We had an unusual need. We had a niche in our kitchen that had been painted black to serve as a crude blackboard. The idea was to fill that niche with a much cleaner and more useful whiteboard.
This whiteboard was the only one that was big enough. But it also was bigger than the niche and would have to be cut. I asked the people who sell this (H-Qprobd) if they had advice on how to cut it. They answered quickly and said it should not be cut. But I found a way.
Ryobi makes a small Cutoff Tool Model PSBCS02 that comes with three different 3" cutoff wheels. I first tried the one designed for sheetrock. It worked, but the result was a bit ragged as you can see in the photos.
I later tried their cutoff wheel made for metal and it worked perfectly! It made a clean cut through all four layers!
As you can see in the photos, the top layer is the whiteboard material, which is magnetic material. Just below that is a layer that seems to be Masonite. This gives rigid strength to the whiteboard surface.
Below that is a layer that looks like corrugated cardboard! This seems to provide thickness with low weight.
Finally, the back layer is aluminum. This aluminum layer also forms the frame.
I marked the back (aluminum) side with the lines I planned to cut. On the front (whiteboard) side I covered the corresponding area with masking tape, where I planned to cut.
I laid the whiteboard face down on an old card table, with the cutting lines hanging over the edge. I placed weights on it.
Then I revved the cutoff tool to maximum speed before gently lowering it to the finished edge of the whiteboard.
It cut surprisingly easily and surprisingly straight.
I went to Home Depot and bought aluminum trim with a C cross section. It had an inside width of 3/8 inch. The exact thickness of the whiteboard. I slid this down the edge I had cut. This gave a nice finished look to the cut edge.
Check out the photos!
Manufacturer | H-Qprobd |
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Brand | H-Qprobd |
Item Weight | 22 pounds |
Product Dimensions | 40 x 72 x 0.4 inches |
Item model number | 20211122 |
Color | White |
Material Type | Wood |
Size | 72"x40" |
Manufacturer Part Number | 20211122 |