here is the bender I use to make my boxes, and the how I make them. you can use it to bend simple flat style, or the slope-front style as illustrated. the whole thing is made from, and uses, junk and recycle. you can waddle off to the hardware/metal shop and pay for the parts, or do your shopping on the footpath on the way during council clean-up. get it where you find it. if you have more than just a power drill, a hacksaw and a power jigsaw, look elsewhere, this isn't for you.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img546/148/tx9m.jpg)
the very first step is cardboard. get the measures of a box you think you might like to make as a starting point. fold as many cardboard mock-ups as you like, the more the better. scale the measures up and down, change the proportions, get it so you think it looks right. make cardboard templates of the box profile and mark up where the parts will go; this will help with odd angles.
now cut/hack/gouge holes and fit the parts in your mock-up; make sure they fit. re/arrange them as you like, and make sure they fit. if you are using a sub-panel, you'll lose a lot of space straight off, so make sure everything fits. use the parts you are building with, not just something close, and I can't stress enough, make sure they fit. everything, including the circuit board WITH its components and standoffs, the battery, jacks and the footswitch, and all at the same time. if you're bending the box with 'returns', make sure the footswitch can be fitted into its hole without fouling the return. same goes for pots with long shafts on sub-panels.
as Mrs. Beetson once said "first you must your steel". I showed a bit to a man who knew once, and he said "0.9mm zinc anneal". this is about what to aim for, and you can best get it from (the u-shaped cover of) a mini-tower pc case of the 386/486/pentium era. go thinner or thicker, whatever you've got. (there used to be places that sold junked computer parts by weight: I don't know if they still exist.) cut the long sides from the top part. the right-angle flange from the back sides can be very handy, so cut it about 10~15mm in from the back.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img577/2661/ld3h.jpg)
cut yr slabs for bending. I always use felt tip pen to mark a wide line near, then measure and scribe a line through to the metal, leaving a line of contrast. cut close to the line, then clean up the edge with a file, taking the metal right to your scribed line, and sand to 400 grit on a bit of thick plate glass to ensure straight, to remove all file marks and burrs along the edge. this is now your reference edge, use it and a set square for your next couple of measures/scribes/cuts/sands, and you should end up with a decently square and clean rectangle of steel. cut at least three at a time, it's messy and time consuming.
now sit down with your slab, your box measures and a set square. pick a reference edge and felt tip/scribe all your bend lines to the metal from that edge. if this is your first attempt, expect to wreck it, so don't bother with marking or drilling holes. otherwise, you can mark/punch hole positions and at least drill pilot-holes before bending.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img577/407/lh0a.jpg)
the bender. you will need:
a stable work surface (with a lipped top) - something you can lever against, a heavy bench is good, a black&decker workmate is the worst choice possible.
a brake - any straight bit of steel. I use some "dexion" racking/shelving angle (60mm x 40), you can buy some angle-iron from the steel angle place. hammer the edge as straight as you can get it against your chosen anvil, clean-up the edge w/ file and sand smooth/shiny.
a brake mount - I used plywood (200mm x 280), with the angle mounted flush to the front edge, backed by a length of 40x40 pine, with long wood screws through from under, and another bit square-to for bracing. the mount is fixed to your work surface with long bolts through to braces under (more dexion). you'll be levering against this, you want it well braced and rigid.
a work clamp - another block of wood (35mm x 60) and some bessy- or g-clamps. the dowels shown locate the work clamp and prevent it hitting the floor ever time you loose the clamps. the clamps clamp against the back of the brake backing block.
persuaders - auto panel beaters call them hammers, mallets, dollies, flippers, blocks. I use a small ball-peen hammer, a large rubber mallet, blocks of aluminium 150x50x90 as an anvil/straight edge/dead weight and 70x40x30 and a dolly/flipper, and blocks of wood as blocks of wood.
the bend
(http://imageshack.us/a/img829/5420/lson.jpg)
the start - put your slab of marked-up steel in the clamp and align the scribed bend line with the edge of the brake. this is where the squareness of your finished box starts, accuracy counts. align the top of the clamp block with the brake edge; this is where the goodness of your bend starts. tighten the g-clamps.
it is important to have as much measures and scribble on your slab of metal as possible. different colours too. I was caught on the hop, and had nothing prepared, but the finished pics of one I did earlier show what I mean.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img189/5545/7lse.jpg)
apply some wood - use a bock of wood (you will develop a favourite) which is at least as wide as the piece you are bending as a dead weight. hold it flat against the metal with the bottom edge against the clamp block, and apply some slight bending force to the top. you want to transfer this mass/pressure to the bend by giving a whack to the lower with the rubber mallet. if the metal twangs or slaps, you're not quite holding the wood right. you'll know it's right when you feel it. you want the metal to bend right the way across in one, not bend the left then the right: you'll end up with bulges. only bend 20~30 degree here.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img6/8003/o34o.jpg)
apply some metal - get your even deader weight metal block. bending steel against aluminium means the Al will end up dinged, but what can I do? use steel if you have it. hold it flat against the metal like with the wood, and down against the clamp block. apply bending pressure at the block-top again, and again whack with your mallet low, letting the mass of the metal block do all the work. bend as far as you're going here.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img43/7223/ex74.jpg)
tap it up - now you can use your smaller weights to flatten/correct/tidy the bend right the way across, against the edge of your brake. follow with the hammer if needed, or to release some stress. the epoxy paint will be dinged, flaking and lifted by now, but you'd expect that.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img841/4504/i81q.jpg)
check yr bend - release the clamps and the clamp block, take out the slab and check your work. now is the time to put it on the anvil and use the flipper/small block to flatten the faces and square-up the bend, or check yr bend angle against your template. a good bend will show a nice straight line with a constant radius of curve and no bulges or flat spots.
considering I didn't tighten anything properly, this demo bend worked out quite well. it has no marked lines, so the accuracy of the bend is doubtful at best.
if you are doing a box with returns, bend the return first, then the upright face. when you turn the slab to do the opposite end, you will discover the limitations of this rig, ie the box top-panel has to be at least as long as your brake-edge to workbench under-edge. or mount the brake-mount on risers.
if you are doing the complex slope-front, leave that middle bend last. you'll have to bend that pretty much by hand with wood blocks and with the panel clamped across an aluminium channel or similar for your brake. creativity is needed here, as will be an anvil clean-up and your templates.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img138/9110/a3nk.jpg)
afterwards, measure all dimensions, compare/check how far your bend lines have moved, how your dimensions have changed and how good your bends turned out. flatten your flat faces with yr dolly/flipper. your marked lines will all move with bending, you'll need to account for this on your next bend. using your pane of glass as a flat reference, rest your bent metal on it, see if it sits flat. tip it on its side, see if it is square/true. use twisting/bashing to get the best flatnesses you can. now evaluate yr work, can I use this for a pedal?
but what about the baseplate and side panels? well, the baseplate is fairly easy, just measure and cut/file/sand a rectangle of steel to fit.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img839/599/g9gx.jpg)
the side panels - did I mention all the woodwork needed earlier? use whatever clean, knot-free wood you have, jarrah, tassie oak, the old lounge, about 10~15mm thick, and mark the outline of the bent case on it. then route/circular saw to a bit more than half-depth around that line, then file/chisel/sand so the wooden cheeks fit inside the metal sleeve as it were, and provide support all the way around.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img32/2294/cz77.jpg)
this u-shaped bend is a good example. shape to the metal/sand/finish your woods, then you can screw through the metal into the ledge, providing a box rigid enough for fuzz pedal work. I use plastic-thread screws from video cassettes; they are small headed and black, so they disappear easily.
I'm about to do a set of cheeks, I can add a how to do wood if requested. and a how to cover this mess, as well.
GREAT write-up, Duck_Arse, and please do continue! I'd be interested in how you approach wooden enclosures on a budget!
I've bent mental with a home-made 'break' like this for a long time, but have never tried to make my own boxes like this. Think I might give it a try now! An authentic-looking BMP is within reach using this method, for sure! :icon_lol:
Could you post a pic of a finished one of that style, so we can see how you dealt with going from the light Al to wood?
Thanks.
thanks, but do you really want me typing more? what do you mean by "light Al to wood?"
Nice tutorial duck_arse, I am wanting to make a chassis for an amp design in the new year, this is just the thing I was looking for. :icon_smile:
Awesome post, thanks!
Quote from: duck_arse on December 24, 2013, 09:52:22 AM
thanks, but do you really want me typing more? what do you mean by "light Al to wood?"
Just a pic of one fully assembled, if you have one. Might be cool to see the final product. Al. to wood, just meant that you're finishing off with wooden sides.
Man this is so great! Thanks again for the write up!!!! :icon_smile:
duck_arse for King! Long Live duck_arse!
Really cool methods and reuse of materials duck! Thanks for the write up!
I love those recessed push button switches! I've been designing something to recess my pots.
Wear Gloves!!
Yes, I handle fresh-cut steel without gloves. Sometimes I don't bleed all over the shop. But a cut steel edge can slice to the bone.
In the US, Home Depot has large light steel:
MD Building Products 1 ft. x 1 ft. 16-Gauge Steel Weldable Sheet
Model # 56038 $10.98
0.06 in (about 1.5mm)
Master Flow 24 in. x 36 in. Galvanized Steel Flat Sheet
Model # GFS24X361P $9.34 / each
0.012 in (about 0.3mm)
Both tend to be in stock. You may need a clerk to find it for you.
The 0.06" (1.5mm) will be wicked-hard to bend with improvised brake.
The 0.012" (0.3mm) is pretty flimsy. Cuts easy, bends easy. Probably not good for a box more than a few inches wide, or a box you will STOMP.
The idea to cut-up a 486 PC is excellent. A PC case needs no strength but adequate stiffness. They use a low-low-cost steel because thickness adds stiffness. And they buy it the softest possible hardness so their punches don't wear out. This is pretty much what you want.
Thickness (T) can go by panel width (W). If the W/T ratio is 10 the part will be SUPER strong. Truck frame. W/T of 1,000 is whippy, car hood without the inside stiffeners. W/T of 100 to 200 is a place to start for low-load panels without internal bracing. The Duck's 0.9mm stuff could go 90mm to 180mm, 3.5" to 7" wide panel. (When used in a PC as a 16" 400mm panel there's often added stiffening.)
Then H-D's thin-stuff can go 2 or 3 inches, the 0.06" stuff is good for 6 or 12 inches. You of course "can" make a small box with thick metal, but it is more cost and particularly more WORK, especially to get tight bends on a ShopMate.
I just had a brain-burp. Find a car-geek. Get some burned heads from a Chevy V-8. And some long bolts with nuts. Clamp the heads together, slack, insert sheet, align, tighten, align, tighten. You can beat that thing with the Ford BFH (20 pound sledge) and it won't cry. (Iron Chevy heads are a glut on the local market, because it is cheaper to buy new ones than refurbish the old ones. If your area is different, find any two same-pattern heads in *iron*. Alloy won't take a good beating. Post-1994 Hondas are right out.)
geeze, dumb luck, look where it got me. thanks people, you are too kind.
yes to gloves, but "make sure they fit". I've got to stop saying that. I wear suede and canves gardening gloves, and anything that keeps Al dust off your fingers has to be good.
if you can find pc cases that are rivitted instead of spot welded, you can drill all the rivets out, and it's fun to hammer out the remain of the mandrill with a centre punch, and your pile of junk shaped steel is much smaller and easier to hide in the garage.
the reason I say make sure etc is because of those bloody push buttons. they are huge space takers. them and 3 piece sub-panels. gahh.
I haven't quite gotten to a "complete" box on this bender just yet, but I'll be doing a set of wood panels in the next week or so, so I'll do a write-up on the router-bench-guide thing as well. mmmmm, photos of wood ...... there are some wood cheek examples of mine in the photos pages, if you're too impatient.
look closely at your pc cover while you plan your cuts. as someone once said
Quotethe right-angle flange from the back sides can be very handy, so cut it about 10~15mm in from the back.
and who are we to disagree? if your cover has a narrow flange along the back edge, I'd have that for a square and true bend every day, good enough for where you need it. and does it have a shallow-lipped front edge? can you think of a way to use this as a battery hatch? many manufacturers have used a lip-and-screw cover. plan your other uses before you chop your slabs, you'll get better mileage.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img42/5434/gsnp.jpg)
(http://imageshack.us/a/img69/9347/y8re.jpg)
there is more stuff there. the good people at the Marantz company used to produce equipment with champagne anodised panels. so, you've pulled the knobs (very nice), pots and switches, cut up and bent the baseplate, now have a look at the front panel. the extrusion is again square enough, and thick enough for 3mm tapping. as shown in my pink orange detail (part 2), you can have your knobs match your internal brackets. now that's classy. and I've got a harman/kardon amp inside ......
(http://imageshack.us/a/img822/8144/s47v.jpg)
showing from left to right - maple (I think) from a lounge, (weathered blond) jarrah from somewhere, pink jarrah from the council sports shed and a fence paling.
you may find you have a nice plank of wood 22mm thick, but you only need it 12mm for your cheeks. so, if you're like me, you spend days rigging circular saw jigs so you can cut along its length to a somewhat constant thinner thickness, and you end up with a thinner plank and a thinner still plank, which would appear useless. but if you have a box you want to wood-up, a u-over/u-under style box with some unsightly rivet heads and overhanging lips, cut the thinner slice to shape, maybe drill some jack holes, dress/sand, oil/polish, and now you've got some dress panels. you get more wood.
there are some among us, Kipper, who have been heard making disparaging comments about australian timbers, but I won't name them here. not only are our hardwoods some of the hardest known, but, as shown in the inset above, so are our grubs. I cleaned out the borer hole in that middle front piece, and it is shown with a 7.0mm drill poked through. can't be an easy life eating jarrah .....(http://imageshack.us/a/img5/2937/gfix.jpg)
those of you who've thrown out your video cassettes already, skip this part. for the rest, look at the stuff inside. you get - the metal leaf spring, just what you need to poke into clipped plastic cases as you take them apart - plastic pillars, what can't you do with them? - a split spring-steel bush thing - have you ever needed to bush a knob, or extend a pot shaft? - a solid-brass bushing, looks like another standoff, and will match the plastic pillar - some hair springs, suspension for your wighat - the front door, flat black plastic strip, with the bonus of 2 three way corner pieces, good for something.
and of course, the screws. to me, these seem to be the exact thing for holding wooden cheeks: the diameter seems right; the coarse plastic thread is a boon; they are not only black, but have an easy to hide pan head; the quality seems many times better than anything comparable in the hardware shop. I did some hardwood head-snapping tests and only managed to break one screw. pilot holes are easy to drill, right?
if we have any engineering adults about who could do a BOTE* force/stress analysis for the screws and wood as used here, and could tell me if adequate or needing upgrade, I would be very grateful. and any engineering pointers for a pinning method/best placement for the part 1 type enclosures would help me immensely.*back of the envelope. a drink coaster/napkin will serve the purpose, but not the acronym.the next time you are near the hardware store/shop, go inside,
looking for nothing. walk up and down all the aisles, look at
everything, pick stuff up, poke around shelves, fiddle with things you can't identify, heft stuff for weight, allow no-one to help you. it's surprising the way things suddenly seem perfect for something they weren't meant to do.
as prr noted, wear gloves doing things w/ metal. anyone who's ever worked on the innards of a pc knows that EVERY internal cut/punched surface of the case will have one razor edge. there are no exceptions here, you can even cut yourself on the covers of cd/floppy drives.
and when you've finished the working session, and you are leaving the work area, get into the habit of dropping the riggers/work/gardening gloves
you've just taken off right on top of whatever it is in the middle of your work bench. then when you come back the next day, you can't even make a start until you have picked up the gloves, and you may as well put them on while you're holding them. the more often you wear the gloves, the less reasons you'll find for taking them off.
that's another 2 cents well spent. and yes, part 2 will follow, as you would expect. any comments/questions/pms/corrections/engineering/money happily accepted. receipts issued on request.
really cool , thank you for sharing all this , it must have taken a little bit . thanks !!
Quotethe next time you are near the hardware store/shop, go inside, looking for nothing. walk up and down all the aisles, look at everything, pick stuff up, poke around shelves, fiddle with things you can't identify, heft stuff for weight, allow no-one to help you. it's surprising the way things suddenly seem perfect for something they weren't meant to do.
I love this advice.
Thanks for the ideas D.A.
Quote from: PRR on December 25, 2013, 01:43:15 AM
Wear Gloves!!
Yes, I handle fresh-cut steel without gloves. Sometimes I don't bleed all over the shop. But a cut steel edge can slice to the bone.
Yes, I have even seen Kevlar safety gloves sliced through by steel sheet.
Quote from: Ice-9 on December 28, 2013, 07:44:11 PM
Yes, I have even seen Kevlar safety gloves sliced through by steel sheet.
Ay caramba!
I would also use eye protection
bend yr own 2 - different bender, different boxes - more bending
I was asked recently if the left pictured box could be bent with the junk brake bender. I said no, problems with accuracy and repeatability (a worthy opponent). I am an idiot; not only can I bend these, I have been bending them, only in a different form. and I've shown you the bender, and you didn't pick-up on it, either.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img839/7893/yqms.jpg)
the "tuva" and the pink squeezer (shown above, right) are single u-shaped bends with wooden side-cheeks. they have a recessed angle bracket at each end under, (detail, above) which attaches the baseplate, flush as you like in the groove shown. the cheek-holding screws passing through the panel also pass through these brackets, as do the jacks, pulling the whole thing together with a minimum of fixings. those of you with a dremel or similar tool will have no problems with cutting the recesses needed to flush fit the brackets with the woods.
there is nothing to stop you from turning the bend 90 degrees, for either side-entry or wood-mounting jacks, and you can wood-mount/side-entry at the same time if you so desire, no rotation needed. you can even use a perspex light-plate bottom thing, or invert the whole mess, perspex now on top, and bang in some swirly leds for a "freakout vortex" type affair.
the u-over/u-under style is simply a u-bend bent on a separate jig and sized to fit inside another u-bend. you don't need any wood, but you will need some brackets or Aluminium bars to drill/tap/rivet, and hold the whole mess from flying apart. we'll see in part four.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img21/9161/7kc5.jpg)
as in part one, start with cardboard mock-ups. I make an open-bottomed box of the size, and then cut an aperture where the pots/switches will go. cut some squares larger than the new hole, and put your positioning holes in the loose squares to swap in/out quickly. this is where you make sure everything fits. allow for the wood thickness. and battery. with a card to blank the hole, the mt box makes a good all-in-one-spot thing for the panel parts while building.
cardboard templates are a must if you intend to wedge, as I will for this demo bend. take note of the way the angle shifts parts clearances relative to the parts on the upright panels. draw it all on your template to check it all fits.
mark everything with dimensions as you go, then when you have decided, collect them all onto one sheet of drawings. make all your north-south top-panel measures from the panel-middle reference, and your jack measures from that panel-end. this is a good way to beat the vagaries of the bends themselves.
if you are wedging your bend, offset the panel-middle mark, simple as that.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img827/9894/v3la.jpg)
mark up your blank plank. find and scribe the middle of the plank, on both sides. mark your hole centres on the inside of your panel, don't forget to reverse your drawing, and nothing but the panel middle on what will be the outside.
the pale green lines on the plank shown were the straight/square reference edges when cutting, they now jamb against yr straight edge while you set-square yr scribings. the red line is the panel middle, but the magenta line is the offset reference for all our top measures because we are wedging this bend.
shown at right is a bit of video cassette front-flap, with a few measured holes drilled. this slides along the edge as shown for those repetitious east-west scribings that so vex us. it could have been more robust if I'd used the marantz front panel, and could have been used for pot-markings if I'd thought to make it longer. you don't need to make that mistake. mark the holes with their distance-to-edge.
the plank shown has a blizzard of markings, all meaningless because I don't have anything in mind for this bend, yet. they are illustrative only. with this in mind, I have only drilled pilots for the thru-panel screws and the jacks, as they are the most difficult. in your case, drill all your pilot holes; full-size holes may produce some unwanted problems in the finished bend.
the u-bender is much simpler than the junk brake, to build and use well, and has better repeatability. you can bend wide or narrow of one size, toe-to-jax on the same jig, but there is no real reason not to make 3 or 4 jigs. this bender will do wedges as easily, simply by offsetting your panel-middle mark towards the toe. you can then correct yr angles using your cardboard templates.
I very strongly recommend you cut/square/measure/mark 3 or 4 planks at a time. it takes me forever to do the cutting, but the bends take literally 5 minutes. after all the setup time, you'll be left standing wondering what to do next if you only do one bend.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img89/8084/vzmf.jpg)
the bender as shown is just a block of wood 90mm x 45mm. the bending edges, which we will refer to as jaws from here on in, are heavy steel angle bracket 34mm x 13 x 2.0. a straight guide edge is mounted square, such that it stands proud of the jaws. as shown, the bend produces a top-panel of 93mm internal measure.
the block can be as long and as heavy/dense as you like. you can stack or cut to the wide you want, drill through and long bolt it to your workbench, over a bench leg to provide all the inertia needed, but with space under for clamps. make sure you have clear down either side of the jig to at least the length the bends will overhang.
the jaws shown are the cad passivated (!) remains of a telephone exchange test-panel, and have an ideal radius of bend. cut something similar (extruded Aluminium angle will be fine) to as wide as your widest planned panel, file/sand a radius if needed, and screw it to your chosen bending block with long countersunk wood screws. your finished bends parallelness depend on your relative squaring of both the edges of your block and jaws.
the (inside) length of panel toe-to-jax now becomes the distance across the faces of the two jaws, but you've already planned for that so it's not a problem. the guide edge should be sanded flat on glass, as it affects the accuracy of your finished bends. measure as best you can the middle point between the jaw faces, and mark this point on the guide plate; it is really the only reference you need.
the clamping block can be any hardwood block that will cover your intended top panel; chamfer the edges if you wish, and cut a viewing notch where it matches the middle of the guide plate. the blue tape shown is to help stop plank slippage.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img203/6176/9qnz.jpg)
above is shown our demo plank on the bender. all you need do is jamb your reference edge (again) against the guide plate, align the panel-middle reference to the guide middle, and clamp. if your clamp-handles are banging against each other underneath, you're doing it just right. bessey, g or quick, it doesn't matter. tight them up good, and check you're still aligned. you can use a vernier to measure from plank ends to jaw distance if you like. the centre-line method and your aligning accuracy makes this step unnecessary.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img194/6803/l5nv.jpg)
now get your favourite block of wood and a rubber/wooden/copper-and-hide mallet. hold the bashing block flat against the plank as shown (your hand won't look as good) with some down-bending pressure, and give a flat "thump". the aim is to bend all the way across the same amount each bash, so you end up with a straight and flat bend. if it doesn't twang or clank, you're going ok. turn your block and continue the bend until it is almost square, again as shown. then do the other side, the same way. I did, you weren't looking.
if you are doing a flat top, you can continue the bashing until the ends are square, you might as well. if doing a wedge, you'll need to hand-bend to your template soon.
that is your bend finished. take off the clamps and clamping block, and lift out your bend. get your pane of glass, and check for square/twist. the demo bend is shown straight out of the jig, and is as flat and square as I could possibly have wanted. the bends are straight and un-bulged. what more could you ask for?
(http://imageshack.us/a/img163/6352/3mcu.jpg)
(http://imageshack.us/a/img834/894/c1ij.jpg)
and now you'll want to check against your template. a wedge will have a less than- and a greater than- 90 degree bend, so we do that now. hold the jax face flat against the glass, and lean on the top panel until it matches your template angle, less than 90. now hang the whole bent over the bench edge on the toe inner face, and pull/lever against it until you have your greater than angle correct (not "right"). you can also use the bending jig for this. the cardboard template will illustrate how consistent your bends are, and how parallel.
check again for twist and square on the glass. you can do some minor corrections just by twisting if needed, or put some sandpaper and get medieval on your glass. sorry. you really shouldn't need any corrections if your references were good and alignments square to start with.
shown are two bends from the one jig, neither of which I have plans for; more cluttering junk on my bench. and how long has the whole process taken, ten minutes?
so that's the end of part two. part three precedes, and in part four I'll cover those pesky wooden planks I'm always talking about and the pesky mounting brackets and and bottom plate. part five will be covering-up the whole mess and part six ..........
requests to please stop typing/comments/questions/corrections/engineerings/etc please and welcome.
Nice work Duck-Arse
watching and learning. Your giving me ideas.
Thanks
Thanks again, Duck Arse - instructive as always, and getting me very interested in breaking out my clamps!! I have some angle iron stock and hardwood - have to make me up a jig like this!
Hey Duck, I never asked - what are you cutting all that PC aluminum and steel with? Shears? Or do you have something electric hooked up?
Shears really screw up my edges.
I have an electric miter saw (chop saw) that I think I might get a carbide blade for, to do this stuff with. One would have to be careful, though, because if it kicked you're back to the "wear gloves!" issues...
if I'm in a swearing mood, I'll use the frame hacksaw. it ALWAYS, without fail, goes wandering (hopefully away from my marked line) mid cut, and the frame/nut bang on the bench/clamps/etc's. if I'm in a lot of cutting mood, I'll use the jigsaw w/ metal cutting blade and a dribble of oil. gloves, clamps and earmuffs either method.
aircraft snips are the worst things, they leave a serrated razor edge, just to be perverse. I can only ever cut one squeeze straight, then it's all bending and all over the place mess.
I've spotted a couple of wrinkles in the 2xU box since, also some ideas. I thought I'd go and bend up a bottom for the wedge, but my jaws were mm's too short. spent the day wading through junk instead ..... another ten thousand words ....
part 4a metal sides/unders
>> if you doing the metal unders --
cutting the right sized plank will be much easier if you make a template, and that means more cardboard. tip yr bend on side and draw around the inside. cut out, fit/jiggle/trim so it's accurate. draw the measures for the flat of the bend, then add the end flaps by drawing around the template you just made. cut the whole thing out, fit/joggle/trim, and there's the shape of your next plank.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img534/3640/e3c5.jpg)
shown in the above is an over u-bend and templates for a flat and a wedge under u-bend and the cut/cleaned/marked planks, tested for fit and marked to indicate corrections needed. shown above right is a method of marking a necessary trim, by running a marker along the edge at ~45 degrees, leaving a very thin line on the panel top, and colour along the edge-to-trimm. now you have an indicator of how much and where you have removed with yr files.
I don't have a planned use for these bends, so I haven't marked/piloted the holes for the fixings needed. it would be best to plan and pilot-drill these while still flat.
as the under u-bend fits inside the over u-bend, they can't be bent on the same jig. not unless you've cut the bending block up the middle, and are long-bolting through, with a jaw attached each side, using spacers and shims to get the correct width across the jaws. you'll need to measure each end-to-jaw with a vernier to get your panel in the appropriate spot as the guide will now be one end unfixed.
I recommend against using anything for your jaws except plain and flat angle. don't recess it into the bending block, either top or sides, just square the faces and sit the angle on top, w/ long countersunk screws. if the angle is radiused, clear the edges of the bending block so it fits flat. the bender showing is a new set of jaws cut from an old hard drive, one of which moved during the bend, which is why I advise against.
shown is the plank aligned on the bender ready to be clamped in place with the clamping block, and the bent in progress. use a vernier to check the plank ends to jaw distances before you start with the mallet.
bending time means favourite bock of wood and mallet time. same as before, hold the bashing block flat against the plank as shown with some down-bending pressure, and give "thump". avoid twanging and clanging, make sure you are bending equally right across the plank with each whack. turn your block and continue the bend until it is square-ish, then do the other side the same way.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img713/2605/ib7k.jpg)
both flat tops and wedges are done the same way; you want the sides ending up parallel, and perpendicular to the bottom plate. expect the longer sides of the under bend to present more resistance while bending.
once the bashing subsides, remove the clamps/clamping block and check your work, using your pane of glass to check for square/twist. check the bends are straight, even and not bulging. tap them up or flatten the flats on your anvil if you think necessary. how much panel fixing you can do will depend on what you have to bash the bends on, and your choice of finish. an etched or painted box will need better looking/fitting bends than one cloth covered or w/ wooden fill-in plates. the shown bend needed some further remedial hammer work ....
(http://imageshack.us/a/img32/6922/zkqa.jpg)
the under u-bend now shows correction indicators, stress marks, and the colours of my new markers. check for fit with the over u-bend, mark and make corrections needed, file the corners to fit, sand all your file marks away, and the bending is finished. make sure the 2 parts slide together smoothly and don't forget to allow for paint thickness. the closer you can make the edge fits, the more stress the box will withstand.
the under and over are shown fitted together and while not quite 100%, are certainly good enough for a first (and last on this jig) bend. the purple line was added to the edge for some contrast, the insistent red arrows are indicating something that has since been attended to. the persuasion marks left in the metal by the hammer, indicated by flaked paint, rule out a painted finish, but will not show once end-panels and floor covering are fitted.
flat topped or wedged, u-bend boxes will need some method of attaching u-over to u-under, with at least four well placed screws through your u-bends. if you have a drill press, cut some lengths of aluminium bar and either rivet or drill/tap/screw to one bend, then drill/tap through the other bend. you can cover the sides and rivets with thin wooden panels mounting under the overhang, around 1.3mm deep each side on the bend shown.
or at least until we get some engineering advice to the contrary, **rivet your tapped-end bars to flanged plates and mount the jacks and footswitch through them, halving the number of holes through yr case. if you don't intend allowing for battery power you can put right angle end-bends on the jax/switch plates, and use self-tappers through the u-bends. the choice is yours, use whatever you have or can reasonably construct.
when using rivets - allow for those mandrels! - or countersink that side, so the mandrel sits lower in the bar. measure, mark, check, drill pilot-size holes thru the lower bend for the screws. fit the lower to the upper, and mark the bar-ends with the pilot drill so you can drill and tap the bars. drill the screw holes, drill and tap the bars, fit the whole thing together and check for fit.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img32/6026/d65u.jpg)
shown is the upper with the flanges mounted via 3mm screws, and the lower drilled for the pinning screws. check your fit, sliding the two halves together. screw the pinning screws into the bars, and now you can drill the full-sized holes (one at a time, from the smaller to the larger) through both upper and flange at the same time, maintaining at least a little accuracy in fit and alignment. don't forget to clamp carefully while drilling.
keep checking for fit, filing and reaming the holes to correct as you step through your drills to the final size. shown is what we will call "the finished" drilling, both the upper and the flanges, ready for some parts.
now you can measure/cut/dress/finish/fit your wooden side covers. you can either decide to hold the panels with the bend-pinning screws, or drill clearance holes for their heads, and simply silicon/glue or double-sided tape the panels on. cover the unsightly join with whatever you use as a baseplate covering.
(http://imageshack.us/a/img801/6427/3dmw.jpg)
shown is the box with parts fitted and the wooden plates, which can be and are a little uneven thickness wise, and the panels fitting the box, so you'll know what to look for. you can dress the edges of the wood as you like, fit flush, stand proud, whatever suits.
as seen in the photos, there is a gap between the floor and the underside of the lower bend of a similar size to the side gaps. I usually glue something like flooring vinyl and thin rubber under my boxes, which will fill the under space (and cover the baseplate bang nasties) and spread the downwards force exerted on the footswitch, through the long under-bend sides and the large floor contact area of the baseplate.
**now that I have a box completed to this stage, I have found that if the under gap is not filled, all the footswitch force is transmitted to the floor through the upper-bend "toe" upright, which then splays outwards at the bend. this is undesirable.
to prevent the box squat-splaying under pressure, fill the underspace or pin the upper to the lower at the toe end. you might run bars riveted to the long under-sides and drill/tap through the toe/jax bends. or use an east-west bar riveted across the toe plate, screwed thru the sides. the wooden cheeks should remain clear of floor, as they are not really suitable as load bearing parts. astute viewers will notice the plates have not been attached in the photos.
and that's the end of the flat-top u-bend with metal under. the wedged over will have to wait for its under until I can build another bending jig. part 4b follows, how to do wood.
I've just spent the last hour or so reading through this thread and making mental pictures of all the processes. I can't remember the last time I had such an enjoyable hour (except for that thing with the Latvian girl) (and that was nothing like an hour).
Cheers, D-A, you are a true star.
Another great one, DA! Thanks again :o) Enjoying learning about your process, and how you devise interesting ways to overcome adversity. Looking forward to the one about wood.
I missed your reply re. what you use to cut this type of metal...yes, I'd go with the hacksaw, I think. Slower, but more precise. I use the angle grinder for auto body work, but that would probably take off one of my fingers!
gibson, about that wood. at the moment I am furiously devising advesitities, just to have something to overcome. I feel the need to do everything twice. it's hard just keeping up with what's going wrong without then having to type it all up as well .....
-------------- part 4 sides/unders ----------------
-------------- part 4 B = wood ----------------
if you doing the wood --
every time I attempt wood for pedals, I run into problems with power toool motor overhangs, too small or uneven baseplates, guide clamping, accurate/repeatable depth settings, etc. so I made a router bench suited to long narrow planks of wood, and a shoe extension.
the first "bench" I put together was for a circular saw doing wood for flat-topped U-bends. it had a cross-channel and a moveable support so the wood could be turned for the short cross cuts. while the saw needed a masonite foot and only cuts 3mm per pass, leaving tilted cuts needing clean-up, it is a perfectly viable method, possibly the preferred method for flat topped U's. if you have/access to a drop/mitre/docking/cut-off saw with slide, separate the individual cheeks, plan the cut order to account for the angles, and it would be only a few minutes work to knock out a couple of clean and accurate sets of panels, flat or wedge.
shown is what used to be a chipboard/pressboard/melamine desk, is now a router table. the deck is 25mm thick chipboard, 700 x 460mm, with pressboard runners 16mm thick, 60mm wide at the front and 190mm wide the rear, with a channel of 110mm between. the runners are just countersunk wood-screwed to the deck (sand all the melamine edges, or there will be blood), the deck long-bolted to the under-supporting trestle. there is 2 sets of three holes for 3/16" bolts drilled through the rear runner and deck. one set is 305mm from the front edge, the other 320mm.
for straight cutting there is the slide, shown detailed below, a length of wood 890 x 40 x 9mm high glued to a 120mm wide bit 'o masonite, rough face upper, which has 3 holes for 3/16" bolts ~70mm from the front edge and slotted to 16mm long. the front edge is planed and sanded after the gluing.
(http://imageshack.com/a/img843/3349/klbv.jpg)
also shown is the router extension shoe, a snug fit hole cut in 10mm ply 190 x 280mm, offset by 10mm towards the front. the ply is stuck to another bit masonite with a round hole cutout. all four sides are planed and sanded, and the router is held in check with metal clamping plates.
although the slide only travels 16 or so millimeters, the full width of the channel can still be guided because of the second set of slide-bolt holes, and the router/shoe can be rotated to utilise the shoe offset. all sliding/running surfaces are regularly lubed by rubbing with a dry bar of sunlight/laundry/yellow soap.
detailed above right is a method to set the cut depth fairly repeatably and accurately, saw or router. the plastic stop provided in this case by Bosch is a joke for depth setting purposes, and is only of use as a positive stop. if you are wanting a route of 6mm depth, for instance, find something like perspex or masonite that is 6mm thick. put the router on/over the workpiece and jack the baseplate/shoe up with your calibrated thickness. then push the router down until the bit meets the face of the workpiece and set the depth stop. remove the jacks and route away. but check your work.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
to cut wooden side cheeks for either brake or U-bends, whether flat-topped, wedged or slopers:
your step 2 will be to mark the cutting pattern on your wood. here are a few ways to do it:
- mark the wood with pencil. you won't be able to see it to route it, so you can use a white paint-marker to rough outline on the wood before accurate pencil marking. you'll be left with white all over the insides, down in the grain of the wood. hard to remove unless you really like sanding.
- glue some white paper to the wood, then trace the pattern with pencil. easy. perhaps use gum instead of pva glue. you might have an inked stamp pad you could press the bend against, then just "stamp" the paper with the outline.
- cut some templates from white paper or card. you'll need one for each side, trimmed to accurate fit, marked with all the references you need to orient them correctly, and glue them to your wood.
but your first step is to cut a reference edge in your wood at least 5mm wide. this forms the channel the baseplate sits in, and the ledge it mounts on. if you are doing a bend with returns, you will be screwing into/through it, so the "on" needs to be wide enough for both your selected screws and drilling inaccuracies. a U-bend does not screw through this cut so it can be a little less deep.
you need to clamp the piece in the channel in some manner, you could probably use double sided tape, but it might get messy. as I'm doing four sides for brake-bent slope fronts, the angles form some dead-areas that won't need any routing, so I put some small countersinks through into the deck. mark the screw positions clearly.
always ALWAYS know where your screws are, and how deep they are with reference to your routing depth. MARK THEM GOOD! don't be tempted to route around a screw head, take it out, put it back later. plan what you are going to do, how you are going to position your cuts, where and how you will clamp the workpiece. you can always erase your rough sketches before outline marking time.
route the ref-edge to about half the depth of yr sides, the length of the piece. the pedal baseplate (which we will call "the floor" from now on) will later sit flush to the ref-edge.
now take yr piece and mark the cutting patterns. jamb a straight edge against the ref-edge, that's what it's there for, hold the bend against the straight edge as shown and mark around the insides. mark the bend name/number, L or R, up/down, toe/jax, circles and arrows with a paragraph about each on the back, the day of the week, whatever you need be able to orientate things with other things at a glance, as seen below. if you've cut templates, align them with the ref-edge and glue to the wood.
(http://imageshack.com/a/img594/3954/jhu4.jpg)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
the slide can be used for cutting flat-topped bends, either brake or U's, but as we aren't cutting any flats in this instance, the slide and its bolts can be removed. fix your piece in the channel, set yr route depth**, and start routing. your best move is to cut a clearance channel all around and wide of your outline, clear all the carp from the cut, then come back and do some dressing. you will need to follow all the standard router rules for bit-rotation and cut-direction. don't forget those rebates for the returns/brackets.
don't go too close to your marked lines before you have checked the cut quality. one of the quirks of using a router, you can't see the edge being cut looking from one side, and you can't see the line to cut to looking from the other side.
I'm starting with a 3mm single-flute bit, which is as excited*** a tool as you would ever want spinning at that speed. even cutting at only 5mm deep, there's lots of smoke and very little cut material cleared by the bit. and if you think you might just poke your finger in to press the paper back down on the wood mid-route, it's time for a rest.
the side marked "Q" shown top below has been dressed with a second cut, the "P" side has only its clearance channel cut. after making the first cut, stop the machine, vacuum all the junk, and go over the raggedy edge of the paper with your thumbnail, to push it back over the edge and expose the pencil line. check how the cut relates to your marked line.
remember that it is much easier to sand away excess than it is to add make-up material. ask me how I know this****. don't even try to get the cuts to fit with the router, it cuts more than you think and you will end up with a mess of fixing to do. test fit after each cut, and if the bend fits on the wood, STOP CUTTING! note that I've removed the screw from the middle while routing this area.
(http://imageshack.com/a/img268/4797/4mcn.jpg)
** make sure the ledge you are routing is deep enough to screw your pinning screws into without the wood splitting, whichever bend you are using. it is much, MUCH better to start with panels that are thick enough for your screws but otherwise too thick, than it is to end up with ledges too thin to screw. it is easier to route/file/gouge away extra material between the screws than it is to add material where the screws are going. ask me how I know this.
visible in images below is some split-prevention wood, glued at the pinning-screw points. they will be sanded back flatter in the completed pedal. get an offcut from the piece you are working with and drill some pilots. do some screw tests; test your pilot size is correct, your screws don't snap their heads, and the wood doesn't split. soap the screw threads. better to find out now then when the finished box wants its finished side panels fitted.
*** it is a very good idea to get right in close and see what your router has done to the wood after you've cut the clearance channel. make sure now that it isn't chewing and gouging the wood, because it will make a real mess of your cut real quick if you don't pay attention.
**** I already knew this. check what your bits do to the wood early and often. I nearly always find or cause some reason to bog my cuts with wood fill, to repair or improve fit.
now is the time to switch to a larger (6.3mm) bit to clear some more junk. how much you remove now depends on the shape and height above the plane of the finished top panel you intend the wood to sit. get in and buzz wide of your clearance cut, as shown in the two bottom views above. do it in two passes, one to shift the material, the other to dress the cut somewhat. clear this material now to save some sanding and to provide a saw guide of sorts.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
there is nothing much more you can do with the router now. cut the cheeks into individual parts with your favourite saw (soap the blade), then follow the edge of your route, cutting off the excess material, leaving the rough ready for shaping and fitting. as the paper will only get in your way from here, you may as well remove it as best you can, and re-mark your parts accordingly.
sandpaper and glass time. make sure the sandpaper doesn't gouge cut-lines in the wood when using the edge of the paper on the edge of the pane of glass. work on the ledge part first. clean the rough cuts flat, then knock the corners off if they are square: the bend will always hang-up here when you test fit. test your fit, you want the metal to sit flat on the wood ledge with as great a surface area as you can get.
now you can clean the upright part, we'll call it the parapet for now. watch the dress where the ledge meets the parapet, it needs to be real good and square so the metal edge fits against the upright and flat to the ledge, and sanding always seems to leave a curving face. get a nice sharp wood chisel or a knife/lino tool and get right into the corner, so both surfaces end up flat and square up to their meeting point. also make sure the bend sits flat along its length against the parapet, and doesn't "rock" against any high points along the lines of cut.
one way to find the high-points is to run a marker pen around the inside edge of the bend, where you want it to sit on wood. then give a fit with the wood, wiggle the parts against each other, especially where they hang-up. remove the metal and look for colour on the wood, indicating high spots. don't go crazy sanding all your marked points at once, do only those on the same plane. as you get a better, closer fit, the colour patches should get larger. this method will also show where planes meet with a curve instead of a flat.
clean your cuts a bit nicer once the bend fits the wood, and remember to allow paint clearance. knock off all the sharp/rough edges around the outsides of the cut shape, but don't start taking material from the parapet at this point unless you know the exact thickness of your chosen panel-finish. front panels, knob heights, vinyl/card spacers etc will all need to be taken into account. use the baseplate to check the returns sit flush with the top of the ref-edge to provide a good, flat mounting plane for same.
(http://imageshack.com/a/img593/2772/y8qg.jpg)
shown the bend sitting on a smoothed cheek, with one rough and two unshaped cheeks. also shown is bend drilled, cheeks bogged, fitted and drilled, with anti-split woods and the extra holes in the baseplate.
.........
...............
brake bends with returns specific --
doing bends with returns a number of years ago showed up some limitations that made me switch to the simpler U-bend. doing the brake bends has reminded me of them all over again. the major problem is the returns themselves, as they block access to the internal volume at both ends. long side panels need to be pinned effectively over and under, so they don't splay under pressure, and to hold the box together. the returns are useful in this regard as we can pin the under at both toe and jax.
long returns with a small battery hatch near the middle gives you plenty of flange to pin the wood through, under tension to hold the desired box-shape and nearer to the middle, and you only need two screws for the possibly hinged battery cover. but tall parts like footswitches and pots need to be angled to reach their mounting holes, the case height and return length limiting the angle available. everything needs to come either through the battery-sized hole in the middle, or through the sides before the wood is installed. and what screws for the battery cover? wood screws won't last many do/undo cycles, and metal threads need something threadable to screw into.
one method I've used is to route a channel 3mm wide inside the cheeks and offset towards the under, and press-fit an aluminium bar. then drill through the panel and the wood to mark holes in the bar which can then be tapped 3mm. this means looong screws and thick ledges, but if you are using very dense wood like jarrah it will also take some "tap" and provide extra support. the battery hatch cover screws also screw into the bar, which is why we offset it downwards.
short returns/long baseplate allow more drop-in space for tall parts. it is preferable not to have the floor under the strain of pinning screws, but there is now limited return length for both pinning and tapping holes for the floor screws. how to sit the baseplate flush on its wood ledge and the returns with the pinning-screw heads in the way?
as shown (above), I've drilled the floor to clear the pinning-screw heads, and drilled the 3mm clearance holes inboard. now the pinning screws stick up through the floor, but are covered by whatever it is you use to "foot" the floor itself, like flooring vinyl, and the floor sits flush/flat/unloaded as first intended. the vinyl is cut around the floor-screw heads so they then sit below its surface.
(http://imageshack.com/a/img20/2172/e4bz.jpg)
shown above to help you recognise a slope-topped brake bend box with wooden side cheeks ready for covering and finishing. the top pinning and the baseplate screws are fitted, the clearance holes have not yet been drilled in the floor. (also visible my new duck stamp.)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
U-bends specific --
.... so use a U-bend instead, with a bracket at either end thick enough to drill/tap, mounting inside the toe/jax bends and flush to the floor channel, and pin through the end bends into the wood. all the parts dropping in before the brackets are fitted, the floor then mounts with 3mm screws unstressed and flush. rebates need to be cut/gouged in the wood ends for the brackets with a router/dremel/chisel/sharp knife. the jacks pass through the bracket at that end.
the bracket at the jax end has two added benefits not readily obvious. it can pack a jack or dc socket that sticks out too far for your liking, and it can provide unseen anti-rotate pip holes if you use box jacks. the brackets for a wedge may end up needing odd bend-angles if you plan on toe/jax bends off-square.
ensure the brackets sit flush with the ends and the floor. my next step is usually to bog the rebates with wood filler, and chisel them back flat for best-fit, checking for high spots and flush. make sure your bend is still the shape and size you want, it can/will go off-square and mess all your fittings.
the "1" cheeks shown were cut from a skirting board, and here in aust. that would mean tasmanian oak. whatever it is, it is very light and soft, more pulp than grain, very like balsa. I've cut the bracket rebates with a snap blade and cleaned-up with a chisel. (there is so much ledge all around, you'd be silly not to use it for leverage on yr fave chisel.)
(http://imageshack.com/a/img547/1725/q3s9.jpg)
shown above for an optical compressor, the drilled bend "Y", undrilled brackets and base and rebateless side panels. bend "1" is shown drilled, with drilled and tapped brackets and fitted baseplate, and rebated, bogged, high-spotted, fitted and drilled side panels. above bottom shows detail of two completed pedals, with bracket, battery and internal covers.
it can be seen in the detail that I cut the ledges wider than my ref-edge/floor channels. the reason for this is lost to the mists of time, but it explains the oddly waisted top flange of the mounting brackets.
shown below to help you recognise a flat-topped U-bend box with most of its screws fitted and slightly shaped wooden side cheeks, ready for covering and finishing, even though I have nothing to put in it.
(http://imageshack.com/a/img850/3560/7xxw.jpg)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
finishing the woods for both type bends --
an elastic band or 2 is very useful from here on, just to hold things together.
as your pinning holes were piloted before bending, all you need to do now is assemble the (brackets and) cheeks and clamp together carefully/lightly while you drill, through the pilot and with the pilot, both the bracket and the wood. if you are planning on thick covering like toy fur, it is advisable to use a spacer of some sort while drilling through yr pilots to prevent the screws later going sideways, stripping or snapping under pressure. you'll otherwise need to revisit your cheek fits.
so I can at least attempt drilling straight and square, and due to the lack of error room in the ledge dimension, I prefer to only mark the position in the wood with the drill, then disassemble and hand-drill to screw depth. drill clearance holes in both the brackets and the case and don't forget the holes for the top panel screws. drill the pinning screw holes to your preferred clearance size, as suits your screws and wood type.
I've cut a set of screws to about half length, and so I don't have to mess with screw threading later when I'm working with a "live" panel/case, my next step is to soap the threads and screw the wood/metal/brackets together. check for problems. as I've already marked/drilled the pilot holes for the floor screws in the floor, I now fit/clamp the floor and drill pilots through the brackets. disassemble, drill clearance in the floor, and drill/tap the bracket.
if your jack-mounting holes are 3mm clearance, you can drill through the bend into the bracket, and then screw them together. this will prevent things moving around while you fiddle with fitting the floor. once you have the floor holes drilled and the brackets tapped, you can fit the floor, remove the 3mm screws, and attend to the jack-mount holes.
the pinning screws are for holding the wood in place and the bend in shape, and not for stressing. by making the metal to wood contact area under the top panel as flat, and therefore large, as you can, the footswitching stresses are dissipated through more of the wood more efficiently. how you finish your baseplate will determine how these stresses are transmitted to the floor.
you can finish the base-panel so the box sits on the floor on the wooden unders of the cheeks. put some screws in now to hold the box together and sand on glass so the unders sit flat. how you stop the finished from sliding around the floor is then up to you. another method is to cover the base-panel with something thick but pliant, like flooring vinyl. sand the cheek bottoms flat and to just below the height of the vinyl, using some scrap material to get the height correct. then when you step on the gas, the finished pedal will squat slightly as the vinyl compresses, until the wood contacts the floor.
you can now finish your sanding/shaping on the side panels and make your left/right/under/overs matched and even. don't forget panel finishing thickness allowances. take it apart again, and you are finished, ready for etch/paint/cover/assemble.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
have I left any thing out? anything not explained/understood clearly? so now you know how you have no excuses, get bending! if I get to see just one someone's bent case, it will have all been worth while. part the next will be on my own peculiar method of covering a box.
Excellant stuff.
I love your ideas.
thanks mate
Good stuff, DA! Always appreciate reading your very thorough writeups! I might have to break out my old router, and kit of bits, and see what I can come up with!
This could have been done in a very complex and frustrating way - I enjoy seeing how you overcome that and find an easier way for the DIY to get good results without $1,000 in equipment!
I never said it wasn't frustrating. many hours of staring has gone into bending and woods. and all those photos!
I should have made a note about noise. I've made a number of mainly fuzzes in these cases, and have so far not had any excess noise problems. I haven't yet done a dr boogie though. anyone worried about noise, do what most of us do, build it, then worry. screened cable would be the best place to start, if you still have noise probs, you might need to "foil" the insides of your woods.
Very awesome info and technics Duck! Love all the info and pictorials. The router table jig set up is really cool.