Making my own foam trays (Part 1)

In a grand effort to save a bunch of cash as well as get better, more customized trays for my troops, I have started a project... Build my own foam troop transport trays.  I will be sizing them for Sabol Designs Army Transport bags, as I am getting a very lucrative deal on their new "Armored Company" bag.  32" of foam space in that bad boy!!

So i have received my arse load of foam for pennies on the dollar, and its really good stuff.  I think i actually like it better than Battlefoam's foam.  For the base piece, i'm using some 1/4" hi density blue foam.

And... after a day's work, i have finished my prototype tray.  It turned out pretty good despite the "roughness" of it... i learned alot in the process as well, and have noted a few improvements to make on the next ones.  Most notably, I decided that measuring, drawing lines, and cutting foam without a template sucked balls.  So I went to Lowes and had them cut me a piece of wood to size, which only cost $4.50... as you'll see from the pics, the pieces i cut without the template are much rougher.  Thankfully i wised up after the first tray.

Materials list:
-large roll of 1" foam
-large sheet of 1/4" high density foam
-utility knife (want a blade at least as thick as your thickest tray, for me this is 4")
-13x7.5 piece of wood to serve as a tray template*
-foam adhesive spray (i'm using 3M's)*
-tacky glue
-xacto knife
-cardboard (if you want to make templates)
-cutting mat (a good surface to cut your foam on)

Note:  Starred* items are only needed if you're cutting out your own trays from bulk foam.  This would have been much faster/easier with foam sheets in the thickness for your trays.  Fabric stores will often have this for you.  I was not able to get foam worthy of a tray in sizes i wanted, so i got 1" foam roll that i had to cut and adhere the layers together.  It was also significantly cheaper this way. 

Here's the process..

1.) Cutting out the foam trays and bases into 13x7.5 pieces.  Put cutting mat under the foam to be cut, place your wood template on top, line up your utility knife flush against the wood and slowly begin your cut.  I found the best method for me was a stabbing, saw-motion type cut.  This reduced almost all tearing and helped keep the blade flush against the template for a nice straight cut.  The high density foam cuts much easier, and you can just press your blade through and run a normal line cut.  Sorry, no pics of this step.

2.)  Adhere the 1" sheets together to make one solid tray.  My first tray is going to be 2" thick, so i took 2 sheets and used the 3M foam spray on both sides and stuck them together.  In the pics below you can see the layers.  My first attempt was a bit rough, again due to not using a template to cut, and not quite knowing how to use the spray adhesive (you can see some overspray on the sides).

3.)  Planning model layout and templates.  I started out by making cardboard templates by tracing around the model with a pen then cut out w/ xacto knife.  I later came to realize it works much better just setting the models on the foam and cutting around them.  Not so much wasted space and a lot less effort than cutting and drawing around templates.

3.)  Cutting out the models' holes.  For this i used a similar method as cutting out the trays.  Start slow with a stabbing motion until you work the utility knife all the way through to the bottom.  Once you reach the bottom, continue to "saw" around the model/template until you've completed the cut.  I then smushed the foam down and test fit the model to its hole and went on to the next one.  This helped me keep a sense of spacing and ensure my cuts fit.

4.)  Gluing the base to the tray.   This was another learning experience for me.. Because the spray adhesive requires both sides to be sprayed I had to think about how to do this part without getting glue inside the holes.  Don't want glue sticking to my paint jobs after all!  So i figured I would plug the bottom of the holes with the cutout pieces of foam, then just spray the whole thing, spray the base tray, then quickly pull out the plugs, then stick the pieces together... well this worked great until i realized that there was now foam glue at the bottom of each hole, because i sprayed the entire base.  (insert 4 letter word here!).

The only solution i could think of, is to use some Tacky glue and just apply it around the holes.  This should be fine as i've seen a few guides for making troop trays that recommend tacky glue.  We'll see on the next one i guess lol.   This screwup actually ended up not being so bad afterall.. once the foam adhesive had dried, there's almost no tackiness left to it, and since my models will be standing up on their base, no big deal.

5.)  Once the foam pieces are glued together, you need to let them fully dry over night with some weight compressing them together to ensure a full even bond.  I got a board and set a box full of glassware on top of it.  Next morning it was fully dry and STUCK.  Would take a lot of force to pull the foam layers apart, which is a good thing.

6.)  Fill with models!

Customized fit for models to stand on their bases.  Perfect!  I hate laying my models on their paint jobs (even with clear coats for protection).  The tray is very sturdy as well, thanks to the hi-density foam base piece.  They don't bend/sag down at all when you hold them.

A few of the holes look a little big for the models, but that's because they have pieces i still need to glue on, or they are just a filler model because i don't have the right one put together yet.  That empty spot in the middle was because i cut the hole above it too big on accident (dog was being anoying) and it didn't leave room for the one i had planned to go below it (grr).

So there you have it... pretty easy process once you figure out a few of the tricky parts.  My subsequent trays should turn out a lot cleaner and professional looking, and be done much quicker.  Hopefully this helps out some people who are looking to make their own troop trays.