Two More NS Flag Maps

When we finished up our previous map making projects of NS and PEI, I told you we had two more to make. So this is how that went down.

We were contacted by someone living in Texas (we think they are a Canadian living in the US) asking for a small map of NS with a painted flag on the NS cutout, as well as wanting it to be backlit. Sure thing. As the emails progressed he decided he also wanted a second one the exact same only large.

They were both done the same way only thing different was the size. For both projects we happened to have the maps already cut out (love when that happens) from previous projects where Jim had stack cut the maps. This is the large NS map with painted lighthouse where he stack cut the 1/8 inch thick plywood maps.

So first thing we did was make the weathered backer boards. Jim took 2 x 4 boards that were weathered on both sides and cut them in half using the table saw so each one yielded two boards for the backer boards.

With enough boards to make it 22 x 38 inches in size, I got to work sanding each one, front, back, sides and ends. Love sanding, especially on the stationary sander. Makes for quick work.

WARNING, scroll fast if you don’t like the sight of blood. LOL

You have to use quite a bit of pressure to keep the board on the sandpaper, it wants to become a projectile. And that is just what happened. In order to save Jims life, I sacrificed my thumb, not on the sandpaper like you might think, but on grabbing it mid air with my cat like reflexes, and the momentum caused my thumb to whack on the metal part of the machine.

With the boards all sanded and looking fine, we placed three boards on the worktable (which were sanded without incident) and then put our weathered boards in place until we were happy with it, alternating the widths. Jim lifted each one and added glue to each of the braces before replacing the board and nailing it into place.

With that part complete it was time to add the map of NS. Jim cut out a bunch of spacers and we placed them all around the map to “lift” the map off the backerboard as well as to give Jim a place to add the lights.

We lifted up the map and glued each spacer to the backerboard underneath the map. Once dry, Jim started adding the lights. It took three sets of remote controlled lights, thats about 9 feet of lights.

Then we glued and nailed the map to the spacer blocks. Thats why we decided to assemble everything before paint…so we could use nails and then fill the holes.

Finally time for paint. I used tracing paper to trace the flag onto the map…

I painted the white first…

Then moved on to the other three colors.

Here they are finished.

And with lights on.

Fun fact: I weighed the large one and it is 10lbs. Wow. Good thing they don’t have to go out in the mail. These are being picked up.

Later