New Foam Board at Walmart 0.88C sheet

Hell2Go

Member
Has anyone tried rounding edges on the ross board using a monokote iron? curious as to how well the heat will shape it?
 

offaxis

Member
Has anyone tried rounding edges on the ross board using a monokote iron? curious as to how well the heat will shape it?

It works great. Its all about your skill level and the amount of heat applied. It makes for a really hard edge that is nice an rounded.
 

HilldaFlyer

Well-known member
Great content Everyone!
After reading offaxis' review article of Ross Foam Core I had to try it out. It is smooth and a lot whiter than Readi-Board.

I agree that it is harder to peel that Readi-board, a lot harder! Almost impossible. It holds up to moisture really well. I started building a F-18 with Readi-Board and built the second out of Ross. The thread is here.
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F-18 Readi-Board
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F-18 Ross Foam Core with a screaming 2200 kv motor.

My experience so far is that Ross is the go-to for foam board. The maiden flights of the two F-18 demonstrated that the Readi-Board delaminated on the belly after landing in dewy grass. The Ross built F-18 survived the day (a good omen considering and ESC Failure mid-flight) and I even spray painted it later that day with an airbrush and acrylic paint diluted 50:50 with water.

Paintings.jpg

There doesn't seem to be much warping with the paint. However, I do note that like all paper covered foam, there will always be some curve. Paper fibers tend to constrict after getting wet. In a test, I painted one side of a flat piece of Ross and it was pretty curved after it dried. The next day I sprayed the other side with water and it straightened out.

The day I flew was pretty windy and humid (90%) and the wings got really spongy. Water will always be an enemy to paper.

For long-lasting durability, I will probably stick with fiberglass skins. In my opinion, Ross is a superb option for quick and more durable planes over Readi-Board. I will probably use it instead of Readi-Board, as long as some of the sheets at Walmart aren't beat to pieces.

Oh, one last note. I was having a hard time peeling the Ross, so I tried to use water to help remove it. Just made it soft but it didn't come off. Rubbing the damp Ross board will eventually bead off the paper like a spit wad. It appears to me that there is less of a fiber grain with the Ross as compared to the Readi-Board.
 

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HilldaFlyer

Well-known member
I picked up 10 sheets of ROSS at walmart today and began some testing. These are not scientific at all but observations of comparing the stuff.

Link to ROSS Foam Board
Link to Adams Foam Board

Same Size: 20"x30"
Same Thickness: 3/16"
Weight: Adams board 4.1gRoss 4.7g
Price: DTFB $1USD, ROSS $0.88 USD
Flatness: DTFB is wavy, ROSS is flat as can be.
Brightness of paper: DTFB dull white, ROSS bright white
Paper Quality: DTFB is ok and textured more, ROSS might have a thicker(heavier weight) paper and smoother finish.
Crush Test: (Pound a corner of a piece into the table). DTFB paper pealed away from the foam. ROSS paper held on to the foam and crinckled. See picture.
Paper Peel: DTFB peels clean and easy. ROSS pulls up the surface layer
Rigidity Comments: DTFB seems to be more rigid and prone to cracking and pulling the paper away for the foam around the area of a fracture. ROSS my be slightly less rigid and crease instead of crack.
Fold Test: Piece was fold 90degrees one way, then folded 90 degrees the other. DTFB paper started to lift and made a tighter radius bend. ROSS paper held on to the foam and had a larger outer radius bend
A&B style folds: Both are fine.
Foam Bevels with sharp knife: Both are fine.

Cold Water 1 min soak: DTFB seems to be affected more by cold water then hot water, the paper peeled very easily. ROSS was unchanged.
Hot Water 1 min soak: DTFB was slightly affected and the paper seemed to peel the same as it always does. ROSS was unchanged.
Suface water splash: DTFB "raised the grain" of the paper, similar to getting a piece of wood wet and the paper may peel a bit easier(hard to tell). ROSS has no noticeable changes.
Spray paint test: ROSS has a much smoother finish. DTFB paper becomes more saturated with the paint causing easier delamination. ROSS paper is still mainly white on the inside after painting. See picture.

Hot Glue Test
Paper to Paper: DTFB peeled the paper off, no surprise, ROSS eventually tore the paper off but it was much more difficult.
Foam to paper: DTFB pulled the paper off leaving it attached to the hot glued side. ROSS eventually tore the same but is was much more difficult.
Foam to Foam: This is the hardest joint to separate for both. I would consider it a tie.
Butt Joint: DTFB Pulled the paper off of the mating surface when wiggled left and right. ROSS held on great until to much force pulls the hot glue away from the foam edge. This type of failure is much easier to fix then the delamination of the surface paper.


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Awesome information here... thanks! It helps and I won't have to do it ;)
 

Gryf

Active member
Just a note to add to what I posted earlier. I mentioned that I'd built a Bloody Baron with the Ross Board, and while it felt a bit different to cut, I had no problems with A or B folds. It was a nice, easy build that looked great when finished, and it flies very well. Somebody mentioned the Carolina Pad stuff... I picked up a sheet of that too, smaller overall, but the same thickness as the Ross Board, and used it for the Baron's power pod. I wanted to see if the extra paper thickness would help with power pod rigidity with straight-in crashes. And yes, I finally found out. ;-) I was fooling around trying to fly the Baron inverted at low altitude on a windy day, and punched it in pretty firmly. The only power pod damage was a split firewall. The Carolina Pad board was fine, and all I needed to do for repairs was to replace the firewall - this time in 1/4" ply. I think the Carolina Pad stuff is pretty much like Elmer's, meaning the paper's thicker and it's heavier in general, but it seems to work great for power pods.

So Ross+Carolina seems to be a pretty nice combo, and I may stick with it for future builds... I have a couple of motors I ordered for another project and ended up not needing, and am considering building a twin of some sort.

Cheers,

Gryf
 
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i am very impressed with this foamboard. i found that if you wet the paper you can shape the foam into curves that it will hold once its dry. I am going to try this to make some parts maybe wing fairings or turtledecks.
 

offaxis

Member
Sorry for the double post, but it finally occurred to me that Ross is the same company that makes Elmer's glue and other products, including foamboard. So apparently, while they brand their heavier board as Elmer's, the light stuff is just called Ross. I can't find any distinction between the two grades on their website:

http://elmers.com/products/foam-and-display-boards?filters=office|3-16ths-inch

For what it's worth,

Gryf

You are correct. Ross foam is made by Elmers but they don't want to admit that they make it. I think walmart strong-armed them into making a <1$ foam board to compete with Adams foam. Elmers didn't want to tarnish their premium brand by selling a cheap foamboard so the created a private label brand for walmart stores only. You can only buy ROSS foamboard at Walmart stores.

Another note: Ross Foam is a unique product and is not the same as the Elmers foam board. I emailed an Elmers sales manager and they confirmed that there is no Elmers brand product that is identical to the Ross foam. Do not buy any Elmers brand foam board thinking it like the ROSS foam board because it is not the same product.
 
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Tsavah

New member
I see the last post is dated Nov 2015, so I am late to the party. Even worse, ROSS foam cored poster board has recently jumped in price at Walmart. The online link now shows $3.10 per sheet, but at least I was able to get almost 20 sheets a few months ago for $.98 per sheet by an online purchase. Had the wife takes some sheets back since they were a little too bent up, or creased in spots to be useful. I thought it was odd the store where I found it had it priced for $.88 per sheet.
 
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Tsavah

New member
I suppose that means the ROSS foam board cheap days are done and most of us will have to wait until another option comes along. Kind of sucks since I had just discovered this foam board recently and found a pretty easy way to strip off the paper. I like the characteristics of the foam, but like the Blu-core floor underlayment, often called fan fold foam for the way it was packaged, the price, or availability changes. Wonder if the ROSS board will come down in price? Walmart seems to have caught on to the popularity of the ROSS board, so they raised the price.
 

Gazoo

Well-known member
Last time I bought a case (25) at Walmart, it was .88 a sheet. That was December. I could never purchase online because it is always only available in the store.

I usually find someone in the back area (near layaway) and ask if I can order a box of it. They will usually order one but it's up to me to come and claim it before they stock the shelf.
 

Jaxx

Posted a thousand or more times
I suppose that means the ROSS foam board cheap days are done and most of us will have to wait until another option comes along. Kind of sucks since I had just discovered this foam board recently and found a pretty easy way to strip off the paper. I like the characteristics of the foam, but like the Blu-core floor underlayment, often called fan fold foam for the way it was packaged, the price, or availability changes. Wonder if the ROSS board will come down in price? Walmart seems to have caught on to the popularity of the ROSS board, so they raised the price.

Tsavah,

Here is the Walmart #: 553625519 for Ross Foam Board. Go to the link below, click on the "UPC" button, paste the number into the input box, enter your Zip Code, then select "Search Inventory". It will tell you if any of the Walmart stores in your area have them in stock, and at what price. In my Zip Code, it shows at least 5 store that have them in stock, and they are are still selling for 88 cents. Keep in mind, there is no guarantee the inventory numbers on this site are accurate, so I would advise you to call ahead to verify. Good luck.

https://brickseek.com/walmart-inventory-checker/
 

Tsavah

New member
After getting frustrated with the new online price at Walmart.com, I visited the store yesterday, and sure enough, the ROSS foam board, or poster board was 88 cents. I bought a few more sheets and also got one Kraft brand. The Kraft brand has more paper on it, which is hard to get off, even if I use the wash off method. It is also 1.80 per sheet plus tax. Sure is odd how Walmart will price the ROSS foam board differently, depending on where, or how you buy it.
 

rfcgt

New member
Thanks for the link, Jaxx. I used it to fine inventory in the many Walmarts we have locally. I've managed to accumulate 60 or 70 sheets so far. Its still $.88.
 

Jaxx

Posted a thousand or more times
Thanks for the link, Jaxx. I used it to fine inventory in the many Walmarts we have locally. I've managed to accumulate 60 or 70 sheets so far. Its still $.88.

You're welcome! Glad to hear it was helpful.
 
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Crow929

Active member
That's a cool tool, but it's not always accurate. The local Walmart near me says there is 54 in stock, but when I went I found maybe 3 or 4 that were beat to death. I asked, but the employee said there were none in the back. They did tell me more would be arriving in two weeks, we'll see if that holds up to be true.