BGG user panicz1982 asked if there was a board frame for Patchwork, and I could not find one. Therefore, I made one. This simple project shows my workflow from 3D printing idea to reality. The key is to test your ideas in reality!
First, I pulled out a ruler and collected the board dimensions:
- Board with 9x9 grid is 191mm
- Play area grid as printed is 181mm
- With a 2mm margin around the entire board, the frame is 195mm
- Board thickness is 2.5mm. Doubled that makes the overlay 5mm thick
Tinkercad is my next stop. A few rectangles, some whole, some hole, made the basic shape. It exports directly to an STL as well.
Then I loaded it into Cura. Checked that my printer could handle the large object, and printed a test run. I printed it upside down so the lip was facing upwards. No supports needed. Only 20% infill, and maybe that was too much.
This is where I ran into a problem. The play area required to hold 9x9 is larger than the printed play area grid. How much larger? Well two single-row pieces like the 1x5 are substantially wider than a 2x2 piece like the square. It's even more of a discrepancy over 3, 4 and 5 squares. And since play dictates fit and not the other way around, it wouldn't do to just leave the board with less room while also satisfying the need to keep panicz1982's pieces on the board after a bump or two.
To fix this, I found a measurement that worked for even the most generous arrangements by fitting as many single row pieces and patches together so the bottom faces (sharp corner) of each cardboard piece was aligned across the board. This is a worst case scenario fit. Most players would be fine without the extra room, but the added safety factor would mean any arrangement would work across all 9 columns. Then I measured the overlap and added it to my overlay. Turned into a really tight 2mm margin between board size and playing area. Fortuitously, this matched the 2mm margin for overlay to board.
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| Missed it by that much |
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| Bottom row is all singles |
- Board with 9x9 grid is still 191mm
- Play area grid as printed is now 187mm
- Frame is still 195mm
- Overlay thickness is still 5mm thick
Et voila! A simple board game overlay. With a straightforward path to reality, testing helped me fine-tune the initial idea into something that works. And as a bonus, I discovered the overlay also fits in the box fr my printing! Now to see if it actually helps keep pieces in place by playing it a bunch. See you at game night!
BGG User Link dvhill
