[Bill Baker]

 I am curious if anyone has built a DIY screen for their projector. I have been doing a bit of research and found some projector screen paint that appears to be of high quality.

 HT is not top priority on my list and I simply want a "decent" image. It will be a large image as well so typical screens are out of the question. I am looking at a minimum of 150" 16X9.

 So, anyone using any type of custom screen paint? Basic laytex wall paint?

 Thanks in advance for your opinions.

[Waynegro]

Lots of info and tips on avscience.  Members post recipes for different homebrewed paint mixes that can be used on sheetrock, etc.  I was considering paint, but the cost of a decent screen is pretty reasonable. 

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=110

[Papajin]

The Do-Able and Laminate DIY screens seem to have the most support as of right now if that helps any.  Supposedly they can give some of the more expensive screens a run for their money.

[Bob in St. Louis]

Bill, have you found anything yet?
If not, what's your price range?

Bob

[PaulHilgeman]

I followed one of the recipes over there and sprayed it on BO Cloth stretched on a frame.  It has quite a bit of gain and light rejection.  It is not real critical to me, I just wanted decent black levels with the wife mandataed low lighting levels in the room.  Overall, the screen cost around $100 and worked nice, the black levels with lights on are very good, for the price compared to a firehawk, which I have seen several times, and just casual viewing, I would say "well worth it".

-Paul

[ctviggen]

I am curious if anyone has built a DIY screen for their projector. I have been doing a bit of research and found some projector screen paint that appears to be of high quality.

 HT is not top priority on my list and I simply want a "decent" image. It will be a large image as well so typical screens are out of the question. I am looking at a minimum of 150" 16X9.

 So, anyone using any type of custom screen paint? Basic laytex wall paint?

 Thanks in advance for your opinions.

150 inches?  What kind of projector are you using?  That's a lot of light output, even for high power screens.

[Bob in St. Louis]

What kind of projector are you using? 

In addition to that question Bob, I'm curious to know his throw distance as well.

Bob

[BobC]

I built my own screen and have been very happy with it.  Works great with my entry level projector (Sanyp PLV-Z2).  And hey, for $150 total cost you can't go wrong.  Please see my gallery.  I recently sent the paint recipe (not really mine as I found it on avsforum.com a few years ago) to another AC member.  Here's the PM:


I think it looks great.  I'm sure it's not as good as a real screen, but hey I built and painted my screen for $150 vs buying a screen for $1000 to $1500...seems like a good risk to take.  I've been happy.

Said another way...every time I've had more money I've chosen to spend it on other things (new preamp, new DVD player, etc) over a real screen.  More bang for the buck.

Eventually when I replace my Sanyo PLV Z2 projector I'll entertain a new screen.  I found the paint recipe from posts on avsforum.com by other Z2 users.  So I guess you could infer that this recipe works best with LCD projectors like the Z2.


Here is what I used....

Painted on a drywall sheet cut to 84" diagonal on a 16:9 aspect ratio.
Mounted drywall on a wood frame.
Primed drywall with Kilz primer.

Base Coat:
4/5 Silver Metalic (Home Depot #748) +
1/5 Ultra Pure White.

Top Coat:
33% Faux Glaze (Home Depot #743) ...actually used 1 cup
32% Clear Flat Base (Wal Mart Color Place #5053)....actually used 1 cup
20% "Misty Evening" (Glidden Evermore at Home Depot)....actually used 2/3 cup
15% Silver Metalic (Home Depot #748)....actually used 1/2 cup

In order to closely match the % I had to convert everything to cups and make the top coat in batches.

I think I probably put on 3 or 4 coats with light sanding in between.

Once done I trimmed the screen with wood trim painted flat black.  Don't use gloss because it'll reflect light.

So that's what I did and I'm happy.  From looking at my notes, others have claimed success with other more simple formulas:

Alternate1: Just use 100% Misty Evening over the base coat.  Easy, but wouldn't have the silver and glaze which others liked to make the colors pop.

Alternate2: Base of 2/3 Silver Metalic + 1/3 Ultra Pure White.  Top Coats of 1/4 Silver Metalic and 3/4 Ultra Pure White or Misty Evening.

No guarantees, but I hope this helps.  I like my screen very much for the $150 it cost me.  Let me know if you go forward and what you think.  Like I said, it's probably not as good as a real screen, but with my entry level projector it works just fine for me.  If you have a big time Runco then I think I'd spring for a real screen and get a professional to help you pair them.

Cheers!    


Hope this helps someone!  

[Bob in St. Louis]

I've thought about the painted 'recipes' along with the "Goo" brand paint on stuff. I'm pretty happy with my screen, but will upgrade someday to Da-Lite bulk screen material over my frame.
I build my frame in the "torsion panel" method, basically like a hollow core door. It's heavy but for it's size, it's not too bad. 10 feet wide by 5.5 feet high, gives you about 140" diag 16:9 and hinges at the top to gain access to storage behind. It's painted with a high gloss white: WHITE, as white as white can be, not off-white. No special recipe, just something highgloss.
Then I got a sheer drapery material from a fabric store, slightly silky giving a bit of gain. The only material they had that didn't contain seams was made specifically for draperies. The material was $95.
My throw distance is 18' with the lens exactly at the center of the screen.
My projector is an uncalibrated Sanyo PLV-Z2. If I remember correctly, it's lumen rating was pretty low, but projector manufacturers tend to give exaggerated numbers, not the kind of numbers you'd see in an ambient light controlled room.
Personally, looking at screen shots on the internet of front projection units is kinda silly, it doesn't give much real information. But I'm very happy with the quality of my picture.

Ok, fine. Here's my screen shot. (It was done a while back as a poke in the ribs to lonewolf holding the beer!) 
By the way, for "perspective sake", the array of Hawthornes is about 6-7 feet away from the screen, and I'm 6'1" tall.



Bob

[klh]

I did a DIY screen using Wilsonart Designer White vertical grade laminate (110" diag and 1.24 gain) that's been discussed heavily in the DIY screen section of AVS. I also built a frame and covered it with black velveteen fabric. Total cost was $150. I'm pretty happy with it, but I have a couple issues. One: the laminate hasn't stayed flat against the wall... so you really need to put it on some sort of backing to keep it flat. Two: my PJ is the JVC RS1...  it's centrally located on the back wall (about 2 feet above and 1 foot behind my head) and it is casting about 650 lumens at the screen (when optimized for movies). That's great, excpet for the screen hot spots a bit. This material seems to only do it with bright PJs that aren't ceiling mounted. If you ceiling mount, the hotspotting shouldn't be an issue, and then you have a wonderfullly durable screen that can literally be scrubbed with all your might. If you have young kids, I would strongly consider using this for your screen. It's also much easier to transport than a painted wall if you move .

[samplesj]

Wow, 150" is really big without some sort of gain.

You are looking at least 10000 sq inches or > 66 sq ft.  Just to get 13 foot lamberts you are looking at > 860 lumens.  And like others have posted real world lumen measurements are much less than mfr docs (especially when calibrated and the bulb ages some).  A 159" screen is going to need 1000 lumens.  I suspect it will be hard to find a DIY reciepe that gives enough gain and doesn't hotspot for such a large image.

Just for perspective, remember that not all commercial screens cost the same.  While you could certainly spend 1-1.5k like BobC quoted (heck you could spend more for a silverstar), you can also spend a less.  A Dalite model C highpower 159" diagonal 16x9 is going to be $750 with some shopping around.  If you are using a smaller screen then a model B would be even cheaper.

[Bill Baker]

Hey guys, thanks for all the comments. The projector is far from a high quality theater unit but does a decent job for what it will be used for. I am not going to be using it for HT auditions, more for a family night of watching movies and X-Box. The little ones get a kick out of watching Finding Nemo on the big screen.

 After getting things hooked up, I ended up with about 122" diag. 16:9. Still a bit big for what is more of a media projector but not too bad for it's intended use. Going 150" was simply too much for such an inexpensive unit. I did not do exact measurements but I am looking at a throw distance of about 15 feet.

 I still have some looking around to do for screens but I will most likely end up with making one from screen fabric and even downsizing to about 115" for a better picture. I just have to find the right gain as the projector doesn't like a lot of light. I also haven't ceiling mounted it yet. It is currently on an audio rack about a foot above my head.

 I just can't see spending a lot on this setup when I am not much into the HT scene. Maybe someday. Right now I need to focus energy and money on getting the room sounding good. For now, this makes for a fun night with the family and will also be good for the Sunday football games
The projector was an afterthought to tie us over. The 52" Hitachi widescreen is coming home to the family room.

[Bob in St. Louis]

Hey Bill,
Downsizing from 122" to 115" would be easy enough by adding a flat black border around the screen. The black border not only helps to "frame" the picture, it also gives an illusion of better black levels. Kind of a perception thing, hard to explain.
To downsize, simply turn the ring on the lens and shrink it to your liking. Then mark the corners of the picture on the screen with masking tape for blacking out the edges.

Bob - Hopefully Helpful