Rock on
March 23rd
I have had a stunning start to this week. The 9th SDX meeting went extremely well and I am feeling very positive about where the project is heading.
After a lengthy discussion, it was collectively decided that having a dome over the product is not necessary, it would be flimsy, and would just be extra stress and time added onto my already overwhelmed shoulders. Someone has already told me earlier that they preferred it without – this works really well for me, because although I spent a lot of time trying to figure it out, ultimately it wouldn’t work to my advantage.
I was also told that while the moss does look lovely, in my first prototype it completely covers up the wonderful laser cut layers, which would take away from the value of the product because the buyer would not see how it is actually created, and would look cheap.
But because I would really like to add the moss as opposed to have it simply be the wooden layers, I will need to find a nice middle ground, where I put the moss on certain areas, and leave some of the plywood edges uncovered. It might possibly be the part where originally I put rocks on either side of the large waterfall – if I simply use the wood stain there, it will still show the layers, but will not be the yellow colour of the wood.
I was given some great ideas on how to market the product and cover my bases legally – it will require some research and extra designing, but it made selling the piece a lot more realistic. Something I will need to do is look at LED lamps, and see what safety labels and care instructions they placed on them.
I will need a way to attach the base so that it can be removed if it is ever returned because there were issues with the electronics. The first suggestion was using screws, but I was told that might become dangerous as people could become curious and open it up themselves at home, then either damage the product or endanger themselves. Using the USB was a good choice – it seems it is a safer option, and will not shock anybody, but it is not a 100% guarantee.
Another idea was using glue which is removable by heat – if I used it only where the base attaches to the top, to cover the electronics, and used the normal wood glue everywhere else, it would give me a chance of repairing the product, but the buyer not necessarily knowing that they could do that themselves. Similar to how phone screens are attached – something to think about.
The product will be sold on commission – I will add an option to personalize the plaque on the front at an additional low cost, and the price will be quite high (possibly around £120-£150) to allow for me to have more time in between making them. This could always be lowered later.
There were a few great ideas on how to display it in the store – as we are going to be advertised as students, there is a possibility to say the item is not for sale, which very often makes the demand higher (people simply want what they can’t have).
I will need to look at some plants for the shelf (not sure if it could be living as I won’t be there to water it) because as we tried to place it on a white table, some potted plants around made it look and feel more like a natural jungle, which exactly the kind of feel I was going for.
Large rocks will also be needed – I will need to find a way to go to a forest of some sort and collect some.
I was shown some lovely cardboard boxes someone uses in the store to pack their product in when purchased – it has given me some ideas on what I could do.
Because I have the laser cutter, it opens up possibilities for custom boxes – my thinking is a simple but lovely chest which a living hinge domed lid, which is very easy to make but adds significantly to the value of the product, and the buyer can use it for something else once the product is displayed on their shelf. It would be a fantastic gift as well.
This actually harkens back to my roots in the City of Glasgow College, where I won a gold sponsor award in the Starpack Students contest with a premium plastic gin packaging. Although in that design the box was made of cork.
This Instructable will help me figure out how to go about making this, although I don’t imagine it will be a difficult process. I also have to look around this website, where I can design my own boxes.
I also remembered the honeycomb paper bubble wrap a glass blower who lives near my home showed me – it is the perfect natural and sustainable compromise, which will protect the product, is completely biodegradable and fits really well with the aesthetic. I may actually visit and ask where they purchase it from.
Goodness, I feel so excited now! All the amount of money spent, worrying, stress, has amounted to this – having something I am truly proud of, that will look fantastic on my portfolio, that has given me SO MUCH knowledge, and that may also end up becoming an income.
March 24th
Yesterday I purchased 380mm x 53m honeycomb paper for the packaging, and 0.8kg black TPU filament for the strain relief. They should be arriving today.
I also did some research into plants. The quick shelf setup we created yesterday really inspired me.
I am pretty set on faux plants, and I am going to try making my own ones from the green shiny paper I purchased from the Scrap Store, but if that doesn’t work I am going to Ikea just before my 10th SDX meeting next week.
Here are a few pots and plants I found on the IKEA website that I think could work really nicely.
While I was away in class today, I received the filament and the honeycomb paper, and had some time to think about what else I might need for the shelf.
Knowing from experience, I would not be happy hauling around a giant heavy rock all the way to SDX, so I thought about making a fake one. I know foam ones exist that people buy all the time, but I am really trying to avoid spending more money and purchasing more plastic.
After some research, I found that some crumpled paper and a paper clay paper mache might work the best.
This video explains how to make it, and it doesn’t seem too difficult, although I don’t have any newspapers, I do have a lot of leftover cartridge paper, which will hopefully work. The recipe does require a blender, and I’m not sure if I’m happy using the one I use for food items, but there might be another way, like simply leaving the paper to completely absorb the moisture and crumble to pieces. I could leave it overnight, it’s not that urgent.
I will of course try to make some fake plants, but I don’t think I have any pots lying around that look nice. Perhaps I could make those, too.
So I couldn’t wait, and I made a fake rock!
I used paper pulp (I had one sheet of newspapers and a lot of half-written pages of thinner cartridge paper) which I made in the food processor after painstakingly tearing it up by hand while wet (using a paper shredder would have been significantly faster), and added flour, salt and vinegar. I then scrunched up some aluminium foil and carefully wrapped it with the paste, then put it to dry on a wire rack next to the heater.
We shall see if it looks okay, and once it is fully dry I can always use some sandpaper to smooth it down.
March 25th
The “rock“ is still a bit damp, and if it doesn’t dry today next to the heater I will try to use my hair dryer to speed up the process. I did smooth it out a little bit, and compared it to the actual rocks I found a month ago, I think it will be fine. Interesting experiment nonetheless.
Sometimes I like to go through my bookmarks on my browser which I saved specifically regarding this project.
One of them was about how to create realistic paper flowers, and it requires florist wire that is green. I, however, have a bunch of 3mm aluminium wire, so I looked into whether I could use my acrylic green paint to paint it, and it looks like it should be fine.
It turns out this is absolutely true! And while the result isn’t hyper-realistic, with a couple of coats of the right colour it will be just fine for my purposes.
Here are the measurements for the box:
- Width: 17.5 cm/7 inches
- Depth: 12 cm/5 inches
- Height: 7.5 cm/3 inches
After generating a Flexbox2 type box according to the measurements I need on Boxes.py, I converted it to Lightburn to see if it would fit on a 200×300 plywood sheet. And what do you know, it is a perfect fit! This means I can try it out and if it doesn’t work, only waste a single sheet.
I have been told by a few people that I am spreading myself too thin, by making everything from scratch. But I can’t help it – it’s the most fun I have had in a while, and it helps me to save money, because I use things that I already have at home, or that cost very little. Obviously I need to make sure I keep my priorities straight – making a shelf display by hand will not give me any extra points. I’m not even sure if it will help sell the product. Although that would be a bonus.
I’m currently cutting the first plywood box, and it is going to be over half an hour, which is a long time.
I now realize that I probably should have fixed the tabs to be larger. I also always seem to forget using masking tape, which would help to eliminate the soot marks.
So, the settings that I’ve been using, that I thought was perfect? It started a fire. Very little embers, but I noticed it before it became bad, switched it off immediately and the air assist, and now there is a big hole where it burnt through the material. That is not good.
I have to admit the way the living hinge bends is pretty cool (where it isn’t burnt to ash) but this is just not worth it. I was also expecting the fingers on the edges to be a nice, tight fit, but it falls apart, because the holes in between are too large. And even the etching almost went through fully. I may have forgotten to check which settings I should use.
Yup, it saved from when I was trying to bend the frame, 750/75, when it should have been 20% power only. Not that this made a big difference – I won’t use it either way. Maybe larger fingers, and a non-living hinge box. But I don’t think adding a plywood box is necessary. I will just need to find some cardboard boxes that fit the criteria.
I was also absolutely wrong about it fitting on the page. It would not have been nearly big enough to fit the product in. I don’t know what I was thinking.
I looked into some cardboad boxes, and it seems pretty impossible to find one in the right size. I found one that is 7x5x5 inches, a little bit taller than I need, and it comes in 25-piece packs from the FusionOffice. It would be about £20 for 75 of them. Which is very optimistic, but if I order less it’s not worth the money. £9 for the single 25-pack. I might try that.
I think I will test some shapes in small formats and see what style I like best, and then try to find or make a template to laser cut. It might be easier to simply cut out from cardboard the correct dimension.
This website has a lot of different styles, with a preview, however, it doesn’t seem to work very well, and even with the 3-day trial I couldn’t manage to download the right file.
Another website, Template maker allowed me to input my numbers and download an SVG file which seems to only fit if I use the entirety of the laser cutter. But surely finding a 400×400 piece of flat cardboard shouldn’t be that difficult.
Actually, one side is 405, and it is pretty difficult to find anything that is right.
Now that I think about it, I won’t need the large bevel on the back for the base on the product, because we decided I wouldn’t have a dome. So there is no need for the edge to accommodate anything! To Fusion360 I go!
March 26th
So for the past… twelve hours? I have been working on the CAD model to fix all of the things that got messed up by deleting that back edge. I think I am making it better – I added some features which will make it easier to put together and more sturdy, like bringing the LEDs closer to the middle, so that the fibre optic doesn’t have to be so far away, and will be easier to bend.
I also made the tabs behind the button larger, so that they go through the layer above and below, for added resistance, and made a little tray for the resistor to sit in.
Of course I also had to redesign and re-slice the strain relief. At least I will have the opportunity to try the new black TPU filament. Yay!
This print turned out beautifully, too.
And I re-saved all of the layer svg files and placed them on Lightburn. Because the layers are smaller this time, I expected them to fit on less sheets.
And I was right! It all fit onto 6 sheets, plus one with the 14×3 stained pieces.
Just a little update on the rock – it dried quite a bit, so I placed it directly on the heater. Once it felt dry enough I sanded it down with fine sandpaper, but I put it back on the heater because it still felt a little damp. But I have to say I am rather surprised at how well it turned out!
I changed the filament in the 3D printer and did a quick print just to test how well it works. And it is amazing! I didn’t have to do anything, and the tiny wolf came out absolutely perfect. What a joy!
I think after the first test of the strain relief I might try settings that will hopefully significantly lower the printing time – currently, it’s sitting at 37 minutes.
The print came out perfectly, I am so glad. It was nearly impossible to remove from the build plate, but that is because I made the side that will be on the inside of the product completely flat. That won’t be necessary, and having a slight curve will help with the removal.
I was trying to laser cut the new layers, and I don’t know what I am doing wrong, but I have barely been able to cut a single sheet so far. I have major anxiety about a fire starting, so I switched off the air assist to see if that would help, and lowered the laser head closer to the sheet. It looked amazing, but then in the middle of a piece it started dragging the whole thing. I then moved it up a little, and it happened again. Every time the really bright flashes happen I start to sweat, and I can’t keep it going because I am too nervous.
So now I am not sure what to do.
I only have a few more days before I have to have a fully finished product, which is possible to replicate, a shelf setup in the store where people will look at it and think about buying it, a whole brand identity, a logo… None of that will happen if I am too scared to laser-cut the layers.
I think I have made the decision to not use the laser cutter at home anymore.
I have the proof of concept – multiple in fact – and nobody expected me to have my own machines, so it is perfectly acceptable to make the final version in the university workshop.
Once I have the time and money to set up a workshop myself, there will be no issues, but right now, in this tiny space, it is simply not feasible. Not to mention that instead of getting easier as I use it, it is getting more difficult and more stressful. I can’t keep doing that to myself, part of the project is to learn when to say no.
So what I will do is put the one I have already made on the shelf for the time being, find the time to laser cut the final layers on the university workshop’s big CO2 machines, solder the last circuit to prove the fibre optics idea would work, design a simple logo, print out a bio, and get some plants and stuff for the shelf display. And then call it a day. This product will never see the light of day because it was doomed to begin with. It served its purpose – I have learned a lot – but I shudder to think what I will do with all of the equipment I purchased. I feel a little bit foolish now. Perhaps it’s all the sleepless nights talking. Maybe I am burnt out. Har-har.
March 27th
Yesterday I went shopping in Asda, and looked at their artificial plant selection. I did find one that caught my eye and nearly purchased it, but I could not go through with it. The leaves clearly look like they are made of plastic, and the base inside the speckled (and not at all fitting to my theme) ceramic pot is a big chunk of styrofoam. It would not have sent the right message.
Instead what I did do is look for some more ways of making my own flowers out of paper. I found a few websites with templates to create beautiful orchid flowers, and I think that would look really nice. Perhaps a white one, with a simple pot.
I decided I will try the laser cutter one last time, and get the final concept prototype finished today. That would mean I can focus on other things, and I will feel a sense of accomplishment. I really need that right now.
The machine should be able to tackle cutting out the flower petals and the boxes as well.
I tried to find some way to detach the base of the product, in a way that isn’t visible to the user but if any problems arise, I can easily remove it and reattach without causing any damage.
I haven’t been very successful so far – I have had some suggestions such as screws, but that is visible and easy to remove (unless it was a special type but that can’t be that easy to get a hold of) or glue that melts using heat.
In my attempt I found a solution to the plywood layers shifting – according to this video, by sprinkling some salt on the plywood pieces that have fresh wood glue applied, and clamping them together, the two sheets will not shift until it is fully dried. While I don’t think clamping will be an option for me, I might try the salt idea.
Anyway, I think I have an attachment method that might work. Using a 4mm thick, 14mm long dowel in each of the four corners, if I glue it to the bottom but not the top piece, and leave a tiny opening that isn’t very visible, I should be able to pry it open with something very flat (like the tool that came with the 3D printer). It should be a tight, invisible fit, but simple enough to detach and do whatever electronic work is needed before putting it back into place.
I made some tiny test pieces to see whether the method I designed would work. The first diameter I cut out of the sheets was 3.5 mm which proved to be too small, while the second, 3.9mm, was too loose. I was about to change it to 3.75mm, when I realized it might be easier to simply cut out the dowels themselves. The little tabs left due to the thin edges left by the holes were actually holding quite nicely, but I worried that may be because it wasn’t the entire frame, as that would have given a lot larger area which means more pressure.
I didn’t want to cut out all the pieces, that would be a lot of plywood, potentially wasted.
The test with the 10×10 plywood piece as the dowel did not work the first two times (the hole being 2×10, then 1.75×9.75mm), it was much too loose.
9.2×1.5 is perfection.
Looks like my idea to fix buttons on the bottom corners of the honeycomb plate with Pink Tack was a good idea.
March 28th
Unfortunately, when I was testing whether the dowel idea worked with the full pieces, I managed to break some of the connections, rendering these pieces useless. It would not have been too much of a problem redoing these (also layers -7 and -8, because they were so warped the glue wasn’t holding them together – it does feel like a waste of plywood, but I still have a few sheets left to use), but my Lightburn 30-day trial has expired.
I did plan on purchasing the full license for this, but because I wasn’t sure when I would be using the laser cutter next after this project, I was only going to start the next paid year once I can put my full focus on it.
After some Google searching I found that the Lightburn team are quite happy to extend the trial period by two weeks, so I used the “Extend trial period” button and sent them an e-mail with the copied trial ID. Hopefully, they can get back to me soon, and I can finish the final prototype.
They did indeed, and now I have 14 extra days to use Lightburn for free.
This didn’t end up being necessary because the Lightburn team got back to me very quickly.For the time being I am going to go visit he Scrap Store once again, to see if I can find any more pieces I can use to spice up the shelf display.
I could not find anything of use today there. I guess I will have to use what I have at home, or go to Ikea before the meeting on Thursday. Something I can work on over the summertime will be designing some simpler things to create that I can sell, because I have purchased all of these materials and it would be a shame to let them collect dust. I can always try to adapt the piece I have already designed for an easier make, and use the electronics a different way. I have had some suggestions for chess sets and DND environments as well.Then can come soldering, and finishing the gluing the top pieces. I cannot wait to see what the final version will look like, especially because the fibre optics/LEDs will be fixed, and the moss won’t be covering all my hard work. I can even glue the moss and rocks on because the bottom is simply to have the electronics covered – and I can do that temporarily while I work on the top.
I changed the strain relief back to having a curved inner face, and added six of them to a single print session.
I redesigned the tabs to hold the base together – 10×10 was much too long, 3 layers (6mm) were enough to hold it on but thin enough to be able to remove it without damage. I changed the holes slightly to be a tiny bit looser (9.35×1.7). I did glue it to the larger side, but the force removes some of them. It’s not really a problem because they are still attached to the other piece, and it cannot be seen by anyone but me. There is a very tiny space in between these two layers, but I’m hoping it isn’t noticeable enough. Because all the base layers are the same size, nobody would know where to start prying it apart.
I have to say it feels incredibly satisfying pressing the top down on the bottom and connecting the tabs.
I found a dark brown marker that I can use if needed to fix any bright areas on the otherwise burnt edges. It can be unsightly.
I also added the correct size pieces of fibre optics and sanded them down – the one meant for the small waterfall got a little bit too bent/sanded at the corner and the glass broke, but it’s easy enough to make a new one.
I plan on using the heat shrink tube to affix it to the LEDs, and the ending side to be stuck to the inner base by tape. I will need to try to find something to put around the LEDs so that the light doesn’t come out at the sides if there are any holes.
I tested the fibre optics by temporarily placing an LED light (one that is on my battery pack) under it and it is just beautiful.
The button is holding perfectly – it is not soldered yet but I am able to test it by sliding it in.
Trying the heat shrink tube didn’t work very well – I have two sizes, 1.2mm and 5mm inner diameters. I thought putting the fibre optic into the small one and putting that into the larger one, and that one over the LED would make a secure connection, but even using a hot glue gun the fibre optic just would not stay in place.
I used a hair dryer on the highest setting which was fine, but it melted the fibre optic a little.
It seems secure enough for now, but I don’t think it would hold up to a user tugging on it, for whatever reason.
I printed the 6 TPU strain reliefs, and they turned out fine, but not nearly as nice as the previous one. I changed the layer height to 0.2, which might be the reason, but it was stringing really badly and I had to use scissors and some fine sandpaper to try and make them look nice. Also, when I tested it on a cut USB chord, it seemed looser.
March 29th
I spent the night creating a fake Monstera leaf and an orchid plant. It didn’t quite come out exactly realistic, but it’s not bad for a first try. It’s funny what some card, coloured paper, wire, paint, pastel pencils, coarse sand, and hot glue can do. The colour of the leaves is really dark but I couldn’t find anything else that would fit better. The light green Mostera is the inside of the leaf – its’ actually a thick card I used for strength. And the flowers are much too big. But oh well.
I’m not sure how I managed it, but somehow the bottom layers are mirrored. They still work as intended, but it is the opposite of what I designed in CAD which can get confusing when soldering.
The soldering was a difficult birth. I had to try multiple times, and wasted quite a bit of material (several LEDs, a resistor, a bit of cable) before I finally managed, but when I did and I plugged it in, and I saw that it worked, I was elated.
One of the LEDs tends to fall out of its container (because it is turned upside down compared to when I place it in, gravity calls it downward, so I put a small bit of biodegradable sponge to keep it in. The bottom lid can still be taken off just as easily, so if I have to fix anything I still can.
I used a hairdryer to put heat shrink tubes wherever I could (I didn’t use the 5mm version at all) .
When I tried tugging on the USB cable once finished I noticed that it was sliding out very easily, so I put some hot glue in the inner hole of the strain relief. It seems to hold now.
The fiber optics are not at all attached – they are folded down where it could be folded, so that’s not amazing. I suppose I could use a tiny bit of hot glue on those as well, but I will need to test it on another piece of fibre optic first, in case it melts it.
It seemed to be fine, so I just used the hot glue on either end, and stuffed some sponge into the other LED hole as well, because the light was seeping through the edges where the two layers don’t connect completely at the base.
It is certainly not something I would make often – considering it took me days just to make one – but I am extremely proud of this one. It isn’t perfect, but it is better than I imagined.
Here’s a little comparison with the previous prototype, after I altered a few things. comparing it with the original photograph of the waterfalls. There was a bit of moss on the right side of the main waterfall, which isn’t present on the photo. With considerable amount of work I managed to remove all the moss and glue residue (I used a stiff small brush and some water), and “painted the area with the stain. I also added some kapok fibres, because I like the way it creates dimension and the effect of water splashing up.
