Laying out plans in a smaller workshop

[alde]

I've been trying to come up with a way to lay out a plan sheet so I can refer to it while building. I thought about a magnetic white board or some foam board but don't have the wall space for it. Maybe something like a roll up map would work. What do you guys do? I wish I had the space for a drafting table in my shop but don't have near as much space as I would like. I have just been keeping the plans rolled and unroll them as I need to measure or get info from but that's a real hassle sometimes.

[mtaylor]

I totally misread/understood what you were needing input for...  So I killed my answer.

Edited April 30, 2018 by mtaylor

[Nirvana]

Al, why not take the plans to a copying place, then you have one set original and one you can cut into pieces along the way.

[alde]

I do make copies and cut them up as I go. It's nice to have the profile and rigging plans to refer to though.

 

I did think of something after I posted the question though. How about a painters easel with a magnetic board on it? That way it can easily be moved out of the way or folded up when not needed. 

[Roger Pellett]

Look into easels for children.  Places like Blick Art have them.  Also Melissa and Doug.   We bought these for our granddaughters and while the idea mat sound a bit silly, they are sturdily built and stable.

 

Roger

[capnharv2]

Al,

 

Are you looking to hang the plans near your work area to measure them? Does thee backing have to be firm enough to lay a scale or compass or dividers on?

 

Another possibility is to take the original plans and have them laminated (or get a copy laminated). That makes them easier to hang and stiffer to get accurate measurements off.

 

If they're stiff enough you could hang them off the back of a music stand. Tape them in place and you can move the stand anywhere you want at any height you want.

 

For a while I was taping my Pride of Baltimore plans to the blinds in my shop. Not a great solution, but it did get the job done.

 

Finally, get a copy of the first set of Ship Modelers Shop Notes (from the NRG store here). There is a section with some good shop ideas.

 

Hope we've helped.

 

Thanks,

 

Harvey

[Jaager]

Use your 3 in 1 printer scanner.   Scan the area, take the file into  a program like GIMP or Paintshop Pro - the high end 

versions are Photoshop or Painter - adjust for scanner distortion ( determined by scanning a clear meter ruler - taking it into

into the photo program and printing it out - measure the print against the ruler, calculate the % difference - adjust the scan

by that amount of "scale" - print that out - remeasure-   repeat adjusting until your get a % that = identity of the printout

with the original ruler - remember that % adjustment - and use it for all scans on your system. 

A larger area can be had if you use 8 x 14 paper.  

In the photo program, open the scan as a layer in a pre saved canvas.  I print out the saved file using Windows Photo Viewer -

I have to make sure that program does not "adjust" to a boarder - that it only prints the file as it is.  I prefer PNG to JPG  .

My standard canvas sizes - so that no auto adjustments are done by a printer program are  8.5 x 11 = 2197 x 1701 pixels and 8.5 x 14 = 2796 x 1701 pixels   

[amateur]

What are you building: scratch, or kit?

In a kit, most parts are on the general plan, but also in much more detail in de separate plan. The need to have your drawings full size against the wall is less urgent in that case. In answer: I did my Prins Willem mostly on partly folded drawings. Only when I really needed the full scale general view drawings, I laid them out on the floor, did my measurements, and folded them again. (and yes, after ten years of folding and unfolding, the drawing has become a bit shabby)

 

Jan

[kurtvd19]

Do a search here on MSW - this topic had an extensive discussion some time ago - may different ways to do this.

Kurt

[tlevine]

Before I started Atalanta I had four sets of plans made with the expectation of cutting them up, etc.  Three sets have never seen the light of day.  The fourth set (the one I use) gets rolled up and unrolled on the kitchen counter as needed.  Coffee mugs make great weights to hold the plan rolls open!  BTW most of my work is done on the kitchen table, with the exception of lathe/mill work and big-girl toys like scroll sawing and machine sanding.

[mtaylor]

15 hours ago, Jaager said:

Use your 3 in 1 printer scanner.   Scan the area, take the file into  a program like GIMP or Paintshop Pro - the high end 

versions are Photoshop or Painter - adjust for scanner distortion ( determined by scanning a clear meter ruler - taking it into

into the photo program and printing it out - measure the print against the ruler, calculate the % difference - adjust the scan

by that amount of "scale" - print that out - remeasure-   repeat adjusting until your get a % that = identity of the printout

with the original ruler - remember that % adjustment - and use it for all scans on your system. 

A larger area can be had if you use 8 x 14 paper.  

In the photo program, open the scan as a layer in a pre saved canvas.  I print out the saved file using Windows Photo Viewer -

I have to make sure that program does not "adjust" to a boarder - that it only prints the file as it is.  I prefer PNG to JPG  .

My standard canvas sizes - so that no auto adjustments are done by a printer program are  8.5 x 11 = 2197 x 1701 pixels and 8.5 x 14 = 2796 x 1701 pixels   

 

Best to measure in both dimensions.  I've seen scanners/printers that only one dimension not at 100%.   Best to double check and be sure.

[Bob Blarney]

I don't have my specs on, so I might have missed something above.

 

1. For all plans, have them copied and laminated.  >>But if you're using them for close tolerances to scale, then check the copies to see that they are  exactly the size of the original.  (I found out the hard way with guitar plans, when the scale length was wrong.) <<

 

2,  Buy a roll-up window shade that is large enough, and attach the copy to it, or replace the shade material with the laminated copy.

[Thunder]

Many years ago I saw a blind that was for drawings. You could insert  multiple drawings and lower each as required as if it was a blind. I have never seen one somewhere I could purchase. Mine are usually slid under the lounge rug! They had been there months before the wife spotted them and that was when she was watching me do the cleaning!!

[John Allen]

Have been vexed by this problem and nothing I have done until now has provided a solution-enough space, out of the way and still view with out playing like a monkey up and down and all around

 

Go to 4 corners maps, I just purchased the Overlay Roller Map Holder $ 159.00 quite a deal and out of the way my solution.

 

 

[Thunder]

As usual search in UK only and what do you get - toilet roll holders!!

 

Unfortunately the UK is a country that loves to buy cheap rubbish because they think its a deal and then too stupid to moan when it arrives broken! But never mind the Chinese love us. Unfortunately the cheap rubbish is going up in price and the quality items are not available here.

 

 

[Altduck]

Thunder,

 

That's not unique to the UK.

[wefalck]

I kind of suffer from the same disease: not enough space ... one soution I decided upon some time ago was to tackle only projects that can be drawn on an A4-sheet ... for bigger projects I would scan the plans and correct them for distortions as mentioned above.

 

You then can print out (again checking for distortions) as many working copies as you need. For individual parts I usually print them out even at a magnification (say 10x) and add measurements by hand. This allows you to correct for additive errors due to line thicknesses etc. The overall part has to have the correct size and you can correct your measurements to fit into the overall size. In other words, you arrive at a sort of graphical cooking-book from which to work.

 

I have either the sheet flying around my work-table or fix it to light-weight clip-board.

[Bob Blarney]

On 6/17/2018 at 5:28 AM, Thunder said:

Many years ago I saw a blind that was for drawings. You could insert  multiple drawings and lower each as required as if it was a blind. I have never seen one somewhere I could purchase. Mine are usually slid under the lounge rug! They had been there months before the wife spotted them and that was when she was watching me do the cleaning!!

Hmm, that gives me an idea to make a frame that will support 4-5 roller blinds, similar to the Overlay Roller Map Holder mentioned above by John Allen. 

[alde]

You guys sure have some good solutions. I opted for a painters easel on wheels with a white board on it. My only mistake was not getting a magnetic white board. I may end up replacing it with one.

[Thunder]

Bob,

 

Something like this:

 

 

The one I saw years ago was like the tubes you get at the top of a white board so was more compact.

[Thunder]

If you live in anywhere but UK you might  be able to purchase this:

 

[BANYAN]

I use a metal wall strip purchased from my local office wares supplier (OfficeWorks here in Australia) that has a mechanism that allows several sheets/plans etc to be held.  It is only about an inch (25mm) in height and only protrudes out about 10mm out from the wall - it attaches to the wall with screws or 2-sided tape.  Works a treat for me with minimal impact on roomspace etc. but still handy to view.  Only problem I have experienced is that sometimes when removing one sheet, others may come out with it also; but, they are very easy to put back into the holder - just slide the top edge of the sheet/plan/ picture up and it grips, swing the sheet/plan out to about 75 degrees from the wall and it comes out easily.

 

You can make it out hanging on the wall to the left in the photo.  Cannot recall what it is actually called - sorry.  May come up under paper display strip or the like?

 

 

cheers

 

Pat

Edited June 19, 2018 by BANYAN

[jud]

Plan Holder might work for you. When I had my Surveying office, things like Assessors Maps, Quad Maps, Highway and Railroad maps to organize, I bought 5 of those hangers similar to the one in the photo and built some horns that I attached to the wall to hang them from, one on each end. They worked well,  one of them has been holding about 40 USGS 1:24,000 Quad  Maps for years, did not use them as often after I had purchased a couple of disks of my part of Oregon USGS Maps, Just printed color letter size copy's of what I wanted from disk or printed using the plotter for full size copies. Those Plan Holders don't require much space and with the sheets hanging the roll memory eventually is lost, when you wish to look at one, look at it there or remove the holder from the rack, flip the drawings above the one you want and lay it over something, don't need to remove any from the holder or use sand bags to keep flat, but if you do wish to remove one, it's easy, I use the floor when removing or adding sheets saves frustration. Mine will hold up to a 30" wide sheet along the narrow side, the space below the hanger is all that limits length

Edited June 19, 2018 by jud

[Williamo]

A completely different alternative, which you could use with the multiple roller device shown above, is to have the drawings adjusted and scanned into a laptop. You then have the capacity to zoom, scale, measure,compare and print, and even move to 3D print or CNC cutting.

[BubbleHead]

This is what I did simple. With full extension slides.

[JeffT]

I hang mine on the wall using binder clips and command large utility hooks.

[Kevin53]

I struggled with what to do with the 42” x 30” drawings while building ship models.  The sheets were too big to have laying around and I didn’t have the wall space in my work room to hang them up.  My solution, which may be of interest to other modelers, was to design this drawing rack out of ¾” PVC pipe.  The upper frame is at work bench height for the active drawing sheet.  The lower frame is storage for drawing sheets not in use.  It is a simple matter to move the sheets out of the storage frame and hang them in the upper frame.  The whole assembly is light weight and can be moved out of the way when not in use.  When in use, I like to position the rack behind my work table.  Hanging the sheets vertically takes up minimal space, keeps them clean, and keeps them from getting wrinkled.

 

There is about $20 of PVC pipe and fittings invested in this.  The attached pdf file is a measured drawing with a parts list.  I just pushed the parts together without glue and it is very ridged.  The drawing sheets are attached with ¾” binder clips to L shaped PVC corner molding which just lays in the rack.  The L shape provides rigidity, a vertical surface to clip to, and a horizontal surface to sit in the rack.   Not shown in the plans are two optional wood slats with casters that I attached to the bottom with ¾” metal pipe clips so it would roll around.  I also pressed plastic pegs (screw anchors)  into holes drilled into either end of the corner moldings to keep them from sliding off the rack.

Drawing Holder.pdfDrawing Holder.pdf

[mtaylor]

Since I moved into the "new" place a couple years ago, I just put a piece of blue tape in the upper corners of the plans and then run a thumbtack (the one's that have plastic part for easy in and out) though the blue tape and into the wall.  No fuss, no muss.

[Bob Cleek]

A piece of scrap light sheet metal (an old advertising sign, actually) and a few  rare earth magnets work for me. 

[Matt H]

On 1/29/2020 at 7:08 PM, Kevin53 said:

I struggled with what to do with the 42” x 30” drawings while building ship models.  The sheets were too big to have laying around and I didn’t have the wall space in my work room to hang them up.  My solution, which may be of interest to other modelers, was to design this drawing rack out of ¾” PVC pipe.  The upper frame is at work bench height for the active drawing sheet.  The lower frame is storage for drawing sheets not in use.  It is a simple matter to move the sheets out of the storage frame and hang them in the upper frame.  The whole assembly is light weight and can be moved out of the way when not in use.  When in use, I like to position the rack behind my work table.  Hanging the sheets vertically takes up minimal space, keeps them clean, and keeps them from getting wrinkled.

 

There is about $20 of PVC pipe and fittings invested in this.  The attached pdf file is a measured drawing with a parts list.  I just pushed the parts together without glue and it is very ridged.  The drawing sheets are attached with ¾” binder clips to L shaped PVC corner molding which just lays in the rack.  The L shape provides rigidity, a vertical surface to clip to, and a horizontal surface to sit in the rack.   Not shown in the plans are two optional wood slats with casters that I attached to the bottom with ¾” metal pipe clips so it would roll around.  I also pressed plastic pegs (screw anchors)  into holes drilled into either end of the corner moldings to keep them from sliding off the rack.

Thank you for this idea, design, and photos. I just built one for myself. I enlarged it by 6 inches both vertically and horizontally for both the top and bottom sections. I have prints currently that are about 47 - 48 inches long. This design worked great, put it behind my work table. The top of the lower section sits about 8 inches or so above the table top so I can easily grab one from down below and move it up above. Although my table is deep so I have to kneel on top of it a little bit to reach the top. Might have to get myself one of those extendable grabbers to set it up on the top. 

 

Anyhow, thanks again, this design worked great and came out considerably cheaper I think than other options, although my prices were a good bit higher than yours. All total I paid $48 for everything. The corner moldings were $4 a piece and came in 8 foot sections. Unfortunately because I enlarged it a bit, I couldn't cut those in half, I needed about 55 inches so I had about 3.5 feet leftover from each 8' stick. Tee's and elbows were more expensive than I thought, fortunately I found a bundle of 20 and 10 of each cheaper than if I had to buy them individually. Regardless, still worth the extra cost, great idea, minimal space, easy to sort and display what you need.