Map file for either AA50 or 1942

I have recently had a new business open in my town that does custom printing.  He is a very nice guy and can get maps printed on vinyl and many different materials.  He can also do other things as well like cards and player aids.  His prices seem pretty good too.  theonedesigner.com

I was able to get the names font, but the number font is a licensed font, so I bought that. I have the water layer and the sea zone layer in. Ive decided to redo the entire map from scratch though, retaining the gameplay, same zones etc. My French units are in the decal phase, so after I post them, ill start my map thread. Again, if its edits you like, let me know.

@GEN-MANSTEIN said in Huge maps:

Possible. I would perfer a slide out drawer of some sort. Then push back in under the dice box. You can make dice box smaller too and have same roll out drawer for sides.

Yes, that’s a good approach too.

@CWO:

@ozimek1:

You could have painted at the borders, IPC values, territory names etc. on the glass. That way you could easily use the 3D map for different games by changing the glass overlay 🙂

I think that having different sheets of painted glass for different games would be an expensive proposition.  I don’t know how much Rorschach’s setup cost him, but the acrylic sheet which covers my own AA50 table set me back over a hundred bucks.

Yeah, I originally was going to etch all the borders onto the acrylic, but when you’re looking at $50 (give or take) per sheet for this size it would be far too expensive.  But, to be honest, the sheet is so close to the table anyway there is absolutely no mistaking the territories, so it’s all good.

And this way, if we want to play a different game, we just pop in a flat MDF panel underneath instead of the AA50 board and you’re good to go!

The entire table (not counting countless hours of time) cost me about $150 … still no legs on it though.

And, Jeremy and I finally finished our game.  17 rounds, 9 weeks (about an hour and a quarter, hour and a half a week) … Allied Victory when the Brits waltzed into a sparsely defended Berlin.

Thanks LHoffman,

Your appreciation is my inspiration… because I refuse to use a sheet of glass, my research has lead me to a material called styrene (google it) which is a type of plastic sheet that can be directly printed on. All indications point to this method being the last alternative to glass and although it cost around $240, it looks to be my best option. Even after flushing $300 so far in a crappy print, and installation complications, I’m happy with this new direction if it turns out the way I’ve been told it will. Basically it’s flexible plastic, so it should lie flat without air pockets getting trapped, and because it doesn’t get laminated, the colors should be slightly brighter. If it is sensitive to scratching than there is a clear film sheet by 3M I can look into, that’s where I’m at right now.

i suggest making your game and then bringing it into “table top simulator”. you can test selfmade games there to your own liking. it provides you with all the tools you need. 🙂
i did that too with mine:
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I’m not aware of such a blank outline map existing.  Your best option might be to cover the game map with several taped-together sheets of clear acetate (the kind used for purposes like overheard projection) and trace the borders with a felt pen to produce a blank outline.  You’d then have various options for transfering this outline to the wood surface.  A low-tech method would be to cover the wood surface with sheets of carbon paper (if you can still find any, since it’s gone out of style), place your acetate outline over the carbon paper, then trace over the borders with a hard pencil.  Alternately, you could scan or digitally photograph your acetate outline and use that as the printing file you mentioned.

Nice work - Dare I ask how many hours you put into it? For interest’s sake.