# Sample Board Materials?



## PPD (Mar 19, 2018)

What do ya'll use most often for sample boards? If you do plaster work (lime plaster finishes) is there something from a big box store that works well?

I've been buying my lime plaster (grassello, etc) boards through the rep for my plasters but it add's considerable cost....


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## Brushman4 (Oct 18, 2014)

Go to the dollar store, you can by 2' x 2' poster board for a buck, some places two for a dollar!


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## fauxlynn (Apr 28, 2011)

PPD said:


> What do ya'll use most often for sample boards? If you do plaster work (lime plaster finishes) is there something from a big box store that works well?
> 
> I've been buying my lime plaster (grassello, etc) boards through the rep for my plasters but it add's considerable cost....


Hi. It has been my experience that most sample boards are too flimsy for plasters. My local big box store carries smaller sheets of drywall. I think they’re 1/4”. I just cut them to about 15x15” and use that. After the plaster is applied and dry, I run some cheap masking tape along the raw edges and fold it over so the gypsum isn’t flying everywhere. 

As for other samples, you can check out dickblick.com for illustration board. I use Crescent 053116, but I still prime it with Bin before paint. 
Also, you can check these out, they work well. Good luck.


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## PPD (Mar 19, 2018)

Thank you- Thats a brillant idea!! I’d thought of cutting gypsum board down but the raw edge breaking apart always stopped me from trying 😛 I’ll be heading to Home Depot today to grab some & give it a shot! 

Have you tried any of the MDF boards? I wad thinking of giving those a shot with a good coat of primer for grip....


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## fauxlynn (Apr 28, 2011)

PPD said:


> Thank you- Thats a brillant idea!! I’d thought of cutting gypsum board down but the raw edge breaking apart always stopped me from trying 😛 I’ll be heading to Home Depot today to grab some & give it a shot!
> 
> Have you tried any of the MDF boards? I wad thinking of giving those a shot with a good coat of primer for grip....


Your welcome. Sorry, I have zero experience with MDF.


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## lilpaintchic (Jul 9, 2014)

I use a piece of 1/4" masonite. I textured one side, it's smooth on the other. Totally reusable. And no drywall mess. Made a few up...ho's love em.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk


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## ThreeSistersPainting (Jan 7, 2017)

If you use MDF make sure to use a shellac or oil base primer, water-borne products will create fuzz and raise the surface.

I like to pick up some 1/2"x1" wood strips and create frames around the sample piece. Use CA glue and a nail gun to assemble and attach it. Looks real clean and keeps it from getting dinged up.


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## PPD (Mar 19, 2018)

ThreeSistersPainting said:


> If you use MDF make sure to use a shellac or oil base primer, water-borne products will create fuzz and raise the surface.
> 
> I like to pick up some 1/2"x1" wood strips and create frames around the sample piece. Use CA glue and a nail gun to assemble and attach it. Looks real clean and keeps it from getting dinged up.


I use STIX under my plasters instead of buying the specialty primers...but its waterbased. Any recommendations for oil or shellac primers that have bonding power? I suppose I could add fine sillica sand to BIN but that seems like a lot of work just to create the bonding coat...


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## CLSPAINTPLASTER (Jun 29, 2018)

I get 8x4 sheets of MDF. Break them down to 1x1s and prime both sides with whatever waterbased primer I have on hand (usually BM Fresh Start). Once dry, I'll hit the one side with a quartz based plaster primer and then its off to the races. The plaster primer has a fair amount of grit to it so if I am making a sample with a finer material (like a grassello), I'll sand the primer down first.


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