As I mentioned in a , I'm working on using the TerrainLinx system with tiles made out of 1/4" Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) instead of foamcore.

The reasons I'm pursuing this are:

1) Cutting the notches out of foamcore is difficult and time-consuming. Tiles were never fun for me before, but with the TerrainLinx system the number of foamboard cuts have increased dramatically.

2) 1/4" Foamcore is difficult to find in my area (Texas). In the U.S., it seems that 3/16" is the standard. I tried making a TerrainLinx tile with the 3/16" stuff, but the paper wrapped too loosely around the tiles for my liking. MDF on the other hand is widely available at big hardware store chains and is relatively inexpensive (around $5.50 for a 2'x4' sheet).

3) Foamcore has a tendency to warp easily. In fact, most of the time the foamboard is already bowed when I buy it. Over time, the tiles made from bowed piece may straighten out or they may get worse. A lot of it depends on how they are stored, the humidity, what type of glue was used, etc. The point is, foamboard is finicky whereas MDF is heavy and solid, and holds up well over time (especially when non-loadbearing).

4) I can cut MDF board quickly and accurately with the woodworking tools I already have in my garage.

But there are definitely some challenges with using the TerrainLinx system with MDF. So I figured I'd start a new thread dedicated to the ins-and-outs of it, what works, and what doesn't. Suggestions and criticisms are welcome.

At first, I tried using a router mounted on a router table with a 1" straight bit. This worked for cutting notches when the MDF is laid down flat, but shredded the MDF when the tiles were stacked on their sides. Laying the tiles flat would cut a circular notch in the tiles, which is not what I had in mind for the straight bit.

So I started thinking of other ways to join the tiles, and came up with using a drill press to drive holes in the edge, and joining the tiles with wooden dowels.

Here's a picture of my drill press setup with a block of wood clamped to the table as a fence. You can see one of the MDF TerrainLinx tiles under the drill bit.



And here's a closeup. I'm centering the drill bit on the little green cut lines that mark the 1" notches. I'm using a 9/64" drill bit and have the plunge depth set to 3/4" inch, just to be consistent with the original notches. I started out using a 1/8" drill bit, but the fit was too tight for 1/8" dowels.



Here's the finished results:



Once you get your system down, you can knock out a bunch of these tiles quickly. It may not be drastically faster than a pro could do a foamcore tile by hand, but it sure is a lot easier on the hobby knife hand...



Here's how they are joined together, using 1/8" dowels cut (with scissors in this case) to 1 1/4" long. This length gives a little leeway in case you didn't drill a hole quite deep enough, or if a little sawdust gets in one of the holes.



Once connected, the playing surface is very flat and straight.



Here's a shot of the backside...



And here's a final shot of the playing surface, laying down this time.

Reserved.

I wonder what other materials could be used for those without power tools. I have similar problems with foamcore.

Thats so...beautiful. Almost makes me wanna cry. AMAZING work!

Oh, and that laser guided drill press is friggin AWESOME.

That looks really nice. My one concern regarding MDF would be the weight for multi-story builds.

/Paul

Great method, Rhino!

I can get a jig made easy enough, and the drilling is certainly more accurete than my cuts would be. I will definitely go with this method and with more than TLX.

Its very cool, but I also wonder about the weight of the upper levels. Although perhaps it not enough weight to be an issue unless there are many levels or few walls and posts.

If you do need more support you could try dropping dowels in the posts. They wouldn't need to connect to the floors or anything, so that may be the way to go.

I do love this method though. One issue with having the connecting tab slots is it makes the foamcore tiles fragile at the corner. More than one I've accidentally bent the whole corner. Not only is wood sturdier but drilling holes eliminates that choke point too.

Yeah, I can't see the weight being a factor here, even for 4+ stories. The core components are a bit like the whole "standing on an egg" experiment and can take a lot of weight when used together. None of them really have weak points in the geometry for downward pressure.

One thing though; how are you going to handle railings and or balconies?

Great looking set up there! Glad you've been able to work out the cutting/connection issue with the MDF.

Great idea for correcting the issues that you were having as far as cutting the MDF. Looking forward to your solution to the balconies.

Doh, double post due to forum issues yesterday.

In another post, I mentioned that I had difficulties trying to use a tabletop router to notch MDF tiles. Here's some details and pics. I realize we're having forum issues right now, so hopefully I'll get all this right the first time...

when I tried to clamp the tiles together and run them through vertically to make straight notches. It .

When I laid the tiles down and , though, it worked fine. However, this method , which kinda defeats the purpose.

So, that's why I switched over to the drill-press-and-dowel method. Maybe if I'd spent more time on it, I could have figured out a way to make it work with the notches...I dunno.

Not sure what's going on with the forum...hopefully I can edit my posts later and clean them up. Sorry about any confusion.

Something thin, like a Popsicle stick might work as a strip to bond to the inside of the railing base. That would give you a stable lip to glue your dowels into or perhaps even seat them within a drill hole.

Its not really an issue with balconies, as they essentially work like larger floor tiles.