Bulletin Board Backing & Hanging

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Hey everyone,

I'm having a bit of trouble deciding how to finish a cork bulletin board I've started.

The frame (53" wide x 41" tall overall) is made from 2" wide x 5/8" thick poplar with a 3/8" deep x 1/2" wide rabbet on the back to accept the 3/8" thick cork-faced particle board.

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First, I need something to hold the cork-faced particle board into the rabbet.

I found some "screen retaining clips" and "glass retaining clips", but they're not really big enough and I'm afraid to attach something like that so close to the edge of the rabbet for fear of splitting the wood.

I've thought about using a piece of 1/8" or 1/4" plywood and just stapling it around the perimeter of the back. That would work very well, but I'm concerned about weight. Is 1/8" or 1/4" plywood (or hardboard for that matter) really all that heavy?

The last thing I thought of was to attach some diagonal cleats at the corners and horizontal/vertical cleats on the sides and top/bottom. I think that would work, but it doesn't seem like as good an idea as the plywood.

The second thing I need to figure out is how to hang it.

I'm completely open to suggestion here. It will be attached to a drywall covered wall.

Thanks!

Paul

[Matt Meiser]

I just built an easel for my daughter for Christmas and the side with a whiteboard used a commercial whiteboard that was thin metal over a homosote-type material. I backed that up with a 3/16" hardboard that I cut about 1/4" smaller than the outer dimensions of the frame. That worked great, didn't add a lot of weight and gave great support.

For hanging, Lowes sells something that is essentially an aluminum french cleat. You mount one part to the wall and one part to the item you want to hang. I used some to hang a large heavy mirror and it worked great. I just put some 1/4" ply blocks on the lower back of the mirror so it would stand off the wall evenly. The best part is that if you get the strips hung level on the wall and attached straight to what you are hanging, the result will be straight. The one I bought was a single strip maybe 12-18" long and I just cut a couple of 6" pieces and put one on each end of the mirror. It is plenty strong.

[Lee Koepke]

a tackboard i used had a cardboard back.

also i used asphalt impregnated sheathing with a cork layer on top for a backboard behind my dartboard.

[Kevin Godshall]

I've made several display cabinets, incorporating cork bulletin boards into them. Some were fairly heavy (size and type of wood used). I used a 1/4" ply backing behind the cork (actually using flooring adhesive to glue the cork to the ply) and then used narrow crown staples to hold it in the rabbet.

To mount it on the wall, I used extra thin flush mounts, like Rockler sells http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=344&filter=mounts

Good Luck with it!

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Thanks guys!

I've got some 1/8" hardboard left over from a previous project. And I just picked up some 1/4" BB ply for box bottoms. I noticed the dealer also had 1/8" BB ply and it looked pretty sturdy for being so thin.

If I did my calculations correctly, an 1/8" BB ply back would add less than 5 pounds to the entire bulletin board. That doesn't seem too bad, so I think I'm going to go that route.

As for how to hang it... I do like the "steel french cleat" as well as the "extra thin flush mounts." Either would work better than those cheap picture frame hangers everybody else uses.

Thanks again for the tips!

Paul

[Danny Thompson]

I used thin corrugated cardboard as follows:

1) lay the frame face down
2) cut the cardboard slightly smaller than the frame
3) set the cork into the rabbet
4) spray the cardboard with spray adhesive
5) lay the cardboard in place
6) flip the whole assembly
7) press the cork securely onto the cardboard
8) flip it back over
9) staple the cardboard in place

Done.

Bulletin boards do not usually carry a lot of weight, so they can usually be hung like pictures, with 2 picture hangers to prevent rocking. IMHO, a french cleat is overkill, but, hey, it's a fun exercise.

[Paul Fitzgerald]

I used thin corrugated cardboard as follows:

1) lay the frame face down
2) cut the cardboard slightly smaller than the frame
3) set the cork into the rabbet
4) spray the cardboard with spray adhesive
5) lay the cardboard in place
6) flip the whole assembly
7) press the cork securely onto the cardboard
8) flip it back over
9) staple the cardboard in place

Done.

Bulletin boards do not usually carry a lot of weight, so they can usually be hung like pictures, with 2 picture hangers to prevent rocking. IMHO, a french cleat is overkill, but, hey, it's a fun exercise.

Interesting. I hadn't thought of cardboard.

Are you talking about the type of thick corrugated cardboard that's used for boxes or some type of thinner and/or stronger cardboard (like maybe something found at an art supply store)?

Paul

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Bulletin boards do not usually carry a lot of weight, so they can usually be hung like pictures, with 2 picture hangers to prevent rocking. IMHO, a french cleat is overkill, but, hey, it's a fun exercise.

Oh, almost forgot...

I agree; a french cleat would probably be overkill. But this is going to be hanging at a day care and the picture hangers I've seen look terribly cheap. I'm going to go back by the borgs this weekend to see if I can find anything a bit more heavy duty.

Paul

[Scott Pearson]

I have made several cork boards. I use cardboard boxes cut to size, I spray adhesive two pieces of it that alternate the cardboard grain(you know what I mean). Then I lay out 1/4 cork from a roll cut to rough size and spray adhesive the cork to the cardboard.

It makes it a bit thick but it holds the tacks well. I tried only one layer of cardboard but it did not hold the tacks well and they poked through the other side. They hold up well as my daughter has been hanging all of her art work on these boards for years.

Scott

[Danny Thompson]

I used a cardboard liner/separator from a cardboard box something came in. So, yes, just standard, brown corrugated cardboard from a shipping box. The sheet I used seemed thinner than most, but I don't think it really matters. Scott has a good point about the double-layer. Depends on the thickness of your cork.

[Kevin Godshall]

I agree about some of the cleats and mounts being overkill depending on the size and weight of the piece. Here is a pic of what I made...... and why I need to used the thin wall mountshttp://www.geocities.com/woodbutchers_shop/robsawards1.jpg

[Kevin Godshall]

Mini Gloat here....... the oak I used was left out in the weather for about 10 years and finally the mill operator told me to take it home and burn it. I planed it all out, made this piece for my son, made a rustic clock, and also a few small picture frames with the "scrap".