How to make a wooden game board for The Duke (Catalyst Game Labs)

Hello everyone, today I’m sharing how to make a wooden game board for The Duke from Catalyst Game Labs. The Duke is a 2 player abstract strategy game. In some ways, it is similar to chess. For more details about The Duke visit the official website for the game where you can find the rules and files for a Print & Play version of the game. (Unfortunately, at the time of writing this tutorial the physical copy of The Duke is out of print.)

The game board for The Duke is similar to a chess board. It uses a 6×6 grid instead of the 8×8 grid in chess.

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Tools and Supplies

I used the following tools and supplies to create the wooden game board for The Duke.

Tools

• Jointer
• Planer
• Orbital Sander
• Drum sander
• Table saw
• Miter saw
• Router with a 1/4″ round over bit

Supplies

• Walnut
• Maple
• Sandpaper
• Titebond II

I used walnut and maple scraps for the game board.

I spent about 20 minutes rummaging through my scrap wood boxes to pull out a few pieces for my next scrap wood project: a wooden game board for The Duke by @catalystgamelabs. It’s one of my favorite 2 player abstract strategy games. The game board will be similar to a chess board, except it will be a 6×6 grid. I’m pretty excited about this project. I get to combine two of my favorite hobbies! . #scrapwood #scrapwoodproject #offcuts #walnut #maple #theduke #thedukeboardgame #cataylstgames #woodworking #dowoodworking #digitalcaliper #mfpbehindthescenes #boardgamer #boardgamegeek #makesomething #woodworker #boardgameupgrade #woodengameboard

A post shared by Ashley Grenon | Geeky Maker (@handmadewithashley) on Feb 27, 2018 at 4:18pm PST

Watch the video tutorial

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Continue reading for the written tutorial.

How to make a wooden game board for The Duke

The Duke’s game board pieces are 1.5″ x 1.5″. The game’s grid is 6 columns by 6 rows.  If you want to make a game board chess, increase the row and column count by 2.

Step 1: Mill the walnut and maple boards.

Mill the walnut and maple boards to 3/4″ thickness. Rip the boards into 1 5/8″ wide strips.  I wanted the game board squares to have an extra 1/8″ breathing room for the game board pieces.

Milling time. I didn’t get very far today. Once the sun sets I start feeling really guilty about running my loud power tools. I can’t wait for March 11 so I gain another hour of daylight in the evening. . #millingtime #jointer #ridgidjointer #teamridgid #maple #hardwood #woodwork #woodworking #dowoodworking #roughsawn #roughsawnlumber #makeallthethings #garageshop #alabama #mfpbehindthescenes #pushblock

A post shared by Ashley Grenon | Geeky Maker (@handmadewithashley) on Feb 27, 2018 at 8:35pm PST

Step 2: Crosscut the walnut and maple strips

Cut the walnut and maple strips to 10″. The extra length is to account for blade kerf at a latter step.

Walnut and maple strips milled to 3/4″ thickness and ripped to 1 5/8″ width.

Step 3: Glue the walnut and maple strips together

Glue alternate strips of the walnut and maple pieces together. Wait for the glue to dry before continuing onto the next step.

Walnut and maple glue up for wooden game board

Step 4: Crosscut the walnut and maple board

Remove excess dried glue. I ran the board through a light pass of planer to make quick work of this.

Square up one edge of the walnut and maple board. Crosscut the board into 1 5/8″ pieces.

Step 5: Glue up the walnut and maple strips a second time

Rearrange the new crosscut pieces to create a checkered pattern. Glue together the new arrangement.  Allow the glue to dry before continuing onto the next step.

Checkered pattern with walnut and maple

Step 6: Cut board trim to size

Cut a piece of walnut or maple to size for the game board’s trim.

I attached the trim with 45 degree miters. I made use of maple and walnut scraps. The maple I milled to a thin strip before gluing it to a piece of walnut. Once the glue was dried I cut the trim to the size of my game board.

Trim added to the game board border

Step 7: Add a round over profile to the edge of the game board

To dress up the appearance of the board, router around edge of the board with a router equipped with a 1/4″ round over router bit.

Step 8: Apply a finish

Sand to prep the surface of the game board for the final finish. I sanded up the 220 grit, raised the grain with a damp rag, and did one final sanding with 220 grit.

I applied 3 coats of Watco’s Danish oil followed by a coat of Daddy Van’s Beeswax polish. (It was something I noticed on my finishing shelf and decided to put it to use.)

I got the first coat of Danish oil applied tonight. I love the pop of color when oil is added to wood. Yesterday I found a @popularwoodworking article titled “Rub to Create a Great Finish.” So after reading it, I’m going give the wet dry method of applying the oil a try with the goal of achieving a really smooth finish. . #danishoil #woodengameboard #woodworking #oilfinish #walnut #maple

A post shared by Ashley Grenon | Geeky Maker (@handmadewithashley) on Mar 27, 2018 at 8:21pm PDT

DIY Wooden Game Board for The Duke

I am really happy with how the game board turned out! If I ever get around to making a version 2.0, I’d love to create a wooden box to for game component storage.

DIY wooden game board for The Duke (Catalyst Game Labs)

Bird’s view of the homemade wooden game board for The Duke (Catalyst Game Labs)

How to make a wooden game board for The Duke (Catalyst Game Labs)

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