Mode Zero

Anyone here have a building board that doesn't warp like a Romulan battlecruiser?

I have tried numerous things over the years, and the closest I got was a 1' X 4' piece of melamine shelving board with 4 thickish cork floor tiles 'trim tacked' to it. It's getting a bit past it now. What are you guys using?

Stew.

38mm kitchen worksurface, installed flat and not twisted, on kitchen base units. Top this off with a suitably sized piece of plasterboard(dry lining). Interpose a Slec balsa building board if desired. Plasterboard takes pins well and is cheap to replace frequently. You can draw alignment lines on it etc. 38mm kitchen work surface is resin bonded wood chip and is physically stable but will bow if end supports are to far apart.
My hobby room in the house has three walls with base units and 38mm work surface installed on top. Centrally in the room I have an old kitchen table with a cut down internal house door(eggbox construction) ply faced on top. This was selected at the builders merchants for straightness and lack of twist. Generally used as an assembly station but with a piece of plasterboard is flat enough to provide yet another building area.
I recommend plasterboard suitably supported and ply faced internal house doors with the 'eggbox' internal construction. The internal house door as a base for the plasterboard is more than adequate if supported correctly so it does not bow or twist.

Just about any board will warp over time but depends on how it is used and stored.

The kitchen bench mentioned is one of the best. Don't know of other areas but in Aus it is waterproof to a degree which in itself resists warping.
Store the board leaning against a wall, on an already bent surface or not supported on a frame and bend it will.
I use a 5mm MDF particle board anchored to my "already dead flat" 20mm thick waterproofed plywood benchtop.

My building bench has a top made of 50mm by 100mm Merbau (Hardwood), laminated together with Titebond 3.
I laminated it on the garage floor when we moved in & then planed it by hand with a Stanley #7 jointing plane (couldn't do that now).
10 yeas old now & still straight & warp free.

Al

Thanks for the advice chaps. Al, that board and bench is a thing of beauty! I'm rather jealous!

Stew.

Lovely timber, great job.
Bit small though for my use, many things require benchtop space.
Trouble with benchtops though is they tend to be a magnet for "whatever needs a resting place".
One a month cleanup and put-away is the norm here.

I'm not posting a photo of my tiny home made bench and untidy attic room, it's too embarrassing...
One day 'she' will follow the trail of balsa shavings up the stairs and find out what I'm doing up there!

Stew.