The Do-it-Yourself Thread: A Home for Handymen and Artisans - General

Pretty much everything I've ever made is on the computer, so I tried making something out of physical materials for once. [IMG]http://i.imgur.com/pgpJX2N.jpg[/IMG] I think kitty likes it.

I don't think the kitty likes the camera flash though :v:

An update on the dragon priest mask I'm working on. After applying a thin coat of fiberglass resin to both the inside and outside of the paper model, I applied the fiberglass cloth to the inside to give it rigidity. I stupidly messed up mixing the hardening catalyst into the resin for the inside layer, but this turned out to be beneficial as it caused the inside to be slightly tacky, allowing the fiberglass cloth to stick to the surface. [img]http://i.imgur.com/kYqLXi0.jpg[/img] I resin'd the fiberglass and then applied an additional layer of glass at the "cheeks" of the mask, as they still flexed easily with only one layer applied. I also put a popsicle stick wrapped in fiberglass in between the cheeks to act as a brace, which was also resin'd. [img]http://i.imgur.com/wxYyq6i.jpg[/img] I was about to begin the months-long bondo process until I found out that you can actually take silicon molds of clay models that are made with non-hardening oil based clay. Finishing the mask in clay would take much, much less time than applying bondo and sanding down, so I decided to go that route instead. I found sculpting to be not only faster, but also very fun and relaxing. I hope to eventually take a sculpting class or two at my university. The entirety of the mask is covered in 1-2mm of clay which is then smoothed using paper towels soaked in mineral spirits. You'll notice the half of one of the eyes is missing. It was badly warped and would have caused problems later one, so I just cut it out. [img]http://i.imgur.com/X0WpuZW.jpg[/img] Plans for the future: Despite how much time I spend smoothing the clay, it ultimately will have flaws. Therefore, I will make a "waste" mold of the sculpt once I am satisfied with it. From this mold I will pull a casting that will then be further sanded and refined until its perfect, then a final mold will be made from the refined casting. The upside - achieving a final product much quicker. The downside - twice as much money spent on expensive molding and casting supplies. In the mean time, if you're a fan of the band My Chemical Romance, you might want to check out [url=https://www.etsy.com/listing/162691653/party-poison-replica-mask-danger-days]these masks[/url] I also made. [img_thumb]http://i.imgur.com/WBxvdJk.jpg[/img_thumb]

I could use a little bit of advice. I'm in the process of designing what is supposed to be an indoor hammock stand, but I need it to take up very little floor space. Ideally, it should have room for furniture beneath it, with the idea being that I can sleep in the hammock at night, and then unclip one end and "pack it up" to have access to the space beneath it. What I will probably do is put a mattress on a very low platform beneath the stand, to have both a bed and a hammock. That way, I can sleep in the hammock when I'm alone, and still have the bed for when I've got SEXUAL COMPANY WITH A SUPER HOT BABE (or when I just don't want to be judged for sleeping in a hammock like some kind of island hobo). The design I have in mind right now is essentially a wide ladder at each end: 2x4's connected with lengths of sturdy pipe, for the frame to hang the hammock from, or to use to mount shelves or hang storage bags or anything else necessary, but I'm running into some design concerns as far as making the long "spine" that runs over the top and connects the ends together. I was thinking just a pair of 10-ft 2x4's, firmly secured to the legs with some heavy brackets, but a 10-ft long 2x4 may be difficult to get into a room, if there are any hallways or corners, and the frame will need to be able to be broken down into manageable chunks, because I will likely be moving around over the next several years. Do you think some kind of hinge would work? Allow the spines to fold in half one way, but be rigid the other way? That would allow me to fold the spine down to 5-ft long, for moving it through doorways and such, but I'm worried about it being strong and stable enough. Here's a quick sketch of what I'm talkin' 'bout: [img]http://i1115.photobucket.com/albums/k553/BigDumbAmerican/HammockStand_zps9eb98227.png[/img] I hope that's clear enough! Will this design be strong and stable enough to support a hammock without swaying and rocking and breaking? Is there a way to hinge that spine so I don't have to a maneuver a 10-12ft long piece of wood through an apartment? What kind of hinge do I need? Please help, thank you.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;42306149]I could use a little bit of advice. I'm in the process of designing what is supposed to be an indoor hammock stand, but I need it to take up very little floor space. Ideally, it should have room for furniture beneath it, with the idea being that I can sleep in the hammock at night, and then unclip one end and "pack it up" to have access to the space beneath it. What I will probably do is put a mattress on a very low platform beneath the stand, to have both a bed and a hammock. That way, I can sleep in the hammock when I'm alone, and still have the bed for when I've got SEXUAL COMPANY WITH A SUPER HOT BABE (or when I just don't want to be judged for sleeping in a hammock like some kind of island hobo). The design I have in mind right now is essentially a wide ladder at each end: 2x4's connected with lengths of sturdy pipe, for the frame to hang the hammock from, or to use to mount shelves or hang storage bags or anything else necessary, but I'm running into some design concerns as far as making the long "spine" that runs over the top and connects the ends together. I was thinking just a pair of 10-ft 2x4's, firmly secured to the legs with some heavy brackets, but a 10-ft long 2x4 may be difficult to get into a room, if there are any hallways or corners, and the frame will need to be able to be broken down into manageable chunks, because I will likely be moving around over the next several years. Do you think some kind of hinge would work? Allow the spines to fold in half one way, but be rigid the other way? That would allow me to fold the spine down to 5-ft long, for moving it through doorways and such, but I'm worried about it being strong and stable enough. Here's a quick sketch of what I'm talkin' 'bout: [img]http://i1115.photobucket.com/albums/k553/BigDumbAmerican/HammockStand_zps9eb98227.png[/img] I hope that's clear enough! Will this design be strong and stable enough to support a hammock without swaying and rocking and breaking? Is there a way to hinge that spine so I don't have to a maneuver a 10-12ft long piece of wood through an apartment? What kind of hinge do I need? Please help, thank you.[/QUOTE] As long as you buy robust hinges it will be fine. Don't cheap out on them. As for the frame itself, it's going to need decent width to it to stop it tipping up!

I was considering just making it as wide as my queen mattress, and having a sleep-cave. I'll put my mattress on a low platform (prolly made out of recycled pallet wood, because it's free), build some storage options at the foot of the mattress, and possibly even put up a curtain or something. Final build would be around 4-5' wide, 7'6" tall, and 10-12' long. Alternatively, I could build the hammock stand directly into the bedframe, and have the Spine of it travel along the bottom instead of overhead. I'm still playing around with designs, so I'll see what's what. One way or another, my final build has to be simple enough to do without any specialized or heavy duty tools. A hand saw, sandpaper, a power drill, and a hammer are about all I'm going to be able to bring to the table on this. I'm okay with the final result looking a bit "Do-it-Yourself," because that's the look I'm going for. I'll also be building a desk, and possibly a shelf, or something to hang my clothes in.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;42307031]I was considering just making it as wide as my queen mattress, and having a sleep-cave. I'll put my mattress on a low platform (prolly made out of recycled pallet wood, because it's free), build some storage options at the foot of the mattress, and possibly even put up a curtain or something. Final build would be around 4-5' wide, 7'6" tall, and 10-12' long. Alternatively, I could build the hammock stand directly into the bedframe, and have the Spine of it travel along the bottom instead of overhead. I'm still playing around with designs, so I'll see what's what. One way or another, my final build has to be simple enough to do without any specialized or heavy duty tools. A hand saw, sandpaper, a power drill, and a hammer are about all I'm going to be able to bring to the table on this. I'm okay with the final result looking a bit "Do-it-Yourself," because that's the look I'm going for. I'll also be building a desk, and possibly a shelf, or something to hang my clothes in.[/QUOTE] If you decide to go with the overhead collapsible design, maybe look into some sort of heavy bolt systems to lock it horizontally, to remove strain on the single hinge.

So when I ventured home over the weekend, I asked Dad about building a bench supply from an ATX PSU. He raised questions about voltage regulation and stuff and then at some point said "Hang on, I actually might [I]have[/I] a bench supply you can have." of course you do. So, I have a bench supply now. an HP 6236b. [img]http://www.barrytech.com/hewlett-packard/ps/hp6236b.jpg[/img] With it, I managed to finally test the PSones I got forever ago, and I've decided its probably one of the most useful things I've ever gotten for my bench-in-progress. But I'm still gonna build a bench supply later just to say I did AND to have a second, independent bench supply to play with.

I need to paint my room. It's gonna be a home office that acts as a bedroom too. I'm going to do my walls white, but I'd like to use a special color on one or two of the walls. The furniture going inside it is going to be either black or white, so I'm not sure which color to choose. Ideas?

[QUOTE=TerabyteS_;42335176]I need to paint my room. It's gonna be a home office that acts as a bedroom too. I'm going to do my walls white, but I'd like to use a special color on one or two of the walls. The furniture going inside it is going to be either black or white, so I'm not sure which color to choose. Ideas?[/QUOTE] White furniture is generally a bad idea, dirt, stains and discolorations are stupidly obvious and while it may looks good the first several weeks, it eventually just looks dirty all the time and needs constant cleaning. Black on the other hand hides dirt and stains really well, and generally doesn't discolor. IMHO though just black and white is a bit boring, try different shades of gray if you wanna stick to the monochrome aesthetic (dark gray is pretty cool) or try some dark or just subtle/washed out/light colors to bring some life to it all.

[QUOTE=chipset;42336498]White furniture is generally a bad idea, dirt, stains and discolorations are stupidly obvious and while it may looks good the first several weeks, it eventually just looks dirty all the time and needs constant cleaning. Black on the other hand hides dirt and stains really well, and generally doesn't discolor. IMHO though just black and white is a bit boring, try different shades of gray if you wanna stick to the monochrome aesthetic (dark gray is pretty cool) or try some dark or just subtle/washed out/light colors to bring some life to it all.[/QUOTE] It's gonna be stuff from IKEA, so I'll check to see if they have any other colors in store. Thinking about it now, only the desk is going to be white, the rest should be black. I was thinking of painting two of the walls (the one with the bed and the one with the window) a color and leaving the rest (desk wall and wardrobe wall) white. I'm gonna upload pics of my sketchup plan for the room tomorrow.

Lime. Green.

I need a new hobby, this beer pong table is taking up way too much of my time.... [t]http://i.imgur.com/itsou5I.jpg[/t]

[QUOTE=QuikKill;42384944]I need a new hobby, this beer pong table is taking up way too much of my time.... [t]http://i.imgur.com/itsou5I.jpg[/t][/QUOTE] Hey, when you outgrow your collegiate partying habits, that'll make a killer dining room table.

Bought a new house. Was looking to renovate it but decided to demolish and build from scratch!

[QUOTE=garry;42387210]Bought a new house. Was looking to renovate it but decided to demolish and build from scratch![/QUOTE] You going to post a buildblog? Because a buildblog would be a fantastic idea. Just like your ant farm, but... bigger. Also, what style are you going for? Sticking with the modern aesthetic, or are you going to change it up a bit?

[QUOTE=Sam Za Nemesis;42387897]How many houses have you bought since you launched Garry's Mod?[/QUOTE] I think this is only his 2nd. He had an apartment before if I remember correctly.

[QUOTE=Sam Za Nemesis;42387897]How many houses have you bought since you launched Garry's Mod?[/QUOTE] Two. I'm giving my current one to my mom and dad when we move out.

[QUOTE=woolio1;42341544]Lime. Green.[/QUOTE] Still the first pass so it's a bit sloppy, I hope it'll get better with the next passes. [IMG]http://pictures.gabrielecirulli.com/CIR_1064-20131003-122343.png[/IMG] [editline]3rd October 2013[/editline] [QUOTE=garry;42391482]Two. I'm giving my current one to my mom and dad when we move out.[/QUOTE] Did you buy and fix up both just with gmod money?

[QUOTE=TerabyteS_;42391599]Still the first pass so it's a bit sloppy, I hope it'll get better with the next passes. [editline]3rd October 2013[/editline] Did you buy and fix up both just with gmod money?[/QUOTE] Looking good. It should smooth out with multiple coats. I, perhaps, wouldn't have done both walls... But that's just me. I have a certain aesthetic I like to stick to. Should contrast nicely with the monochrome furnishings. Just remember to tie it in with accents.

[QUOTE=woolio1;42392064]Looking good. It should smooth out with multiple coats. I, perhaps, wouldn't have done both walls... But that's just me. I have a certain aesthetic I like to stick to. Should contrast nicely with the monochrome furnishings. Just remember to tie it in with accents.[/QUOTE] I wanted to do one wall only as well, then I got influenced by my parents' opinion.

So another project I'm slowly working on is making a new radio for my car because my current one is fucking dumb and I hate it and fuck it to hell. (EAT A DICK RADIO, GAW) Gonna be Arduino based, with MP3/WAV/OGG playing capabilities, as well as a radio tuner. Aux in if thats not too hard as well. Looking into possible displays though I stumbled across VFD panels, which are sexy as fuck and offer superior contrast, viewing range, response time, and cool factor. I requested a sizable VFD screen sample from a company that manufactures them, and as i was looking around I found this thing. [img]http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nixie/datvfd/fip60b30t/fip60b30t-l3.jpg[/img] Thats a VFD tube designed to be an analog clock, produced only from 1980 to 1981. I have a model number, but I cannot for the [I]life[/I] of me find [I]anyone[/I] who's selling one.

[QUOTE=garry;42387210]Bought a new house. Was looking to renovate it but decided to demolish and build from scratch![/QUOTE] I'd love to see the progress on this as you build. Building my own house is a fantasy of mine. Let me live vicariously.

[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;42394107]So another project I'm slowly working on is making a new radio for my car because my current one is fucking dumb and I hate it and fuck it to hell. (EAT A DICK RADIO, GAW) Gonna be Arduino based, with MP3/WAV/OGG playing capabilities, as well as a radio tuner. Aux in if thats not too hard as well. Looking into possible displays though I stumbled across VFD panels, which are sexy as fuck and offer superior contrast, viewing range, response time, and cool factor. I requested a sizable VFD screen sample from a company that manufactures them, and as i was looking around I found this thing. [img]http://www.tube-tester.com/sites/nixie/datvfd/fip60b30t/fip60b30t-l3.jpg[/img] Thats a VFD tube designed to be an analog clock, produced only from 1980 to 1981. I have a model number, but I cannot for the [I]life[/I] of me find [I]anyone[/I] who's selling one.[/QUOTE] Here is something even better, [url]http://www.ebay.nl/itm/128x64-Graphic-VACUUM-FLUORESCENT-VFD-Display-LCD-Module-/111145008797?pt=Bauteile&hash=item19e0c23e9d&_uhb=1[/url], 128 * 64 graphic VFD. Also, there is an electronics thread over in the programming section.

[QUOTE=woolio1;42386500]Hey, when you outgrow your collegiate partying habits, that'll make a killer dining room table.[/QUOTE] If this lasts my years through college I will be surprised.

[QUOTE=ddrl46;42394805]Here is something even better, [url]http://www.ebay.nl/itm/128x64-Graphic-VACUUM-FLUORESCENT-VFD-Display-LCD-Module-/111145008797?pt=Bauteile&hash=item19e0c23e9d&_uhb=1[/url], 128 * 64 graphic VFD. Also, there is an electronics thread over in the programming section.[/QUOTE] That is actually very similar to the sample I requested. I just liked the one I posted because a straight up clock tube. Oh well, I'll go to the other section with that topic.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;42394496]I'd love to see the progress on this as you build. Building my own house is a fantasy of mine. Let me live vicariously.[/QUOTE] I am not actually gonna build it. I'm gonna work with an architect on the design and then pay people to build it. Will defo get a lot of photos along the way though!

Got anything special in mind for the floorplan? I've always wanted a studio style house-- not big, but efficient and airy. You've already got yourself a family, though, so Imagine you've got some cool junk planned for the rugrat.

I haven't thought much about the plan. The architect is going to knock up what he thinks will work and we are gonna iterate over it. Here's what I sent him. [url]https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uoawJe3p0OPD2rF4i3Ij7RhSPJfnWLpEEBA5Bxl1Iz8/edit[/url]

[IMG]http://2-akamai.tapcdn.com/images/thumbs/taps/2012/08/amazing-underground-pool-view-of-tangga-house-155d3aa6-sz600x415-animate.jpg[/IMG] So it looks like you want something like this, garry? I always loved this kind of stuff.