Scratch Build – In Progress Temporary name: Bloo Balls --6-29-'11 Bloo 2.0 refit COMPLETED page 47

Ok, I'm Back. It looks like Rit Whitener & Brightener really is a white UV dye.
The problem is, it makes everything blue-ish. This pic was taken under a blacklight. -Without it the hoses look alike.

So still no true UV red parts...

-Started doing some cutting for my bending jig. Look at it buuurnn! I took this pic after the smoke cleared. My router and blades were purchased in the early '70s. It may be time to get some new blades...

-Cutting a backplate for my on switch. I realized my drivebays might need another anchor-point besides the base. so this will hook up to the top somehow. I cut off the extra paper to protect my guide marks from getting messed up. I used a Roto-zip with an ordinary 1/8" drill bit, because spiral-saw blades chew plexi up.

 

Well, I'm stuck waiting for the heat gun to arrive. I can't continue without one. In the meantime, I'm stuck doing little stuff.

-A preivew of the on switch assembly...

-I found a great (free) fillport option. These came from an old resturaunt soda station syrup canister. The only problem is that they appear to be a non-standard pipe thread. I plan to make something that will fit out of nylon.

-Trying to make a mold using gasket sealer. I forgot that this stuff can stick to oily surfaces, so this was a spectacular failure...I need to come up with a layer of SOMETHING that will keep it from sticking.

-Made mounting holes for the cd drive bay. I also can't continue on this 'til I get my tile saw back.

-I needed to order a mill bit, so I went ahead and purchased a BIG penny for the waterblock. Once again, McMaster shipped cheap and in 3 days.

 

My heat gun came in...

-This is my finished bending jig. It's without a doubt the worst built thing I have ever made. I covered the curve with aluminum flashing.

-bent.

-I think I should have heated it longer. I ended up with some uneven spots. If I cover the edges, no one will notice...

-Working out where to cut off the excess was a pain. I still don't know if I was right.

-cutting this oddball was also troublesome. I can't wait to get this under my drill press.

-Ended the day by fitting the front rivets. The next step is to finish the top frame. -Then I can trim the corners off the sides.

 

Finally! something case-like...

Let me just start by saying that the engine parts-WC experiment is off. I figured out that the radiator I found was actually the AC coil for my Falcon. I thought it was gone forever, so when I found it I assumed it was for something else...
Sorry, it's going back in the car!

-This is the stuff I used to polish up the aluminum frame. I thought it deserved a mention.

-cut and mounted the top frame.

-I have an interesting buckle in the top/front part. My cuts for the bottom and back are too long by a millimeter. The top part will be covered, and the front will hopefully be fixed by the 2nd frontplate.

-The side reinforcement/decoration. I'm using a lot of elements I used on Hypnotoad. -these are so I can countersink the side screws.

-Sanding forever on the curves.

-The top reinforcement. The hatched area is what needs to be cut out.

 

I fixed the sticking silicone problem for my mold. I sprayed the drive face with a modelling lacquer before I stuck it in the goo. To get it out I just soaked it in rubbing alcohol. -no pics though...

-I tried out my new mill bit by fluting the 'tailfins'. Sorry for the blurry pic.

-glued the bottom flanges on the side plates. I figured out you need to add a little LAKE of solvent on the area to be fused. Rather than shrinking like acetone, this glue seems to expand the plastic to fill in gaps.(It's hard to explain...)

-I used some glass to make a proper fit while gluing.

-Cutting holes for the access screws and countersinking.

-This is what I have so far. I'm stuck here 'til I get my tile saw back...

 

How's that tile saw work on acrylic? I have a few dry and wet saws for tile, but didn't think they would work.

 

I woudn't try dry cutting. It would probably glaze the blade.(or melt.) The edge I get with a diamond blade is better than what I would get with a table saw.(no chipping either.) It's easier to line up the cut with the smooth blade edge. Because the blade is exactly 1/16", I was able to figure in the loss When I ordered my precut sheets.

Tile saws work on polyprophelene and acrylic, but NOT on polycarbonate/lexan.
-Also, the older the blade, the cleaner the cut.

 

Thanks, that's great info and saves me some money and headache.

 

Glad to know I could help someone!

 

wowowo very nice work man I missed that work damm me

but I like it man you doing good job keep it up like this good luck

 

Thanks CK! I have been expecting you

I don't trust my luck, so I re-check my notes and marks constantly. I also learned from the mistakes of the 2 previous builds.(TONS of mistakes...)

 

yup buddy.. sorry to miss your work but I read all threads from the Subscriptions list ( all threads I posted ) but now I go to the forums and see

any way yeah I don't trust my luck too re-check every thing 10000 time I missed alot on my projects ( 3 of them and my current one )

any way take care and work nice like this

 

looks great man keep it up!!

This is another one im keeping my eye on

 

Thanks!

I've been doing little stuff like sanding and polishing...

-Say hello to my ghetto lathe. I wanted grind down and polish my stainless fillport. After grinding I used 100 grit sandpaper, then BonAmi on a 3m pad, then finished up with the Dupont polishing compound.

-before/after pic. It's still pretty beat up.

 

Serious Mayhem...

Just before a major storm blew in,(again) My cousin kindly dropped off the tile saw. I promptly put it to good use.

-Here I'm trimming up the motherboard backplate.

-The blade is so dull it wouldn't cut the bottom paper backing, but it left a REALLY smooth cut. The bottom edges are with the yellow tilesaw(new blade). The top edges are this saw. I don't need to sand!

-When cutting out a corner, you can tilt the piece to square the edge. (this is as close as I can get to an action shot.)

-The edge of the plastic for the waterblock. You gotta love a chunk of plastic you can stand on edge. This stuff may end up being TOO massive for the board. I may crack the mobo at this rate...

-Just showing off my paper thin 'loss'.

Now I have a big pile of stuff to mess with. -resevoir tank, front spacers, trimmed up drive bays, mobo backplate, waterblock cover, and a block for my on switch. The rest of the cutting will wait 'till I get a new blade.

-Finishing up the night with cd bay assembly.

 

As soon as I could I got out and bought a new blade.

-Here I'm using a block of wood to keep my cut squared up. I had to finish curved part with the rotozip.

-Rotozip with improvised speed controller. In my opinion this works better than having the contoller on the tool. (Cheaper too! I just scavenged stuff from the garage.)

-a demonstration of the glass glue guide.
I set up the offset...

-part goes here...

-90% finished outside. Remember those hats in the '80's with the wings? This thing is looking kinda 'Marty Mcfly'. I knew it was going to be flashy, but not fruit-loopy!

-I did a rough check of the internal layout. It looks like I have room for everything but a 120mm radiator. I hope 80mm Is enough- I really don't want to cut a hole in the baseplate.

-This setup is to glue the reservoir lid. If it's slightly rotated, the whole rig will hook to one side.

-DUUUUDE! I made a bong!
...Just leak testing, honest! Because the closest fit for a marble I could find was still 1/4" too small, I had to glue little shims inside the tube for the on switch.

-I needed to strengthen the base of the drive bay. When the sides are off I need something to support the rest of the case. I chopped up some of the neat scraps I had for this...

-Pimp my drive(bay.)

 

Kinda looks like the FTD Flower guy...lol.



I love all the work you've put into this and the "ghetto" set up's for working out your cuts. It shows a lot of imagination and inginuity. Keep up the good work.

 

nice mode and really great work with all that acrylic
i like the wing on the case too but they remind me somehow on the ends of the old cadillacs

"The Flower guy" looks more like hermes from the greek mythology

 

wow looking really good

 

Thanks everyone. The Mercury theme was no mistake -but I should have changed my design when I had to change the colors... I was going for the look of an art deco streamliner locomotive, and ended up with Soul Train!
@SPQQKY- Thanks, I've spent years working as a professional 'afro-engineer.' I have to fix what people break, and on the cheap!