DIY $5 Dice Tray Build!

[@BlackMagicCraftOfficial]

FAQ Q: Could you use/why didn't you use a wood burner or soldering iron? A: The frame of this is made from MDF. The glue used to make MDF is urea-formaldehyde. You don't want to be burning and inhaling that. If the frame was pine (like it was on some others I've purchased in the past) wood burning would be an option worth trying.

[@davfree9732]

Does wood laminate have the same health risk as MDF?

[@Pariah1974]

Yeah, I believe that's the difference in price. If you buy the more expensive ones they're almost always pine.

[@anilin6353]

Have to tried using a small chisel or flathead screwdriver as a punch?

[@volljoseph]

I know I'm a year late but better late then never at the BMC party! Was just going to suggest using a v gouge carving tool for the engraving. This tool is DESIGNED for exactly this purpose, carving out a shallow and deliberate groove. Theres a wide range of em, but a crappy eBay V gouge would do the job perfect. Hopefully this helps any other curious crafters in the comments. :P

[@ineffable1129]

Modern Master make makes a reactive Metal Effect paint that is water based and uses real metal as the pigment. Comes in 3 colors iron, bronze and copper. The "effect" part is the paint can be oxidized to produce rust on iron, and blue and green oxidation on bronze and copper with looks very real. Like pretty much all realistic metal effect paints clearing it will alter the appearance but the paint is surprisingly durable. I've used on some light wall plates and a water pot that I use daily and they both still look great. The 2oz kit cost about $20 on Amazon, comes with 2oz primer and paint plus a bottle of activator. Not the cheapest but you don't need to a expert painter to achieve very natural realist results either. Thinned with water it shoots nicely through a fine tip airbrush and covers very well a welcomed surprise.

[@brewynn6356]

omfg I work at a dollarama and Ive been trying to find something to make a tray from. I never even considered that canvas. You genius

[@Spartan113]

For a slightly quieter experience when rolling add a cheap mouse pad from say Walmart or the like, and cut and glue it to fit the bottom. I did this with my homemade tray and absolutely love the feel it gives when rolling.

[@charmedrools1]

smart, i might try that when i make this. metal dice *shudder*

[@robbiecrafter]

When I was being taught to gold leaf historically correct for antiques, red was to be used under gold leaf and blue under silver leaf. I am sure that this could apply to paint, too. I've never tried it, though.

[@COOPERx223x]

What's the reason for this? Does it make the leafing "pop" more? Just curious.

[@ToastAndJellyfish]

@COOPERx223x Doing the underpainting with red helps give the gold a warmer, richer tone once applied! Yellow is good for hiding crimes (bare patches) or if you want a more neutral gold color that doesn't lean warm or cool. Black tends to make gold look cold and pretty flat in my experience, which is why you generally want to undercoat with brown at the least. By the same token, using blue paint under silver helps keep things nice and cool.

[@maxs-lz4pn]

That's so cool! I gotta try that with silver now

[@failureblanket8559]

I dont have much money to toss around and your videos help a lot. Glad I found you again.

[@stinkybean2004]

Failure Blanket lol, that’s a pun😏

[@rodrempel]

I DM for my kids and some even of their friends and I like to give small physical rewards for various things. This is perfect! We love your great videos, keep up the awesome work!

[@AtticusGrim]

I've also found that cheap mousepad works great for lining a DIY tray.

[@serinerte69]

Hi, im not sure if you'll read this but i wanted to thank you, thanks to this video me and my fiance build our first dice tray with a picture frame, some paint, glue and some fabric. Im really excited to see what we will build next.

[@cartoon80s90s]

If someone creates this from scratch, it might be worth considering adding a recess to the inner walls (2 thirds of the height) and applying a velvety material on that surface too, to mute the sound of dice hitting the sides. Overall, a very nice project for beginners which also produces a very useful accessory for any gaming session.

[@garfieldwithissuez]

This looks amazing. Commenting because it helps the channel.

[@jamesfirth-haydon7381]

That’s a blinding video. So obvious once seen, terrific idea. Thanks for sharing. Love the channel.

[@gregtheredneck1715]

Does the poem start with "There once was a dwarf from Nantucket........" 🤣 Nice think I'll give this one a try!

[@Slithe99]

Literally sanding my homemade dice tray when this posted

[@alcovitch]

I used to make these out of the dollarama picture frames. This is a much better product to start from. Going to redo my dice trays wit these wood canvas boxes. Thanks for the tip. I think i'll simply carve "Dovie'andi se tovya sagain" on mine. It's old Tongue from Wheel of Time that literally means "It's time to roll the dice".

[@MetaMarcy21]

Alcovitch brilliant ❤️

[@jamiehooks5500]

Just found your channel a week ago, I've been playing with the idea of starting to craft for D&D for a while and your builds have convinced me finally. I wanted to thank you and let you know that I appreciate the work you have put into this channel over the years. Can't wait to start on your longboat build after work.

[@Echtaria]

I'm both happy and very sad that I've now caught up with all your videos, I can't wait for the next hit of inspiration :D

[@BlackMagicCraftOfficial]

🏆 Achievement Unlocked

[@imrezsigmond601]

(Not my account, but my dad's.) Well, time to rewatch it all from the beginning and stopping along to craft here and there when inspiration hits you again.

[@MurderHoboRPG]

Hey BMC, if you ever need one thats a little deeper. Get those fancy schmancy decorative trays people put tealights and pebbles in. You can make drawings on the outside and then use the dremel to trace your pencil strokes. You can get insane with a dremel. Whats even better if you get one of those nail salon rotary tools. Lighter on the hand and more control.

[@nocturne777]

I make custom dice trays and it's neat to see a more budget-friendly do-it-yourself sort of option for people who don't have the scratch to buy something made of fancy hardwoods and such. Good stuff man.

[@timberry4709]

I made mine out of a small, ready-to-finish serving tray from Michael's. I lined the bottom with a sheet of self-adhesive foam to help lessen the thud of the dice hitting the bottom. On top of that I glued a sheet of felt (for looks).

[@beeezlebub]

The beard is looking rad, and this video is great! I have made a few styles like this! Found a bunch of cool designed felt and try to get a bunch of styles! Great video, thanks!!!

[@thorshammer8033]

This may be if value. Haunt furniture stores. They often have folios of various colour leather. These often become obsolete then get thrown away. Perfect for crafting.

[@draco09ify]

The way I deadened the sound on my homemade one was cork placemats from a dollar store. Glued onto inside base and sides, then lined with felt. Also built mine using picture frame from stationary/craft shop.

[@MedievalMary]

I litterally just went out and made a dice tray because of this video!👍 Thanks Jeremy 😊👍

[@marcuswelbymd7881]

So obvious to use - in hindsight. Keep up the great videos, found you late and really enjoying going through the library you've posted.

[@zephyr9516]

This is one of the most satisfying dice clacking trays I’ve ever heard. :)

[@jpizzleforizzle]

craft foam sheets is my preference for dice trays. It adds a slight bounce, is quiet, super cheap, and has a neat texture.

[@DanceswithDustBunnies]

Just a tip: the whole idea of runes is that they were meant to be carved into stone, so they're straight lines. Use two flathead screwdrivers, one as wide as the longest mark and one half as wide, and a hammer or mallet of some kind, then just experiment for the right strength of "whack" to make each line.

[@fredmyers503]

I think doing some gold leafing would have been very interesting. . you could have gouged the whole rune area about 1/4" deep, and then painted with glue or masked out and done some gold leafing, or regular paint and then maybe fill with resin you have leftover from your other projects. Heck you could even have printed some graphics glued it down and covered in resin. and mask off and paint the base red or black that would have looked sweet! If you have a cricut machine you make some tape mask with it and then glue and gold leaf. I may try one of these! So many options! Or even I am not sure if you have seen the melted crayon that people do. but since you already carved a recess you could melt some crayon and put that in the runes to make them look magical and swirly colored. . . Such a great project so many options!

[@BlackMagicCraftOfficial]

ME: Budget build, $5 YOU: Gold Leafing and $350 Circuit machine 😂

[@fredmyers503]

@@BlackMagicCraftOfficial Pfft you get 100 gold leaf sheets for like 6 dollars. you use maybe 4 of those sheets so like what 25 Cents. yeah that blows the budget! And just showing the exciting different ways you could take it if you wanted. . you dont need a cricut machine you could just mask off with tape and a razor blade. . . just like you don't need a proxon table it just speeds it up!

[@DemonicSpoon]

For my trays, I use one of the photo frames from the Dollarama. It's a framesworks frame (the ones that look like they sort of already have art in them), toss the glass, glue craft foam onto the backing, then glue a nice piece of cotton fabric over top. I ended up having some really nice designs and my group loved them :) The foam gives a bit of bounce and rolling the dice into the tray is super satisfying. I also cover the back in craft felt.

[@patricksweeney8614]

Thanks for another great build video! Just a random suggestion to think about, but with Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron, we find ourselves able to return to the steampunk/industrial fantasy world once more! Would you at all be interested in doing a build video on your own approach to an Airship mini/terrain? I think one that you put together might be a little difficult, but would really be a fantastic build overall (since everything you build looks like liquid gold and magic had a child). Thanks.

[@gorogg_]

Oh man!! Using a cheap dollar store canvas is such a good idea!! I'm gonna see if can pick a few up sometime this week.

[@DevsDice]

I've done similar homebrew build but one thing that I used as a felt was an old mouse pad that I cut to shape. That way the impact of the dice made in my opinion a nicer sound. Oh yeah and I seem to remember that we were recording RPG sessions and posting to KZbin at the time so I think I wanted to get rid of the "sharp" dice rolling sounds! :) Awesome man! Inspiring as always! :)

[@FoEDekker]

Next time tape off the sides, lay the paper exactly as you want it, then use a piece of blue tape on one long side to form a hinge. Flip the paper up, spray, then flip it right back down inplace.

[@Linaxtic]

So I'm in America and while Dollar Tree has canvases, they're not the right size. So I went to Michaels and found a really nice size box, bought 4 felt pieces (2 in two different colors) and got some spray glue from Walmart. It's not perfect but it works a treat and I'm already rolling better. Plus, the box is white and has a lid, so I've got a lot of decorating I can do. Still cost less than $10 USD so I call that a win, especially since I can customize it. I'm definitely gonna explore making cheap gaming stuff after seeing several of your videos.

[@jeremyverwey2713]

I used a cheap shadow box picture frame but I have wanted to make some others for my game group, This is an awesome idea that is great thank you for your ingenuity

[@dieselsstreamarchive]

DUDE YOUR ARM IS LIKE A MACHINE It is UNREAL how straight you can make a line freehand, let alone that QUICKLY!

[@BlackMagicCraftOfficial]

Finger gauging a line is an easy skill to learn and one that can be mastered in an hours practice.

[@dieselsstreamarchive]

@@BlackMagicCraftOfficial Mayhaps. My artistic abilities have always been... lacking, so I never really tried to refine anything of that sort. Though now that I'm getting into dungeon building again, it might be worth giving it a try!

[@BlackMagicCraftOfficial]

It's not an artistic ability, it's a mechanical one. Maybe one day I'll do a short video demonstrating how to do it to demystify the technique.

[@dieselsstreamarchive]

@@BlackMagicCraftOfficial YES, PLEASE!!

[@perrygrosshans8537]

That was way more entertaining and informative than I was expecting. :D I've seen those canvas trays before and knew I could make a real cheap-o one by just slamming some felt at the bottom, but your carving and repainting takes it to the next level. Nice!

[@skunkjumper1]

I made a couple for my brothers, took basically two of those and routed out slots for hinges and got a few clasps. Now they have a dice box/tray. They love it

[@mercedogre]

cigar boxes make great trays also and many have a lid so you can use it as a travel case

[@sunpowerguru3993]

If you want a good metallic finish, try Rub n Buff. The "Autumn Gold" or "Spanish Copper" would look great on a dice tray. The more you buff, the shinier it gets. I would love to see you do a review on this.

[@UnwalledGarden]

SunPower Guru I use Rub n Buff for all my metallic stuff. Makes minis look awesome.

[@mikemckinney7031]

I am inspired by the idea of a poem, then put on the frame in game language. That just helps make game night more fun.

[@rexosaur9535]

I want to thank you for the runic language on the side im making some dice tray/boxs staining the sides and carving into with tools or dredel and painting it this inspired me for my gifts to my friends and i wanted to thank you

[@sketchbooklp5298]

Such a timely video, I was planning one for my wife's birthday present

[@koboldbenchpress]

Another solid video, and as someone who has been binge your channel lately I like the work you have had done on your ink

[@Kragar01]

I just got a black square plastic bento box and lined it with coloured felt. I got six of them and lined them in different colours and got six tokens and coloured them the same as the boxes so each box had a matching token. They also stack

[@MerlosTheMad]

4:25 Poem? THAT SOUNDS LIKE POINTY EARED DEVILRY TUH ME!

[@dmmomma]

Really great gift for a crafting DM to give as a gift to their players! Thanks!

[@dougsundseth6904]

I really like the basic concept here. It's simple, fast, and inexpensive while still giving a nice result. One possible suggestion: If you were to start with a shadowbox rather than a canvas, you could probably "upholster" the backing piece and avoid the whole contact cement problem. And you could change it out if the fabric starts to become worn as well.

[@sgt-slag]

I would need something like this, to play with metal dice... They would, over time, destroy my Padauk Dice Tower (Janka Hardness of 1,970, where Oak is only 1,335), chipping, and denting the wood, over time... I would suggest visiting shoe repair shops, or other leather shops, to price scraps of finished leather, to line the tray with. Leather is incredibly durable, especially for metal dice rolling, over time. It, too, can be bonded with 3M's 77 Spray Adhesive. Great crafting item. Love the final results. There are a number of different methods to decorate/finish the wood. Thanks for the idea, and the craft. Cheers!

[@Squid-pocalypse]

Just finished making my own dice tray using some of the methods you used. I went with a necromancer theme, using a font based off of script from HP Lovecraft, a quote from an undead character from one of my favorite shows, and inset some metal skull beads on the corners. I also designed it to look like the top layer was wood on top of stippled/hammered metal on the bottom. I've been needing a dice tray for awhile now and this video was perfect to help me start out, then I was able to make it my own

[@adriannaranjo4397]

Never underestimate the importance of a good dice tray/tower

[@TheMerrox]

Great video! I love these kinds of builds, its fun to make and fun to show your friends later at the game table. I use felt as bottom inside my dicetrays, works great with a thin layer of white glue and and gives you a little time to adjust the felt before it dries it stuck on the bottom and softens the sound of the dices when rolling.

[@feralart]

My wife and I put together seven smaller dice trays for less than $2 each. We bought the dollar trays from a Michael's, I stained the wood a dark chestnut (already had the stain from a previous project), lined the sides and bottom with felt that we already had (tacked down with rubber cement). She wants to go back and edge the tops to cover the seam between the wood and felt, but that should go inexpensively enough.

[@shawnspidle2530]

This is a great idea. Going to have to make a few of these for my play group

[@oniros80]

Another thing you can use for the bottom surface that is also noise muffling is a very cheap dollar store mouse pad. If you cannot find these canvases, deep photo frames also work really well.

[@bishop6126]

Black magic craft you rock have been thinking how to do this and never even thought of this. Many thanks truly inspiring.

[@HowtoRPG]

It looks very shinny. Simple, nice job.

[@fuzzyfish7034]

If I carved a message it would be “Don’t Blame The Tray Blame The Dice”

[@csyarr]

for my players, it would be, "Read your damn character sheet and learn your spells! I can't make these decisions for you!" haha

[@Auridus]

I've been wanting to upgrade from the cheap, kinda terrible tray I've been using forever but didn't know how to make one myself. Needless to say, I'm building this myself tomorrow. Thank you!

[@KidarWolf]

Another way to mute the sound is to use those foam sheets as a liner. Again, they're inexpensive, and will cushion your dice inside the tray. They'll adhere using regular PVA glue (or Mod Podge), which is actually one of the best choices of glue for foam sheets.

[@DarthAramith]

I found at hobby lobby they have them with adhesive already on them for a dollar.

[@Jarikith]

@@DarthAramith Was the same for me at Michaels, attached the velvet to the adhesive foam sheet and then cut that to size. It fit so nice and snug that I wasn't even worried about it coming back out easily so I didn't even bother to glue it to the inside of the tray. In fact I instead put one of those sticky index page markers for papers in binders on the bottom side of the pad to stick up from underneath. If I ever decide to swap out the pad for any reason or if I'm using the box for something else temporarily, like sorting Lego pieces that include green like the velvet, where the pad and velvet might be more of a bother I can just pull the padding out by the bit of marker left sticking up at the bottom of the tray.

[@marcusjohnson290]

Is it only me that lives the sound of dice hitting wood ???? Lol

[@danmorgan3685]

The actual runes are easy to to carve into wood because they were designed that way. Hence all the straight lines. I used to do some wood carving but haven't due to wrist problems. A cheap set of gouges might come in handy for you. Noncurved gouges would allow you to easily carve runes using a push cut technique.

[@Ithorhun]

The only thing bothering me is the thin gold line around the black paper of the bottom. It seems the wooedn bottom is visible to some degree. I'd paint the bottom black before gluing the paper there. But that's just my opinion. A very nice video though again, I think a lot of people might find it useful. On my part, I just bought a foldable leather tray on ebay.

[@spamcan9208]

I just finished my last coat of polyurethane a few hours ago. All that's left is to sand the finish and add in the lining. Perfect time for KZbin to suggest this video.

[@eugenb.8448]

When I do dice trays in a similar fashion I use some foam from Michael’s to provide sound deadening and a bit of bounce under the felt.

[@moonpost]

same. a bit of thin craft foam inside a sloped-side "shadow box" picture frame on discount from Target. works perfect.

[@eugenb.8448]

I tend to use deep picture frames I find at Home Sense, a Canadian off-price home furnishing store, not sure what the equivalent is in the US or elsewhere. But they always carry a variety of picture frames and at times deep ones that are 5x7 which are perfect. And they’re almost always wood and of different stains or colours and thus make unique dice trays for friends and family. Lately I’ve purchased scrap leather pieces from Amazon and used that on the bottom. No need for foam and they really look nice if you luck out and get colourful pieces. Or hit a thrift shop and buy an old leather purse or skirt and use that. :-)

[@BKSHellFireFiend]

Adding some kind of decorative ribbon, cord or string to the edges of the bottom tray is a great way to hide any gaps between the walls & the paper velvet.

[@woodslore8537]

When I made one if these I just bought a $1.50 wood canvas, a sheet of foam, a sheet of felt. Both cost me 4 for $1.00. So $0 .50. Some homemade stain (vinegar and steel wool) and some tack in corners I had laying around. Whole tray cost me $2.00 Canadian.

[@daxriel]

Been toying with this idea myself... so great timing!

[@Danutty]

I usually grab a cheap picture frame (deep set frames popular right now), take out glass, felt the backing and boom done. Bonus that many have great raised patterns to drybrush to great effect.

[@Danutty]

Bonus that putting in felt fancy paper or whatever is so much easier since you remove the backing.

[@calabusclemo9230]

Oh God love this channel I know what I'm doing this weekend before me next d&d session

[@joeseatat]

Oh my gosh. I think I'll keep my eye out for a cool picture frame and do this. What a wonderful idea you shared. Christmas this year is set, yo!

[@lwriker1304]

Cool! But I went even cheaper. A Dollar store picture box, very much like your canvas, only it was preprinted with a picture; and the best part was it was preprinted as a wood pallet around the edges. All I needed was the small piece of felt for the botttom. Total cost $1.50 US dollars.

[@norseman_5334]

Great stuff:) If you can’t find the frames, IKEA picture frames is i good option too:) Keep creating

[@nearzero1555]

Nice video. Good idea

[@maxs-lz4pn]

I think it might help to glue the velvet paper to a hefty cardstock to keep it rigid when gluing. It adds some cost unfortunately but might make getting it stuck down easier

[@masterxguitar]

You should try using checkering tools to carve the runes. The tools are used in gunsmithing on the wood stocks of guns.

[@deitieofall6634]

Very new to building all this stuff... and I'm cheap cause here in Aussie land there is the cheep or mortgage your home, no in between. So you vids have been very helpful.

[@Dem0n1337]

I literally just did this with a wooden canvas from Hobby Lobby. I used a foam to line the bottom with a thin felt over it to dampen sound. Then i put more foam on the bottom like feet.

[@astrangeone]

Ha. I now know what to make for a buddy for Christmas! (Except I'd be using pyrography/wood burning to inscribe the runes/lettering into it.) Edit: Will be wood burning the D&D logo on the canvas and then creating the thing like that!

[@TheGameSmithsTable]

I'm not a fan of die trays or towers myself, but this is a great video. I particularly liked the advice on carving the wood, so thanks for your finger-cramping experiments!

[@WolfwoodX13]

Been waiting for this video forever haha Keep up the great videos! Beard game going strong 👌🏽

[@lewisharris3400]

Looks fantastic! My brother always refuses birthday presents, but he plays D&D with his friends so I am definitely going to try to make one of these as a gift if I can find one of these wood canvases cheap in the UK. The rune carving is brilliant, but does look very tedious - wondering if there is any way you can soften the mdf with moisture to make carving easier?

[@malysyforethought1195]

'The Works' shop does something similar, 12x16 cm canvas is £2. The canvas is wrapped and stapled tho. Maybe unpick the staples, trim the canvas and then glue the stapled side of the frame to the trimmed canvas bottom? PVA should do it.

[@malysyforethought1195]

alternatively, This! www.theworks.co.uk/p/craft-lover/wooden-memories-box/5052089134638 for a posh hinged dice box for £3

[@lewisharris3400]

@@malysyforethought1195 Thanks for the heads up! I'll pop into the Works the next time I am in town

[@macewen1]

I have built a couple of dice trays like this, but being a leather worker I line them with leather i have on hand. Sometimes you can score a small picture frame that is deep enough for this too. The last one I did was a coffin shaped craft box from JoAnns so a bit more $. . I think it was about $6 US.

[@Uberdemon0666]

Tip: If you want to mute the sound of the dice a bit; get a cheap sheet of foam paper. You can even put the felt on top of that.

[@grannyLynnsCreations]

I have been doing a lot of papercrafting for some time.... Art Glitter Glue.... it works wonderfully, gives you a little wiggle room - the down side... they will not ship during the months when you get freezing weather, the glue freezes and it does not work after it freezes.

[@teagan_p_999]

Nice, I did something similar and simpler a little while back with a Dollarama picture frame, which is already finished on the front, removing the glass and wrapping fabric around the wood piece at the back. The only thing is it didn't glue very nicely and has bubbles in the fabric. I want to make another as a gift, so perhaps I'll try this spray adhesive stuff this time.

[@blacksmith67]

For your tools, you will save a lot of strain on your poor fingers if you slip something to widen the shaft where your fingers grip them. Minimally you can buy foam pencil grips at the dollar store. I have pulled some rubber grips off of old pens (I drive my wife crazy by scrounging pens and pulling them apart for all the bits and pieces). If you don't have 2kg of old pens, and want something tougher than the foam grips, I have occasionally used short bits of surgical tubing. Love your videos.

[@tinychai6464]

AHHH CANVAS that's genius i didn't think of that one.

[@rezende.leo.anoder]

Very nice, I was looking for a side project to take a break from minis and terrain but still craft. Thanks

[@awesomemanlikeaboss]

Absolutely loved the video! I'm on my way out right now to go get a frame! Thank you very much for the idea! I would personally enjoy any other accessories that you could make for cheap!

[@RyngsRaccoon]

On my dice trays I put a layer of fun foam hereunder the felt on the tray and on the bottom. This better controls noise and adds bounce to the dice. Just suggesting :)

[@DeviousDungeonsPainting]

Very cool, perhaps a wood burning tool would make the runes easier?

[@BlackMagicCraftOfficial]

I’d rather not be breathing burning formaldehyde

[@sdm533]

Thanks great idea, guess I’m going shopping tomorrow.

[@netchesandnirnroots7174]

Great tutorial! The process was very slow, especially as someone with no carving experience, and I had a hard time procuring supplies as cheap and as easily as you did, but I really like the turnout! All in all, it was still cheaper and quicker than buying an already made dice tray XD

[@TheBeelzboss]

I made a fairly small dice tray and holder from a cigar box that was given to me. I put in dollar store foam board and blue felt from the dollar store. I'll need to make something else that is bigger but for now it works fine

[@forgefather]

Great idea, looks great :)

[@Ebola419]

Id enjoy seeing you make one of these with dwarven runes that have been etched in with wood burning tools.

[@glanni]

Collecting dice acessoires is awesome

[@tdbsr7]

Just a thought, have you considered doing a glow in the dark fill in between the runes? It could be a neat little feature of the tray.

[@cell32005]

ICRPG and Frostgrave, excellent choice, monsieur.

[@RealmSmith]

Nice hex chest and dice set! 😉 Made my first trays out of those same canvases. So good.