Question on Canvas Boards

[andymania]

The only canvas boards I have been using are those cheap Fredrix ones. Can anyone recommend some good canvas boards?? I hope there is a good noticable difference between the Frederix ones and a good one. Sorry for all these questions, but this site is a great source of info!!

[MarkHarchar]

Have you ever tried painting on stretched canvas or gesso primed MDF?

[chaosrocks]

I use the canvas boards.. the cheap ones
but I put at least three coats of gesso on them
I hate the surface, but they are a convenient size for my pouchade box. and easy to transport wet with thumb tacks in between.

[dbclemons]

Fredrix (http://www.taramaterials.com/ArtistCanvas/ProductCategory.aspx?path=005010002) makes several different types, some use cardboard backing (which I would not recommend,) others are cotton or linen glued to hardboard that work well. They even make some using an oil primer.

New Traditions (http://www.newtraditionsartpanels.com/) makes very nice linen panels glued to either birch plywood or dibond.

John Annesley (http://johnannesley.com/PVCPanelPrices.html) makes some with different canvas choices on PVC.

It's not too difficult to make your own, which is what I typically do.

[andymania]

Oh ok. Hylandr2: Whats MDF?

[Flake]

Medium Density Fibreboard. Wood fibres squished under great pressure.

If you're in the UK, it's usually called hardboard. (up here at least).

Masonite is similar.

Edit: I think it is anyway, y'know how the cross Atlantic thing goes though, same stuff, different name..Who would have thought HP Sauce would be called A1 over there and let's not discuss fags..

[alesoun]

MDF = medium density fibreboard. A cheap replacement for wood...
basically woodchips held together with pva or equivalent.

[dbclemons]

Hardboard, by the way, is HIGH density fiberboard (HDF.) Technically the density/square inch is the only difference there needs to be between it and MDF. MDF can also be made thicker which makes it less prone to warping, but they often both have high acid content. The adhesive is typically urea-formaldehyde resin. Some hardboards are processed to be pH neutral and made of hardwoods like aspen, but that's for special use in artwork.