What is bare minimum to start with for say flea markets, and festivals?

On Don's DVD and lecture I thought he mentioned that some of the weekend warriors don't need a joint as ellaborate as Don's or the ones I've seen here (very nice btw).

And I understand completely, that no flash no cash, but what is bare minimum to start with? I was figuring to evolve the joint to Don's level over time...

I was thinking along the lines of:

* A keyboard x-stand with a board on top and close up pad.
* Some sort of sign in front of the stand.

what do you think?

You would be much better off with a fold up table.They all seem to be made these days out of heavy plastic.Get a 4 foot one,about $30.00 at Lowes,Wal Mart etc.

The keyboard X-stand is too unstable.Kids will be leaning on it all day.The other reason is you need no less than 4 foot long so you have room for a tip to stand.

At big state fairs we used a full 4X8 sheet of Plywood.You can get a big tip in front of 8 foot.

Any smaller and your front will be full with only 3 people or so.

Hope this helped,
Don

Thanks Don, that is definitley an eye opener....nothing like hearing it from the man himself.

Funny, as I was practicing the pitch in my living room, my daughter kept leaning on the x-stand setup. It was back in my mind that this thing is not stable enough. Thanks for pointing that out.

But the big tip is in realizing the size of the tip that the table would support. Again thanks, I didn't even think about this at all.

So, I'll go check out some fold up tables as you recomended.

How should I dress it up to give it that flash needed and practical for outside?

I also have a T stand used to hold my lights for DJ events. I was thinking about using that to put a backdrop and/or banner on it.

Or should I just invest in the time in building a basic joint as talked about in you video?

I agree that a 4-foot table is about the minimum practical size. You can get really good ones at Sam's Club, Costco, etc., that have a steel frame and a very durable hard plastic top, but are still light enought to handle easily. I've been using the same one for the past three seasons and it still looks almost brand new. Don is right, the kids will hang onto or lean on the table for dear life, so get something solid! If size is an issue in transporting it, the same 4-foot table comes in a fold-up style that is almost as sturdy and folds down to 2-feet square.

Just make sure the table is high enough that you don't have to bend over to demo, otherwise your back will let you know about it in short order. For flash, you can make a 3-foot long banner from 3 pieces of 50-lb. card stock using Print Shop Deluxe, and then get it laminated at Staples with a 1" border. Either lay it on your table or hang it over the front edge with some duct tape, and you're in business. Later on, you can get a 2' x 8" vinyl banner for about $100 -- it's not cheap but is a very good investment that should pay for itself pretty quickly. You can also get a hank of multi-colored plastic pennant line from any party store for about $15, and dress up the joint with that. Run it down your tent legs and tent guy lines (this also helps to prevent people from tripping over the guy lines and stakes). I'm sure other folks will chime in with other ideas, too.

If you are outside, a tent is almost a necessity for sun and wind control, in my experience. On a hot day, you definitely want to be in the shade! Check out your local sporting goods stores for an 8' square straight-legged tent with a UV-resistant top (has a reflective inner lining). You should be able to pick one up on sale for $100-125; I got a "Quest" brand tent from Dick's Sporting Goods that has held up very well. And get a set of heavy-duty metal tent stakes and a claw hammer to stake that tent -- you don't want to know what a blowdown looks like! SETH

http://www.kodakgallery.com/BrowsePhotos......87587503

WOW !

I wish I could take the credit. I based it on info from your DVD and postings n this site. A sign making buddy handled the rest. If anyone is interested I'll hook you up with him. He works out of his house in L.A. to keep costs down. he can duplicate and ship to you.

Rick

That is a very nice joint!

Fitz

Thanks Fitz