john_the_bass Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 i'm invstigating putting a board together as per my other posts re fx order. having looked at the various options, i now think the best way is to make me own and fit a set of split hinges onto a case so i can remove the lid/base (whatever). In terms of routing cables and whatnot, there doesn't seem much point in routing them under the board as they can be neatly routed across the top and velcroed down. What I'd like to know is - what's the best stuff to make the board out of (Ply/MDF/etc) and where's the best place to get ali edges and proper velcro covering - preferably deep pile sort of stuff so you can sink the feet of stuff like wah pedals into it? Anybody had a bash themselves? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 [quote name='john_the_bass' post='23535' date='Jun 26 2007, 02:06 PM']i'm invstigating putting a board together as per my other posts re fx order. having looked at the various options, i now think the best way is to make me own and fit a set of split hinges onto a case so i can remove the lid/base (whatever). In terms of routing cables and whatnot, there doesn't seem much point in routing them under the board as they can be neatly routed across the top and velcroed down. What I'd like to know is - what's the best stuff to make the board out of (Ply/MDF/etc) and where's the best place to get ali edges and proper velcro covering - preferably deep pile sort of stuff so you can sink the feet of stuff like wah pedals into it? Anybody had a bash themselves?[/quote] I'm part way through building one myself out of plywood, but I'm building a programmeable 8-way bypass into it. For fixing the pedals I decided to use two of the kits that you can get on ebay. If you're using plywood (lighter and easier to work with than MDF) you can screw the pedals on to the board - better than velcro IMHO - altho a lot of people do prefer velcro For pedals that don't have screws underneath (ie whammy), I've knocked up some 'S' shaped brackets out of aluminium angle and a couple of rivits Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_the_bass Posted June 26, 2007 Author Share Posted June 26, 2007 nice one - what thickness of ply are you using? I would prefer to use velcro purely because it should make switching pedals round or removing them that little bit quicker on the hop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muppet Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 From experience of making a board with carpet and using velcor on the feet of the pedals I'd not recommend it. I used 1/4" MDF from B&Q and cut it to the same shape as a case that I had already sourced then covered in the carpet covering (like on cabs) and screwed feet to the bottom. In hindsight, I'd cover the board in tolex style stuff (you know the black plastic covering) and then stick velcro in rows across it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muppet Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 Fablon - that's the stuff that I should have used, not tolex. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elros Posted June 26, 2007 Share Posted June 26, 2007 I've got a couple. [url="http://hallgeir.no/hmt/pedalboard/"]Here is one[/url] that is essentially a flight case with velcro on the inside bottom and pedals stuck in there. I built it all myself, alas the hinges on the front bottom make it hard to put the top back on..... And [url="http://hallgeir.no/bass/electronics/"]here is the other one[/url] - the one I currently use. It is an aluminium frame welded by a friend of mine, in a flight case made by a local PA rental company. The stuff is screwed on to the aluminium frame with stainless steel screws, and the cables are all tied to the frame as well. Very heavy, but it lets my electronic aural gratification devices survive the onslaught of tired roadies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_the_bass Posted June 27, 2007 Author Share Posted June 27, 2007 cool! The word "heavy" puts me off a bit, but i think they're all going to be like that fingers crossed i am going to pick up a board tonight for a bit of a bargain, all that remains is to get the velcro to stick everything down - does anybody recommend any suppliers of industrial strength stuff? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tayste_2000 Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 www.diago.co.uk do velcro I think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_the_bass Posted June 27, 2007 Author Share Posted June 27, 2007 they only do the one side (either the hook or loop) or so it seems as the velcro sticks straight on to the board. the carpet cover idea is gonna wait for the time being so i need to get some strong hook and loop tape. it's about a tenner a roll for 25m, but i'm never going to use that much, so i'm just trying to find places that will cut to length at the moment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 [quote name='john_the_bass' post='23905' date='Jun 27 2007, 09:51 AM']it's about a tenner a roll for 25m, but i'm never going to use that much, so i'm just trying to find places that will cut to length at the moment[/quote] how about [url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/Search.aspx?criteria=velcro&source=15&SD=Y"]maplins[/url]. I can vouch for their speedy delivery Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_the_bass Posted June 27, 2007 Author Share Posted June 27, 2007 yeah i did spot that actually - 25mm should be wide enough, although i might have to build widths of it up on the board to give plenty of sticking area Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thumbo Posted June 28, 2007 Share Posted June 28, 2007 Here's my board, it's an old pic and the contents of it are very different now but this seems to be the clearest pic I have of the entire board. I made it almost 2 years ago, it cost me less than £20 to make and took under 2 hours, including the trip to B&Q for the materials. -The base of the board is MDF, it's about 2cm thick. I rounded off the corners and all the edges so that it wouldn't chip too easily. -I cleaned the MDF and stuck sparkly (oh yes!) self-adhesive Fablon all round it to protect the wood. -Next I added 4 strips of fluffy side velcro to allow space for two rows of pedals. -I made wooden feet 2cm in height for the bottom of the board, screwed them into place, one on each corner and several others so that the board wouldn't flex when I press on the pedals. This has proven very useful for running cables underneath the board to prevent them from being kicked out. -Next I added 4 drawer handles to the sides of the board which are useful for two reasons; lifting the board in and out of the SKB softcase that I had for my old board and also to prevent my singer from kicking into the side of my pedals whilst he flew around on stage. -The pedals are all attached using hooky-side velcro. I've used this board a lot over the past two years and it doesn't show any signs of wear, that Fablon stuff has proven great for protecting the board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_the_bass Posted June 29, 2007 Author Share Posted June 29, 2007 I just ordered about 10 ft of 4" wide sticky backed fluffy side velcro from the states for 18 quid shipped - i was looking at how much i actually needed depending on tape width and it was starting to add up - but with this stuff, i should be able to cover the entire top of the board (basically carpet it) and then just put the scratchy side velcro on to the back of the pedals. we'll see! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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