So I built a sawboard - now this Party Box? Americade? Bubble-something?

[DrewKaree]

Naturally, things were designed to go smoothly, and up until I left Wal-Mart with a spring in my step and visions of perfection dancing through my head, they were. 

I had almost all the pins out.  Things were going less rough than normal.  I tried to remove the last pin, which happened to be holding a corner just to keep the image flat on the MDF.  The friggen plastic doohickey CAME OFF!  Naturally, everything tried to roll back up, and I scraped the piss out of my hand trying to stop the envisioned rending and tearing of my pristine image.  Everything rolled up nice and neat all the way up to the pin, with no problems whatsoever.

Panic has a way of making your imagination act as if it's on speed or something.  I try to poke the parts that make my head hurt, but the pins aren't long enough. 

On the plus side, the pins were long enough to make a nice little hole for me to use as intersecting points to re-draw the CP shape I needed.  I tried to first take out only 2 and draw the line, then another one, draw the line to THAT pin point....that QUICKLY went in the crapper, and I removed them all to make it easier to move my straight edge around the MDF.  This would come back to bite me in the ass.  Confidence in your skills is a beautiful thing.  It generally provides the most comical incidents in your life.  For other people.

Here's the killer pin from hell, and yet ANOTHER fascinating "in its natural environment" action photo of....what the pinholes looked like.  Pen in the pinhole, straight edge up against it, and align it with the next pinhole.  Bango.  Nothing much wrong yet, right?

[DrewKaree]

Taking a piece of angle iron, I placed my pen in one of the thumbtack holes, slid the angle iron against it as needed, and moved the "free" end of the angle iron to the next thumbtack hole.  This won't look like much of anything other than a copy of what you initially saw, but you can see the shape starting to flesh out here as I went from pinhole to pinhole.

[DrewKaree]

It was a beautiful sight to behold.  Everything was working as planned, everything was turning out in spite of the little snags I'd run into.  Then came the comical incident I told you about earlier.  Comical for you, that is.

I had everything all marked up, and was almost ready to cut, and I decided to take one last look.  Something didn't look right, and it took me a second or three to notice what it was.  With all the angles and removing all the pins at once, including the few that were used to hold down the image only, (can you see what's coming?) I naturally used a few incorrect thumbtack holes   This is what it ended up looking like, and thankfully everything ended up getting cut correctly

It's looking like this weekend will be raining, and I'm not really wanting to work on the mahogany sides while it's so damp out, so I may be measuring the angles and figuring what needs to be cut how.  Otherwise, I'll be looking to attach the artwork and pick up plexi to go over it.

I'm gonna be laying plexi over the top because it's an inkjet image, and anyone who's printed anything on their home printer and had it get wet can envision why I might want to throw plexi over this.  I'm wondering how much this might have cost me going the route of using one of the CPO-printing members of the board here, and I think I'm gonna get a quote on the off-chance that this WILL get wet/damp/ruined somehow and I'll need a replacement.  If it DOES get ruined, odds are good that it'll be either my kids or one of their friends, and they'll be working for me for free to pay off the new and improved version, so in keeping with the Evil Conservative in me, I'll create my own little sweatshop and force them to pay for the improvement!

Not sure yet on the joys, but I've got red, blue, and 2 blacks now, and I think I'm gonna be looking to get/make/have made 2 stainless or aluminum joys for players 1 & 2 (so it'll be red white white (well, metal, but you get the gist of it) and blue.  As for button layout, I figure for all 4 players I'd use 3 rows of 4 buttons each.....PAIGE, STOP TYPING, IT WAS A JOKE!

[DrewKaree]

After trying to figure out the angles I needed with the standard little squiggly markings that are like hieroglyphics to old guys like me, I went and bought one of the better inventions in the world.  A Starrett angle finder.  Seeing as how I've got all these angles to figure out, and how nice and friggen hard it'd be to set my miter saw with that little plastic doohickey we used in school, I was looking for something easier.  This here be's the hot ticket.  First, the old-skool way, second, the dog-diggety way.

[DrewKaree]

Some instructions on how it works.  Should be pretty self explanatory...put the "legs" on each side of the angle, either inside or outside.  Black arrow points to the angle needed if you're only making a butt joint (single cut).  Red arrow points to the angleS needed if you're making a miter joint, and the angle each end should be cut at.

The second pic shows a 90^o cut.  Notice the "single cut" is 0, and the miter cut is 45.  The butt joint would need just a straight chop down, and a miter cut would need to be set to 45's to create the angle.

[DrewKaree]

Here's an "action" shot of my CP.  I've opened the gauge up and have it set to measure one of the angles.  *EDIT* after looking at the pic a little closer, I realize I must have moved the gauge while taking this pic.  I assure you the angle will be figured out and double checked before I make ANY cuts.  This pic is strictly for demonstration purposes.

 I'm gonna be doing miter cuts, so the second pic shows the angle I have to set my saw at to cut both ends that will comprise this angled section.

[DrewKaree]

In order to set my saw for the proper angle, I'll be using the same gauge to set the saw.  I simply set the gauge so that the "single cut" arrow points to the miter cut angle determined in the previous step. 

In the second pic, I've set it, and I'll be marking the angle on the CP for illustration purposes for you guys.  To cut the mahogany sides, I'll be setting the angle, and then setting the gauge on my miter saw table.  I'll then align the saw blade to the gauge and give 'er.  Once everything goes well, it should line up and give me a nice crisp miter joint to throw a biscuit cutter and biscuit at to help line everything up and keep it together.  That's the plan anyway.  Once everything goes to hell in a handbasket, I'll be muttering and cursing under my breath and yelling at the wife, kids, dog, whatever comes near while I'm screwing things up

[DrewKaree]

Here you can see the angle measured, how it'll look (hopefully) when each side piece is cut, and a reasonable approximation of how accurate it is.  While not cheap, I'm SO glad I decided to pick this thing up, as I can definitely see this being used for many other things, such as outside corners for base or crown molding to figure out the angles.  Before on such things, I'd get it close and then shave off a touch more here or there until it fit, sometimes ending up ruining pieces to the point where I'd have to chop 'em straight and start over.  Also, putty to hide small mistakes like that are something that bug me

They DO make cheaper versions of this, but they're "similar", not identical.  You've still gotta do the figuring, and anything that can eliminate having to do calculations or having to use our heads is something that makes things easier to do.  Remember kids, anyone who says something is fool proof simply hasn't met a determined fool

[Bones]

Bloody Americans and their high-tech toys.

[DrewKaree]

Bloody Americans and their high-tech toys.

You should see how our HVLP sprayers make painting a cab almost.....well, it's almost a treat, it's so easy!

Oops....sorry....I remember now all the....well....at least you can say you had fu....er..um....I, uh....so how about that B5 stock car racing game you guys had the other day? 

[markrvp]

Drew:

Have you seen the movie:  TEAM AMERICA - WORLD POLICE?  It's the one with the marionette's by the Southpark Creators.

If so, you know the main theme song:  AMERICA - F'CK YEA!

That gave me an idea for your cab.  On the front side of the CP box on the left leg of the V put AMERICADE and on the other side put F'CK YEA!  Then you can get the song off the movie DVD and make your front end play that song over and over in attract mode.

Should definitely get some reactions.

[DrewKaree]

Alright.  Got off work early today, and figured I'd put some more time in.  Rained Saturday when I was GONNA do the work

I measured out each angle with the doohickey thingamabob shown above, and started setting the miter saw.  I quickly realized someone in my house had been using my saw for something OTHER than what it was intended for.  If I didn't drop the saw SUPER slow, I'd get TONS of splintering.  Normally, there's at least SOME splintering, but it's usually just two or three stragglers.  If I dropped the blade normally, it looked like some hillbilly's yard after a month or three of growth. 

I'm a tad broke right now....not really, but the wife's burf-day is Wednesday, and I bought her gift BEFORE realizing I needed to have my blade sharpened or buy a new one....uh....no honey, really....I'm not saying I'd have bought a new blade INSTEAD of your present.....that would have been your present.  Don't you remember all the times we talked about you having your very own sharp saw blade? 

Each side section of the CP requires a DIFFERENT miter cut for EACH end.  There's 12 pieces needed, meaning there's gonna be 24 separate angles.  The two sides should be a mirror image, but the angles are off, some by half a degree difference from the other side, some by a full degree.  What that means is that I've got to set the cut angle, cut that side, and reset the cut angle for the tother side and then cut that....lather, rinse, repeat 11 more times.

Here's a pic of the first two pieces I cut from the scrap piece to test the fit and the angle measurements.  It was these two pieces that tipped me off to the problems with my saw.  Not only did the cuts not come out as nice as usual, I also found out that whoever used my saw BENT THE DAMN FENCE!  I'll show how I figured it out shortly.  Here's the final "calibrated" setup from the front:

[DrewKaree]

Here's a shot of that same setup from the backside.  I purposefully left this pic larger.  Open it up in another window or save it and view it in your image viewing app.  You'll see all the pores in the mahogany.  I'm thinking of slapping some pore-o-pac in there before staining.  Anyone have an opinion as to what color to use?  I'm contemplating a darker color, like a walnut.  I could also make a slurry filler with any sawdust and use that, which would give everything the same-ish color, although it wouldn't look as "natural".

For anyone who doesn't know what pore-o-pac is, it's a pore filler for wood such as what you're looking at in this pic, or stuff like oak.  It fills in the pores to give you an even surface with your poly/varnish/shellac.  It's designed to either blend in or contrast.  The blending in is generally used for things you want a uniform color on, the contrast is generally used to kind of speed up the "aging" process and make it look as if it's gone through years of use and oils, dust, dirt, accumulations are filling in the pores over time.  It's NOT a contrast that's in-your-face, it's a very subtle contrast.  I don't have pic to give you to show, but if anyone out there has done this before, and has an opinion on this, let me know what you've done or what you recommend.  I've ONLY done contrast, but sometimes have used a darker-colored slurry to get the same effect for less money.  I've never done an even-colored fill.

All these pores create voids which you feel in the finished product unless you use several layers of finish (usually 5+ depending on the product), and even still, it's almost impossible to remove the valleys and craters from the pores without serious work on your part.

[DrewKaree]

Here's two pics to show you the split of the angle.  I believe these pics are of the same piece, but different ends, so you can see the different angles required on the ends of each piece.  I don't have them handy at this very moment, so I could be wrong on guessing that this is one piece showing both ends separately.  When I get the dimensions, I'll post the angles on a pic so you can figure out what's what.  In these 2 pics, dunno if you can make out the numbers, but there's a 26^o and a 12^o miter here.

[DrewKaree]

Here you might be able to make out the markings on each side piece I've made to keep everything straight when it comes time for final assembly.  This is the left end and I'm doing a test fit to see if the angles are too far off or not, and if I need to tweak anything.  It may look a bit sloppy, but I set everything nice and tight, and in setting up for this shot, everything fell over since it's not glued together yet, so if it looks "gappy", nah, it ain't. 

[DrewKaree]

Remember me telling you the fence on my miter saw got bent?  It's always been 1 mark off since the day I bought it.  It's one of the things I hated about the saw, but when I bought it, I had no idea it would become the issue it is.  It's fastened to the bed with 2 screws, one on each side of the fence.  There's a "horseshoe" that goes behind the blade and is supposed to keep the fence even and somewhat fastened together.  It's crap, plain and simple.  I've been thinking about building a miter saw station for a while now, and I'm not too terribly upset about the bent fence since it already was, but it sucks that it's off as much as it is. 

Here, you can see the angle I need to cut.  Nice and simple, right?  30 degrees, no problem.  Well, I set it.  Then, I moved the blade to align with the angle measurer so that it matches THAT, rather than accepting the built-in markings on the saw.

[DrewKaree]

Here's a pic of what the saw "measures" as 30 degrees.  The pic is kinda bad, so I added the two lines.  The green line is considered 30 degrees on the saw.  The blade is set according to what was measured.  The blue line shows where the blade is ACTUALLY at.  It's kinda blurred, but the blade is off by 2 marking and a touch more from what it should be.  One more reason to double check if your blade's square (thankfully THAT'S not an issue ) and if the angles match up to the markings on the saw itself.

[DrewKaree]

I'll have more pics tomorrow.  I'll set up everything all the way around the perimiter and mebbe get a closer pic of the markings I've made on each pic.  I've still got to pull out the biscuit jointer and throw a biscuit in each miter, and then glue it all up and somehow clamp it all up. 

Anyone have some good ideas for clamping this together?  A strap clamp won't work due to all the angles, and I'm thinking I'm gonna have to glue it up one miter at a time and then glue all the different assemblies together one by one until everything's done.  I've already resigned myself to picking up some regular wood glue.  My trusty GorillaGlue will simply expand too much for it to be practical in this application

More pics to follow tomorrow.  Sorry 56k members, I'm trying to make each pic smaller and more web friendly for you guys.  I know what it's like to have to wait for the page to load....and wait.....and wait.....and wait

[DrewKaree]

I was looking over some poker table plans (because I don't have enough things to do in my life Alex, I'd like to buy 24 more hours for $400 please) and came across two ideas for legs.  The legs MAY become unnecessary if I decide to throw this CP on a pedestal and make the showcase cab I want, but as I'm working on this, I simply can't see standard folding table legs working.  They'll look as out-of-place as Stingray at work

I had been contemplating some wooden setup, and someone has done something similar to what I'd been thinking with a poker table, and I found some WAY nicer legs if the wooden setup looks ass-like. 

Let me know what you think:

[DrewKaree]

I also have seen several pedestal bases.  Now, these are done so that there's a pedestal, and it's open on the top, and a simple box on the base of whatever that slides inside the pedestal opening, thereby "locking" it in place while keeping everything square at the same time.

Here's an example of such a setup:

[Setabs]

I like those pedestal bases.  The only thing I would have problems w/ are extending your legs under the table.

[dfmaverick]

I like those pedestal bases.

[DrewKaree]

I like those pedestal bases. The only thing I would have problems w/ are extending your legs under the table.

I'd be setting up the pedestal so that it'd be like a normal showcase cab's CP, so no sitting down on this thing. 

If I went the pedestal route, I'd make a "V" (two legs somewhat following the shape of the CP) with the base in a triangle-looking shape to connect them and give some stability.  I could also incorporate some 2x4 "outriggers" to stabilize it as well, since it's not really gonna have much surface area front to back to steady the thing.

[DrewKaree]

Well, I've got the clamp idea settled.  There's absolutely no sense in me butchering explaining how I plan to do it, so when I get to that step, I'll simply show you pics and explain anything you might not be able to see.

Anyhoo, here's the sides all set up to see how she'll fit.  I couldn't fit the whole thing in one pic, so here's the whole shebang split up into viewable pieces.

[DrewKaree]

And the measurements I have to mark on each piece to keep everything straight.

You probably can't read the numbers on there, but I've highlighted 'em just for illustration purposes.  The piece number is in the middle, with the corresponding angle written on each side.  Since each angle will be different, it was necessary to write the angles on the side they match up with in order to have everything come out right.

Still need to biscuit each of the pieces, but on the plus side, I realized today that I have to do separate assemblies of all the side pieces in order to biscuit the CP bottom to the sides.  If you aren't smellin' what I'm cookin', you will when you see the pics that show what I'm saying. 

If you look at the pics in the post right above this, I need the top side (the "V" part and the piece next to it glued up as one assembly, the other 2 short sides (the "bottom" sides) and first leg of the bottom side as a second assembly, and the bottom 2 pieces as a third assembly.  I'll try to photoshop a pic to demonstrate what I'm talking about, but that'll have to be done tomorrow or Friday.

Got the SuperAuction on Saturday, and my brother in law SAYS he's going along with to pick up a Golden Tee.  That all could change between now and when he changes his mind because he doesn't want to stay as long as I'll be sticking around.  I've got a group wanting to go, and I know for certain I've got enough help to move/load whatever I might find, but I'm pessimistic about getting what I'm looking for at a DECENT price.  Sorry to blather.  Here's the final pics for today's installment:

[Bones]

Them's some nice angles. Obviously you have been reading and learning from my thread. 

[DrewKaree]

Them's some nice angles. Obviously you have been reading and learning from my thread. 

I have.  Why do you think I'm not painting it?

[DrewKaree]

Here's the angles.  I don't have a complete pic of the CP's final shape, so I blacked out the CP image.  The angles, if you view the image full-size, aren't perfect, but if you see the shape, you should be able to figure it out.

These are the angles required for the miter joints.  You'll have to do the math to figure the full angles and whatnot.

[DrewKaree]

Figured I'd put in some more time on the CP.  Ran into numerous problems.  Went to get my jigsaw and finish the 2 holes on the other 2 clamp blocks.  Problem number 1.  The jigsaw is nowhere to be found.  I KNOW I own one.  I'm assuming a child or the wife character used it and put it somewhere that makes absolutely no sense.  I call my buddy up and borrow his.  Problem number 2.  There's an allen screw missing that's needed for blade alignment.  EVERY cut makes a wierd path, but at the very least, I'm done with cutting the half-moons that were supposed to be nice rounded ovals

I decide I'm going to sand some of the fuzz off the edges I cut.  Problem number 3.  The wife used FOUR EFFING SHEETS of sandpaper sanding a little-ass coffee table.  Something that, AT BEST, should have required a SINGLE sheet.  I no longer have any sandpaper    Now I've got to go buy sandpaper.  Meh.  I'll cut the biscuit slots in a few test cases.  I open up my biscuit cutter case.  NO EFFING BISCUITS IN THE CASE!     NOW....I'm REALLY pissed.  I keep those in baggies in the case so they stay relatively dry (moisture or keeping them in an unsealed container causes biscuits to swell, making them a PITA to deal with).  The girl character in the house WAS EFFING PLAYING WITH THEM! 

I think I feel an aneurism coming on    The airing of grievances at the Festivus meal this year is gonna be a lot longer

I've since gotten back from HD and buying sandpaper, biscuits, and brads for my nailer, since those have since been used up by someone Fat Tony will be visiting soon

I'm set again, and all is well with the world.  Here's a pic of the clamp blocks finished with a drill bit since I couldn't find my jigsaw and I was impatient and wanted to get a set done to test 'em out.  Use of these will be explained with an "action" shot later:

[DrewKaree]

This was prior to opening up the cases to find out everything that was missing.  Yeah, it's nothing special, but I find the feeling of laying these cases out in preparation for work is almost erotic 

These are the two important tools that will solve all those pesky angle connection/fit problems.  And that yellow is dead sexy!

[DrewKaree]

So since I've found out that other than me, no one in my house possesses a respect for expensive tools that they haven't paid for, or at the very least, the ability to ask said owner of those expensive tools for permission to use them and alert said owner to the need to purchase replacement "miscellaneous" items needed for proper use of those expensive tools....I decided to put a rush on the fix I knew was needed.

I bought the wife her own toolbox and tool set to fill it long ago.  When I found her using MY screwdrivers, I knew she had lost hers or left it laying around the house in some long-ago forgotten area and simply couldn't be bothered to take the time to find HER tools needed for her pressing task.  I had warned her long ago to take care of her tools, since I was getting them because I DIDN'T want her treating my tools, which earn us MONEY, in such a cavalier fashion.  Well, the problem is slowly being solved. 

BAM!  BOOYA!  AHOY AHOY!

[HaRuMaN]

You lock your own wife out of your tool boxes?  Harsh...   

[DrewKaree]

You lock your own wife out of your tool boxes?  Harsh...   

No.  She knows where the keys are.  It's primarily to keep my kids outta "experimenting" with stuff, or as stated, playing with the friggen biscuits for my biscuit jointer.  However, she HAS been told that if I go to use one of my tools and the "miscellaneous" stuff needed to make it work (like the sandpaper mentioned above) is missing again, or, as is her habit, if my tools are left lying out with the cords all over instead of putting them back when done with them, she will find the need to start asking me for the key, because I'll start keeping the keys on me.

I have too much experience (at work, at jobsites, at home) with people breaking tools tools they haven't paid for or losing tools they aren't responsible for replacing if they're lost to waste a second feeling guilty because someone's delicate sensibilities might somehow be damaged

[DrewKaree]

I wanted to throw a biscuit in each angle to help with alignment and also for added strength.  If you recall from the above posts, I needed to glue the sides up in separate assemblies.  Three sections from each side.  I also needed to figure out some way to clamp the angles while the glue dried.  The biscuit slot had to be cut first.

I marked both pieces of the miter joint by matching up the joint and hitting it with a sharpie to mark both sides of the miter at the same time.  Here's a pic to describe what I'm saying:

[DrewKaree]

The biscuit joiner has a center mark that you simply align with the mark you've made.  First, set the angle, then the depth you want, start the tool and plunge the blade in to make the cut.  The settings might be different for each tool, so I'm only including a pic of the alignment mark and you may also be able to make out the fence's angle. 

[DrewKaree]

You end up with something that looks like this:

[DrewKaree]

I took a brad nailer (no, not some chick who REALLY likes a guy named Brad ) and nailed a clamp block to each side piece I was going to be fastening together.  In this pic, I haven't nailed the clamp block to the side piece yet, but this is what it'll look like.  The nailer was set to leave the nail heads above the side piece so they could be easily removed after the pieces were glued together and the nail holes will be filled in later and sanded smooth.

The second shot is how the side pieces will look after being glued and aligned but before clamping.  If you can't picture how the clamps will be used yet, it's coming.

[DrewKaree]

Here it is in action.  Sorry about the focus on the closeup pic

[DrewKaree]

The clamps that fit into the holes would spread out the miter joint without equal clamping pressure holding everything in place, so another clamp has to be used to counteract the smaller clamp.  In these pics, you can see the second clamp used on the backside of one of the side assemblies.  The second pic shows how the larger assemblies are clamped together on the backside, and lastly, the third pic shows the whole setup from above.

That's all for now until all the assemblies are glued up.  I've got all but one left to do, and when they're all done, I'll be working on making the base.  The base will be going INSIDE the side pieces so as to ONLY have the mahogany sides showing, and no MDF or plywood other than the CP top.  It'll be inset a touch, but that's for later.  You're stuck with this as the final pic until further undocumented progress is made

[DrewKaree]

Well, I wanted to give back the jigsaw to my buddy, and still can't find mine, and Mark's saw seemed to have magical mystical powers.  Natch, since I too seem to be a fan of Big Yellow, I did a little investigating, and ended up picking up one due to one super sweet feature none of the rest happen to have (Mark, I dunno if yours is this version, but it's been reported that if you can use the "special feature" in the next-step-down jigsaw as well).

If I'm doing a base cabinet and have to cut an access hole for something stupid like some ass hat building code writer specs that a gas pipe or waste line has to be X inches from the wall, I usually end up having to dork around with a jab saw or something equally as annoying, like chucking in a hole saw which then usually requires 2 people to drop the cabinet in place so you don't drop it on the pipe and bust out the bottom. 

For all you tool freaks like me out there, here's a little tool-porn: