We compared blackout cloth against a white painted wall, and several swatches of fabric from walmart. Blackout cloth has given the best results so far. I believe we spent about $18 on our piece of blackout from JoAnn Fabrics. Due to space constraints we haven't been able to stretch the fabric or put black borders on it... which is supposed to improve the picture quality. We're still getting great results with the fabric just hanging there.

Has anyone found a material they like better than blackout cloth in about the same price range?

I tried several silver screen treatments. I followed recommendations from a scientific comparison of screen types and went with a very high gain silver treatment. I can say the gain increased tremendously but so did the problems associated with high gain screens, namely, hot-spotting and color shifting. To use the high gain screens the seating arrangement has to be perfectly situated for the type of screen, sometimes just moving your head from side to side can cause a massive hot spot to occur. I came to the conclusion that adding gain at the screen is a bad idea, it would be much better to add light output from the projector instead, and go with a flat white surface for the screen. I agree that blackout cloth is a very good screen material, or a flat-white smooth wall should work just as well.

By blackout cloth do you mean muslin? Like the kind available from most fabric stores? While searching for blackout cloth I found a photo-supplier listing backdrops. Muslin 'blackout' backdrops. Also, I noticed that JoannFabric.com has a pretty good deal on good sized pieces of white muslin.

White Muslin @ JoAnn Fabric 90" wide!

As of this writing, it's currently $4.49/yard ideally, one would only need to purchase about 2 yards, since it's already 7.5 feet wide!

Nope, blackout is a vinylized canvas type material with a very smooth side that is excellent for projection. Searching for it is rather hard and if you go into a JoAnn and ask for it they'll probably look at you funny, but they do have it. Nobody knows what it's called basically, but it is really blackout cloth. It's on large spools toward the drapery section. The bolts are 54" wide. You may have to join 2 pieces if you want a 4:3 screen.

As for the muslin I doubt it would make a good screen. I suggest you obtain a sample first and compare it to various materials...I think you'll end up with blackout. If the screen transmits light, that's light that's not getting back to your eyes. Also irregular surfaces including canvases tend to soften the image, making it appear slighly out of focus.

Did you mean absorbs light? I am a little lost on this... to me if the screen transmits light is light that gets reflected to the eyes. I am wrong? That's why screens come always in colors tending to white (grey, pearl, etc.) rather than tending to black...a black screen will reflect no light and absorb all making a black screen useless for projection.

Where else can I find the blackout cloth? I asked around in NYC and photographers seem to know nothing about it.

thanks

Blackout cloth is white or grey; the 'blackout' refers to blocking light from coming in through a window. So it must be very good at reflecting light and thick enough to prevent the light from penetrating the material - both good qualities in a screen.

Transmits = Light passes through the fabric.
Reflects = Bounces light back to the viewer.
Absorb = Neither transmits or reflects.

I am NOT responsible for the name, but I just got some last weekend. The spousal unit is very happy with it, though she did not help out too much when I put together a semi warped wooden frame. It is better than my last try, which was the backside of wrapping paper [semi-glossy and pure white when put on my cardboard freezer box frame]. It also has a sharper image than the sheet I had before that [the sheet let light bleed down the fibers like fiber optics].

This is supposed to be 100 percent cotton, but there is a tight knit side that is semi glossy like vinyl.

Rain No Stain Drapery Lining

http://joann.com/catalog.jhtml?CATID=24842&PRODID=34538

I just went into JoAnn fabrics today and asked the woman working there. She said the name is budget blackout. The tag said budget bo, and was $5.99 a yard. She said they use it to line heavy drapes to block light. As soon as i have the projector completed I will be heading back to make my screen. Looks like it would make a nice screen surface.

would this be good blackout cloth?
and would the large size ones have seems in them?

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.gsp...109684%3A110572


thx all
payne

Haven't tried it, looks different than mine. If you decide to get it let us know. It comes in large sizes.

thx;
I see they have a 54"x80" in stores
i'll try at have a look at it,then i might order a larger peice.

; )

The kind we use is smooth and plastic on one side and looks like canvas on the other. We use the smooth side.

thx

hehe
I just wrote a letter to roc-lon asking them which grade
of roc-lon blackout cloth wallmart has.


here is the rain no stain by loc-lon found at joann.com(as earlier stated
by msk1hc)
http://www.roc-lon.com/rocmill_uncoat_products.htm

but i though a projection screen would be better with the coated blackout
cloth?
http://www.roc-lon.com/rocmill_coated_products.htm

thx

I belive JoAnn has the 'budget blackout', that's what I see about town.

Has anyone tried joining 2 pieces of blackout cloth together? If so, what did you use on the seem? Is the seem real noticable?

I also would like to know the best way to join the cloth together.Also I think I might experiment with painting the cloth with the silver rustoleum paint .Just curious I'll post some pics as soon as I get my project up and running.

I think you'd be better off painting a piece of 4x8 masonite. It's cheaper too.

If you're having trouble finding "blackout cloth" as I know some of our international customers have; it's also called "three pass acrylic backed cotton twill."

here's a link to the google search :
Link

Now thats a mouth full.

Brain, what would happen if you were to drape a material that allows some light to transmit through, over a mirror? I'm wondering how much light would actually reflect back through the fabric? Would it afford any more brightness, clarity? I have a 6' mirror lying around, see what do you reckon?

Anytime light passes through a cloth it gets diffused which makes the picture fuzzy. I don't think that idea will work too well.

While it should make the picture a little fuzzier, assuming the mirror is jamed right next to the sheet, I wonder if the light diffusion would help the screen door effect without making the image too fuzzy...

Hmm...yeah I knew it was a long shot

Lucky, I found a piece of blackout cloth in my girlfriend's airing cupboard, measuring 5' 8" by 7' 8", marked 'blackout lining' in this case.

I might try the silver-on-masonite approach, and maybe stretch a piece of this cloth over the back, make a double-sided screen, hangable on both sides. Gotta keep my thumbs from twitching til my 1515 arrives

Actually check out this thread i did.. you would be surprised to see what happens

Joe

http://groups.msn.com/diyprojectiontv/gene...465198222560558

Interesting pics joe...

This is sort of the theory I was touching on. Nice research

Brain, I've just finished my frame, and I'm having doubts. Which side is the optimum one for projection - the side that feels like suede, with the seams and curtain loops on that side, or the other? Is one much better than the other or is there not a huge difference? Help!

I'm going to be looking into diff screen alternatives for people and on a budget that hopefully will surpass the blackout cloth and yield actual screen gain which will increase brightness as well as contrast.

This gets me thinking that peoples pics of their results will differ also because of different screen material used. There are several different blackout cloths, and i'm not even sure i have the right one

Joe

Mine has a woven canvas side, and a suede-like side. I'm hoping it doesn't make too much of a difference if I have it the wrong way round

I may just frame the back as well to cover my bad stapling work, and then I can try both sides. Either that or try the aluminium rustoleum on the other side? It seems sensible rather than craft a second screen for testing screen types.

Mine you can actually see vert. lines in it not very noticable but this is the texture.

Brain can you take a Macro pic of the Edge of your screen with the flash to get a food pic of your blackout cloth?

Thanks, Joe

You want the canvas side... (at least, I hope, since this is the side I used on my screen... )

Eye, I'm not sure what material you have. Doesn't sound much like the cloth I have. At any rate you want the smoothest side. Same for you flyboy.

Hmmm, I have 'Budget Blackout' from JoAnn... One side is slightly textured like suede, the other side is smooth like canvas (Just like eyebath's...). So you're saying the BO cloth you got from JoAnn is different?

Well Eyebath is UK, but if you got the budget blackout it should have a canvas side and a smooth vinyl side. The vinyl side should be very flat unlike suede which is kind of fluffy. The flat side will give you the sharpest pisture.

Hmmm, if we're agreed on the canvas side, than the other side should be the same, I don't really think I could call it vinyl, it is fluffy like suede... wierd...

We can exchange samples.

Sure, I can send you a piece if you'd like. (Goodness knows I've got enough scrap lying around... )

Actually I'm incredibly satisfied with my screen, I did place a scrap of cloth with the 'suede' side out on my screen, and I couldn't tell a difference...

Then we're straight

That's a relief flyboy, that you didn't notice a difference - 'cos I put the suede side front!

Damnit! :angry: lol

Brain I mistook what you meant by 'smooth' - you meant the side with the least texture to it right? I thought you meant the side that was the softest to the touch, which in this case is the suede side. It is a very light grey, or rather more like a muted white.

I tried an old slide projector with 150W lamp on it though, and the contrast was luscious, the whites were v. bright - brain you might like this stuff, I'm dying to see how it compares to OKflyboys sample. Let me know what you find

My local JoAnn's wanted about $6 a yard for the budget blackout. I now understand why some of you call the one side (the vinyl side) suede. That term is accurate, but does bring up thoughts of fuzzy materials. Perhaps micro-suede best describes the soft finish.

Anyway, the point is, I've not found anything wide enough to make a decent 4.3 screen with, so if you need wider materials, try this:

http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?View...sort=3&rows=100

It seems to be similar material, except the backside is felt, not canvas.

Damn..

I'm noticing wrinkles reappearing on my screen already. Has anyone else found this with blackout on a frame? It seems to have settled into it's stretched state.

I have over 100 pins and staples stretching it out, I don't know why this has happened :angry:

Mine worked out pretty well.

http://www.lumenlab.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=645

how about trying to use a steamer for clothes?

Give the wrinkles some time, but also it may have streched on you. Give it another streching.

Daizen reccommends to use a series of bungee elastic cords to keep continuous tension on their screen materials....but who wants to install grommets every 10 inches?

Has anyone tried the screen material I posted above?

i joined two pieces of blackout together with duct tape. Don't recommend the duct tape because it made unbelievable wrinkles in the screen. The line in the middle though was actually hard to see if the wrinkles weren't there.

Most JoAnn's have drapery linings (aka: budget blackout cloth) on sale (30% off) until June the 5th. That makes it $4.01 a yard.

Maybe someone could provide us with the SKU# from the bolt of fabric (blackout cloth, drapery lining, etc.)? Maybe that way it will help clear up any confusion in regards to what fabric is what - you could match it up to the bolt in the store to be sure you had the right one.

The Joann's black out lining is sku 2117232. This fabric is only available in a 54" width.

For any UK readers, I have found this screen on ebay, anybody with comments or views pls.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...me=STRK:MEWA:IT