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Hex Mats

Master Roshi

Master Roshi

Member
I'm currently working with a company here in San Diego to make some mats with hexagonal patterns that are the same size as Heroscape tiles, so if any of you are interested in it I'll let you know how mine comes out once it's all said and done.



Here is their website:

https://abovealladvertising.net/


I gave them a few of my tiles to hold onto for testing and measurements. We spoke about making the mats as a table throw cover, but I was also told they could make it from another material that doesn't shrink in the manufacturing process to ensure the hexes come out at the correct size. I'm going back in early next week to take a look at some samples they come up with.


From what I gathered, a typical hex is about 51.2mm across from point to point. If anyone has lexan mats or Hotzmats, could you measure the dimensions of the printed hexes? I don't have any myself, but since those already are known to be of the right measurements it would be helpful if we could know what mm dimensions they are.
 
I just realized I have the stl files for hyground and the classic heroscape pieces, I'm gonna check what the dimensions they are in the software program and then that should better than trying to get measurements by hand with a ruler
 
Interested in this - I know Cavalier made Lexan mats for awhile and I regret missing out on those at the time. They'll probably use calipers to measure (or should), and the more hexes they can measure at once the more the measurement error gets spread out.
 
S1R_ART0R1US said:
Interested in this - I know Cavalier made Lexan mats for awhile and I regret missing out on those at the time. They'll probably use calipers to measure (or should), and the more hexes they can measure at once the more the measurement error gets spread out.
Click to expand...


Yeah I wish I had bought those back in the day, I always thought they looked cool.



The main reason why I want a mat is so I don't have to bring as much terrain with me to a friends house when I travel since the mat will take care of the first level of the map
 
I have a couple of hex mats and they are certainly very handy to help set up a board more quickly. The hexes on the ones I have ended up being just slightly off on the size though and it can make an impact. If I use the mats as the base layer with out many tiles on top, you don't really notice. If lots of 24 hex tiles are being used for a fairly dense second layer though, it starts causing problems. So I would recommend testing whatever you are working on before mass production to get it right.
 
@japes has some pretty solid measurements for what things should be in terms of hex size.

My space and sky mats are both pretty sweet, but I wouldn't say the hexes are *perfect* in size on either.

Excited to see this go forward. :up:
 
IAmBatman said:
@japes has some pretty solid measurements for what things should be in terms of hex size.

My space and sky mats are both pretty sweet, but I wouldn't say the hexes are *perfect* in size on either.

Excited to see this go forward. :up:
Click to expand...

For my purposes I would be using the mat so that I don't have to place down many tiles, so I wouldn't expect a scenario in which I have 30 hexes in a row that would produce a significant offset, so I'd be okay with some degree of error
 
I just spoke with someone from the company again today, we're considering doing a mat made from vinyl that would cover the surface of the table, but would be small enough that there wouldn't be a large amount of overhang off the table since the material is less flexible than a throw over table cover.

I let them know some other people may be interested in purchasing once a design is finalized, so they should hold onto any designs they used after they make mine

Also, a second company is sending me a polyester table cover so I'll see how well it matches up with heroscape tiles
 
What size table are you working with? If you want the entire mat to be playable, you might actually consider going a little smaller so that players have room for cards and dice and what not.
 
IAmBatman said:
What size table are you working with? If you want the entire mat to be playable, you might actually consider going a little smaller so that players have room for cards and dice and what not.
Click to expand...

I have a 4 ft by 6 ft table. I'd rather get a mat that covers the whole thing and just not use the portions where we place our cards, that way if I ever want to transfer to a larger table it still cover a larger area. For a smaller table I'd probably not even bother with a mat, plus I could choose to order some smaller mats in addition
 
Master Roshi said:
IAmBatman said:
@japes has some pretty solid measurements for what things should be in terms of hex size.

My space and sky mats are both pretty sweet, but I wouldn't say the hexes are *perfect* in size on either.

Excited to see this go forward. :up:
Click to expand...

For my purposes I would be using the mat so that I don't have to place down many tiles, so I wouldn't expect a scenario in which I have 30 hexes in a row that would produce a significant offset, so I'd be okay with some degree of error
Click to expand...


You might be surprised how often you do want to run a bunch of hexes in a row. Say you want to make a map with a river running through it, lava flow, or an icy creek. How about a road?
 
Yodaking said:
Master Roshi said:
IAmBatman said:
@japes has some pretty solid measurements for what things should be in terms of hex size.

My space and sky mats are both pretty sweet, but I wouldn't say the hexes are *perfect* in size on either.

Excited to see this go forward. :up:
Click to expand...

For my purposes I would be using the mat so that I don't have to place down many tiles, so I wouldn't expect a scenario in which I have 30 hexes in a row that would produce a significant offset, so I'd be okay with some degree of error
Click to expand...


You might be surprised how often you do want to run a bunch of hexes in a row. Say you want to make a map with a river running through it, lava flow, or an icy creek. How about a road?
Click to expand...

I could see that, especially if I'm using a bigger table there would be some scenarios where I have a longer connection of tiles.

Additionally if anyone else were to buy these mats they might want more precision than me so it would be best to get the measurements as close as possible
 
I averaged the dimensions of 9 hyground stl files, and of 10 physical single hex tiles; these are the results

Screenshot-20220325-145846-Photos.jpg



Screenshot-20220325-145812-Photos.jpg
 
Just wanted to say that I'm interested in this, whenever it gets finalized. I have several tables that I'd want to get covers for.
 
I play D&D on heroscape terrain and I've frequently printed these to be my level 0. (It helps that I have a large-format printer at work). I just throw something under them in photoshop and print. Maybe you can use it somehow. The measurements are spot on and I can make a file a full 4'x6' if you want.
 
Vydar_XLIII said:
I play D&D on heroscape terrain and I've frequently printed these to be my level 0. (It helps that I have a large-format printer at work). I just throw something under them in photoshop and print. Maybe you can use it somehow. The measurements are spot on and I can make a file a full 4'x6' if you want.
Click to expand...

I appreciate it, but since they've already completed a file that has correct measurements I'll just go with what they have. If I think of some way to use yours ill let you know though!
 
Tornado said:
Can you post that blank hex file Master Roshi?
That looks great.
Click to expand...


I don't have the file myself, the company that did the print has it. I just gave them some of my tiles and my measurements along with sample photos of other mats to use as a reference and they put the file together.


I'm going to go ahead and order a mat for myself and see how it turns out at a larger scale than the sample above. I'll post pictures once I get it
 
I just received this email:

"Glad to hear you liked the sample; this would be $269 to produce as a one off but if you printed many more (more than 15), the price would be $179.ea
The one off price is more expensive than the bulk price.
There is no set up fee for the artwork design and samples already produced.
You can pick it up to save on shipping.
Let me know if you want to move forward."

Something surely doesn't feel right about this price point, $269 seems way too much for a single mat. I mentioned i might want a 5' by 3' mat. I said that other people than myself may also want to buy mats, so I'm thinking they may be hiking up the individual price trying to get people to bulk order their mats together. I don't think they understand I don't personally know anyone else who would order mats so a bulk order doesn't make sense. That or they're hiking up the price to account for time creating the file and then saying they aren't charging a design fee

How does this price point look to you guys?
 
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