board.

    Steve

  14. #14
    When I made my board, I didn't have any laser engravers available but that would certainly be an alternative. Also, many custom printers can now handle plywood for making point of purchase displays.

    I've attached a couple pics of my screen printed boards. They show the printed blank, a fully kerfed panel and a panel with the horizontal dividers glued in and the vertical kerfs cut through them. Sorry about the poor pics--cheap Kodak camera.

    On the first one I attempted, I cut all the kerfs in the plywood before gluing in any strips but in the end I did it by cutting the kerfs in one direction, gluing in those strips and then cutting the kerfs in the other direction through the glued in strips. I used a negative hook blade for the kerfs.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  15. #15
    If anyone gets serious about this, I'd be happy to send you my Illustrator (PDF) or TurboCad layouts for the board.

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