Showing posts with label brass. Show all posts

Now that I've moved away from my main supply of handy tools, working on the laptop is getting slower and slower. I did manage to work on it a little though! I drew up a art nouveau-esc border for the keyboard part of the laptop (Sorta like the image to the left) and cut out the stencil shapes. I traced them onto a couple sheet of brass I got at Ben Franklin forever ago. I wish I had pix, but the ones I took with my phone got corrupted and won't transfer to my comp: bummer. Let's use our imagination.
So, I traced out my swirly pretty design and got my faithful tin snips and started to snip away. Easy thought then done. Whilst cutting around my fluid shapes, razor sharp copper was curling around and stabbing my hand. I was sure I was going to slice open at least my finger, but I made it out without a scratch. Because of the bulk of the tin snips and the rigidity of the copper, I wasn't able to get a smooth line on some parts. I tried to file them smooth, but it seems I'll need to find another tool to clean up the edges.

That's all I got for now. I don't know why I keep hesitating on cutting out the wood for the keyboard. I guess I'm afraid of having to buy more expensive craft wood if I mess up. I did stumbleupon a neat touchpad idea! I don't think I'll do it, but had I known about it before I glued my keyboard, I probably would have given it a shot!

• Hours: 2 movies - 31 total
• Out: Still 106.82!
  

I have a lovely cherry tree that I can see out my workshop window. It's in full bloom and not an inch of the branches is showing because there are so many flowers!I have found a new love for epoxy, though is smells like a hot fish market when you mix it. Mix, butter, hold for 4 minutes, then screw the L-brackets on. I think this will only work for the bottom frame though, I don't think the top frame has enough room for the brackets, and even the smallest screws would drill through. Out of no-where, my mother (who's starting to actually dig what I'm doing, funnily enough) offered a pretty genius idea. Cute little decorative corners would drill in, as well as provide little stability to the cover that will eventually attach. Not to mention, cover up any fudges on the corners...that I totally haven't made yet! Thanks to the handy-dandy triangle ruler! After I butter the sides I square it up and hold for dear life until it sets. This way all my angles are 90 degrees and not wonky like my last mistake. It's been very helpful, I'm glad I found it. I haven't fastened the whole frame together because I thought it would be easier to cut the random holes and vents out when it wasn't all together, so the structure is in 2 halves.

I started on the vents. I nixed the f-hole design, deciding it was done before and I didn't want to seem as though I was copying. I came up with a simple, and hopefully effective, scroll design. I didn't want to interrupt the pattern on the wood any more than I had to, and cutting a solid hole would be tough with the little saw I have, so I went with a ton of holes. These vents are for the speakers, so they didn't need to be too big. I don't think it's very visible in the pic, but the holes go from small at the ends to larger ones around the bends, using different crill bits to achieve this effect. I need a little more sanding, but it looks alright. They are not exactly symmetrical to each other (there are 2 speaker vent on the front of the frame) but art nouveau is usually subtly non-symmetrical.

Good news everyone! My keyboard is pretty much completed! After I cleaned up the velvet a little, I applied a dot or so of glue to the keys. This glue is special in the sense that if applied and let to dry it creates a tacky, re-stickable surface. I chose this route so that if I ever needed to remove the keys it could be done without ripping out the frail plastic spring. Oh look, my space bar! I was pleased with the way it turned out, still need to find a way to secure it though...For now I'm just happy something in this damn project is near completion. Hey, weren't those frilly keys supposed to be symmetrical? ...Yeah well whatever.

So, perusing around home depot, looking for tiny screws I stumbled upon something that someone might find useful. In the steamtopping sense...or in the protecting your house from burglers sense. Just snip this baby in half, and you have a nice solid brass plate to work off of, and a solid siding for the front too! Might not be the best, but it was a pretty sweet find. I might have entertained the idea a little longer, but I have a plan for my cover.

• Hours: 4 - 25 total
• Cash: 106.82 - bought more L-brackets and tiny screws
  

It was too humid to finish my keys today. I was afraid the moisture would effect the sealant, so I decided to let it sit for another day. I did find some cute buttons that will fit for my F1-12 keys and what not. I punched guide holes in a new sheet of velvet (black velvet, if you please) using a scan of my comp. Helped a lot, clever idea Von Slatt, sensible too. Normal keys out of the way, I ventured to grand ol' Micheal's to hopefully find something for my Ctrl, Tab, and other odd shaped keys. I looked pretty weird to the old hobby ladies sizing up my computer keys. One lady even asked what I was doing. This time I was prepared with a response! After trying to explain 'a subculture based on the theory that instead of gasoline and whatnot, we used steam for energy. Other influences include the victorian fashion, a love for engineering, and airships' I just lost people. Instead I told this beading lady that I was making my laptop look like an old jewelry box. Way simpler, and I look way less crazy. I found some perfect, and slightly decorative, brass plates for my tabs, shifts, and ctrls. But finding a long, skinny space bar was rather difficult. I'm hoping I can solder these two pieces together and make a decent space bar.

Time for some big tools. Today, I started the frame for my laptop. 3 inches in width, I cut the strip in half (rather, my father did, as I shot) with a table saw. After cutting and beveling the edges to fit, good old fashioned wood glue held it together while I shot 1inch nails into the corners to secure it. The bottom turned out fine, the top...not so good. I wish I had a picture, I'll update it later. The moulding was very thin on top, and getting the nails in without shooting them through the sides was very frustrating. And even with the countless measuring (you know, measure twice, cut once, nyuk nyuk nyuk) the top was just a smidge bigger than the bottom. Ugh. Either I figure out how to make the two fit, or I start over with a new strip. If I do a do-over, I would probably make the whole box, then cut it in half with the table saw. Dellcinea...you are a right harlot sometimes.

I know this is a long post, but I thought I'd take some time to explain this blog. It's not a how-to, by any means, just an account of the trials and tribulations of a project. It's something I wish I had when I started this project. I read something in the Steampunk Magazine: 'If you meet a steampunk craftsman and he or she doesn't want to tell you how he or she creates her stuff, that's a poseur who should be avoided'. Brilliant stuff, and capitol reading material for you punkers-to-be out there. I think this is a noble statement. I imagine there might be some hesitation for fear of copy-cats, or 'the man', but nothing can really take away the maker's personal touch and emotion out of their creation. That said, I totally found some mass produced steampunk items! Gears! Congratulations Mainstream, you found 'steampunk'! I first laughed at this, but then I remembered I spent over an hour just looking for reasonably priced gears and found either that they were too expensive, or too small. These actually might work in a pinch.

• Hours: 2 - 16 total
• Cash: $61, and might need to tack on 16 more...
  

After the keyboard fiasco, I needed a pick me up. After discussing my project with a friend, and telling him about my framing woes, he tipped me off to moulding. It's decorative, it's thin, and it's fairly cheap. Yay ideas! and YAY shopping! Off to Lowes and I find a gorgeous piece of pre-cut that fits my theme. Back on track, I went back to the garage and took apart that sweet box (which was used for tissues, my mother informed me). The glory of brass carnage...

Needless to say I feel better after a little destruction. I'll conquer the keyboard yet...

• Hours: 1 = 14 Total
• Cost: $56 still
  

The laptop in question – Dell Latitude 810
Dimensions - 1.7 inches thick, 14.2 inches wide, and 10.3 inches deep. 7.1 lbs

It was time to dig in, so I decided to start simply. I popped off the keys to the keyboard and Oh, the humanity.
Hair from my roommate's chuweenie, random fuzz, dust, and residue from the coke I spilled on it freshman year...it was not pretty. I did, however, figure out the mechanics of the keyboard. My idea was to make it a traditional typewriter-type thing with circle keys. The 'spring' to the keys are actually square, which may pose a problem...later.

After the horrors I endured, I decided to venture out and seek out parts to my Dellcinea. My first stop was good ol' Ben Franks. Our local craft-mart, it offers a meager selection of almost everything crafty. I went in there searching for brass sheeting mainly, but I wandered around and found the framing section. After a surprisingly brief explanation, the attendant knew what I was talking about and came up with a rough estimate for the ornate frame that I wanted. Around $170. Way more than I wanted to spend on something I'd still have to cut away from. I would have to find something different. Wood parts still an issue, I wandered around and found 2in x 12in brass sheets. I would have preferred to cut the brass frame out of a single, uninterrupted sheet, but hey, it's less than $2! I didn't buy anything, but I've made note.

With some wind on my sails, I went treasure hunting. My goal was some decorative hinges, maybe some claw feet like Datamancer's masterpiece, and after some searching I managed to find more than that! Little feet, brass linking, ornate borders abound! This was a treasure! It was enough sturdy for tissue boxes (or whatever fit into it), but easy enough to dismantle. What luck!

• Hours: 2 (hunting!) = 5 total
• Cost : $10 (sweet box, yo)