Step Four: Apply Cotton Layer

Well another trip to Spotlight was in order thanks to Bruce's advice.  Given that my goal was to finish the boards and not worry about getting them perfect first off, it seemed best to at least do it properly so I can learn from the experience.

So picked up some cotton cloth, Combed Cotton Jersey 112cm Width and 4m length @ $7.69/m

The cotton is white so I am going to dye it tan colour so I grabbed some "RIT - Tan Dye" at the same time.

Now the dying process was a eye opener.  I think I miss judged the amount of dye needed as all three sheets, while going in the in close order all seemed to come out slightly lighter than the previous.

Once I rinsed the cloth I spotted red dots where the dye had not dissolved fully in the water.  This would just need some creative painting when the time comes.

Using the contact adhesive again, we worded the cloth over the felt.  It was much easier to work it now the felt had softened the edges somewhat, the stretch in the cotton also helped.  When laying it I tried to keep it as relaxed as possible so that the elasticity in the cloth would be there when i needed it for the hard sections during the felt laying.

This is one of the 3 boards right after the cotton was applied.  I have tucked the cloth under the board by hand but later pinned it up with thumb tacks and dress pins only once the glue had set.

Step Cost = $51.70 (Cotton Cloth $30.76, Dye Powder $7.95, Contact Adhesive $12.99)

Total Cost = $257.15

Time Taken ~4 Hours (11 Hours Total)