A blackboard can be a very simple display item.
Originally made from slate, blackboards were at one time directly mounted to a wall surface. Today, modern science has perfected a magnetic, black paint that can be applied to a wooden surface, like plywood, and used as a writing surface for chalk. This paint is commercially available through retail paint outlets. With these developments in mind, why not build a chalkboard with an attractive frame that can be hung on the wall? Such a blackboard can also be moved from time to time, if the need should arise.
Instructions
1. Choose a size for your hanging blackboard. The one in this exercise will be 4 feet long and 2 feet high, but in reality you can make a blackboard other sizes as well.
2. Set the plywood on the saw horses. With the chalk line and tape measure, mark a 2-by-4 foot section of plywood. Cut the plywood with a circular saw. Use protective eye and ear gear for safety.
3. Sand the plywood with the orbital sander. First use medium grade paper. Continue with fine grain sandpaper until the front surface of the plywood is very smooth. The back side needs only light sanding with medium grade sandpaper.
4. Brush away all loose sawdust. Paint both sides and all edges of the plywood with the primer-sealer paint and polyester paint brush. Let the paint dry. Most acrylic-based primer-sealers will dry in a few hours, but check the manufacturer's label for specific drying times.
5. Lay the plywood on the sawhorses with the smooth side up. Next, cut and fit a 1-by-3 inch, 4-foot top piece along the front of the blackboard. Then place two side pieces that extend down the face of the plywood to the bottom edge. Sand each board lightly and use butt joints where the boards meet in the upper two corners. Attach the facial boards with 1-inch flathead wood screws. Use a pilot hole and countersink to start all screw holes.
6. Fill each screw hole with wood putty. Then turn the blackboard over.
7. Insert more screws into the trim by drilling pilot holes and then securing the flathead screws with a screw gun. No need to countersink or use nail putty on the back side.
8. Drill a pilot hole for each eye screw and insert the eye screw from the back side. These hanging devices should be located about 10 inches from the top and dead center in the middle of the wood trim.
9. Run a piece of 50-pound test picture hanging wire between the two eye hooks. Ensure it is very taut.
10. Cut a 4-foot piece of 1-by-3 trim and a 4-foot piece of the quarter round. Sand each piece lightly.
11. Stand the plywood on its long edge. Attach the 1-by-3 inch board to the bottom of the plywood using the wood screws. Pilot holes are necessary to start each screw. This board will act as a shelf for the chalk and should be attached to the edge of the plywood that has no trim piece.
12. Move the plywood on top of the sawhorses. Add a 4-foot piece of quarter round to the top outside edge of the shelf. This piece acts as a stop edge to keep chalk from sliding off the front of the blackboard tray.
13. Paint the blackboard with the special paint using the brush and roller. Let the paint dry overnight. Add a second coat if necessary.
14. Clean the brush and use it to paint the trim and ledge. First apply a coat of the primer-sealer and let the paint dry. Then add a coat of white trim paint to contrast the dull black of the chalkboard. A semi-gloss paint can be used on the trim of the blackboard.
Tags: 4-foot piece, back side, each screw, plywood with, 1-by-3 inch, 4-foot piece quarter, brush paint