After the sewing project, building a crate was a breath of fresh air. This was an area that I was comfortable and familiar with, having created tons of prototypes out of wood in robotics and other engineering design projects. However, indicated by the prototype status, I had never been tasked with woodworking to the precision that this project required.
The wooden pieces overall were measured and cut by my partner, Eva, allowing my cutting responsibilities to be solely concerned with making the handles. To begin, I used a protractor to draw the general shape of the handle, then used a ruler to sharpen the edges and straighten the sides. With the general outline created, I then used a jigsaw to cut out the shape of the handles.
Utilizing the jigsaw with the pieces clamped to the tables outside was not difficult, but it was annoying. First, I cut the length of the diagonal with the jigsaw, then I had to cut vertical pieces to actually hollow out the shape. The most annoying part was the top horizontal line, as after almost every inch, I had to move the clamps or re-orient the piece itself. After the shape was cut out, I then used a rasp to smooth out the edges.
Once all the cutting was done, I put piece of wood through the planar. The planar was probably the scariest tool I used in this process. Each side of each piece of wood required different adjustments be made to the machine, causing the process of planar-ing to be really drawn out. Additionally, the sounds produced by the machine if it was not tailored to the focal piece, were genuinely terrified. Every time, I put a piece through, I crossed my fingers and prayed that one of the Techs, would come running it, believe that I was destroying the machine.
After the worse part was complete, then came my favorite, routing the wooden. Opposing the planar, I believe the table router was the most satisfying tool I used. Originally, I thought the only router option was the handheld one which caused me to worry about inconsistency. Thankfully, one of the Techs reminded me that there was a table router. Routing the wood really made the pieces look like more than just a pile of scrap. I, however, did have to use the handheld router to clean up the shape of the handles, but that was not too bad.
Putting the wood through the planar and routing it, made the pieces mostly smooth, but sanding was still necessary. To achieve the best results, I used a mix of sandpaper and the circle sanding tool. While most of the wood did not require much, the sanding really helped the pieces look more uniform.
The final aspect of preparing the wood for crate construction was coloring. Based the introduction session we did in class, Eva and I need we did not want to spray paint or wood stain because of inconsistency. Therefore, I used Danish Oil as a finishing product to enhance the beauty of the wood and create a more natural coloring. The Danish Oil was simple to apply; I just poured a sizable amount on a paper towel and rubbed it in, going with the grain of the wood. By the second coat of the oil, the color was really taking, but the wood still needed to set outside for 8-10 hours for the full effect to show.
Building the crate started in class on Thursday. Eva and I used a divide and conquer approach, allowing us to assemble the frames much faster. Although, assembling the frames were all we were able to do in class.
To finish the crate, I started by filling in the counter-sunken holes that were too deep, while Eva finished assembling the bottom frame. We wanted to used wood putty, but the one that the OEDK had dried red, so we decided to just use wood glue. The most optimal way to fill the holes was to pour a large drop of wood glue in the area, smooth it out with a screw, and then use a heat gun to set it better. Once the holes were filled, we then attached the vertical pieces and other pieces of frame. Eva, then, finished the box off by painting some cute designs and sanding down the wooden glue filler.
Our crate came out very well. I love the coloring and designs. The process of building the crate was pretty drawn out but was very fun. This project really took me back to the best parts of robotics in high school.
Cost Breakdown: Raw Materials * Wood - $20.00 * Screws - $5.00 * Wood Glue - $5.00 * Danish Oil - $20.00 * Paint - $10.00 Labor * 8 hours x 5.00/hour = $40.00 Tools * Machinery owned by and housed in the OEDK Total: $100.00
Clean tables below:
