G
Gotvenom 08
Guest
Was searching that bay site that has auctions.Forget the name of it off hand but I think you know the site.
Looking for viper related items that are sold there.I ran across one of these.Kind of a nifty idea.(why didn't I think of that?)
Here is a pic of the item.Key chain holder.
So I went to work.As some of you know I like to work with aluminum,as it is easy to machine and polishes and paints well.So in my free time I designed my version of this item.The first prototype pieces looked like this.
I know it's not a Pete version(but stay tuned)
The dimensions are approx.6" long by 4 inches high by 3/8 thick.
I went to a hardware store to purchase the hooks.Actually these are made for wood,but made just enough interference fit that the soft hook would actually tap it's self into the aluminum.Kind of a jury rig idea,but it worked.Looking at the finished product,I wasn't satisfied.I knew we could do better than cheap wood hooks.Thought the idea over and came up with a different style hook idea.And not only that,I totally redesigned the whole project.The beauty of being a free spirit and just kind of letting your thoughts and ideas transform into a product.I enlarged the whole item to approx 10 inches long by 6 inches high.
This pic is the first larger piece I triedrolleyes machining.
The scrap aluminum was 3003 type and is gummy and is some what difficult to machine with out coolant(coolant hose was not in proper location)As the pic shows the high burr and the total movement of the part when the end mill welded itself with aluminum.It has a tendency to turn red and melt and then move the part in the vice as the pic shows.(this is why you make a first piece run and tweak as necessary)
So after this fiasco I ordered 6061 aluminum which is much friendlier to the end mill(machine)and polishes nicely.
So it's a learning curve,and we proceeded from there.Had 2 bars of aluminum delivered that was 6 inches wide by 3/8 thick and 12'long.Cut that to desired length and went to work.
Here is a pic of the new design hook.3/4 dia face with a necked down body of 3/8 and a smaller end that is 1/4 inch to press fit into the body of the key chain holder.
As you can see these were etched with a small ball end mill.When it gets this small it is a very fine line of not machining to deep so that the lines of the logo run together.But still etch deep enough so that the logo still is defined enough so that after pre polishing and painting and then re polishing the logo stands out and is not just a blob of paint or that the logo is not just polished off.Some what tricky.
So after I cut pieces to desired length and set up in vice,a fly cutter was used to machine the surface flat.This way when you etch,it stays consistent in depth.After a few minor adjustments things went well.Both styles of logos were made.Drilled and reamed a .249 diameter hole ( times 4) to accept the hooks that were made prior.Pressed in the hooks after polishing and painting of both items and they were done.Also to mention that a hole was drilled in back of item to hang on nail.And to make it not tilt when a heavy key chain was put on hook,I used 2 sided carpet tape so that it would adhere to the wall it was placed on.
Here are a few pics of the finished items.
This pic shows the size difference of the 2 items.
Prepolished and painted before the final polish.
One of my favorite pics.Love that purple~~~~~~~
So after that was done.I had some scrap pieces that were left after I cut out the logo on the band saw.
The black marks (on the item)were the pieces that were left.So the stacks on both sides of the item are the pieces that were made from the scraps.These are etched shields.What purpose they have,I have no clue but I had to make some thing out of them.
A pic of a few painted.Still don't know why I used that(gawd awful color):
Looking for viper related items that are sold there.I ran across one of these.Kind of a nifty idea.(why didn't I think of that?)Here is a pic of the item.Key chain holder.
You must be registered for see images attach
So I went to work.As some of you know I like to work with aluminum,as it is easy to machine and polishes and paints well.So in my free time I designed my version of this item.The first prototype pieces looked like this.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
I know it's not a Pete version(but stay tuned)
The dimensions are approx.6" long by 4 inches high by 3/8 thick.
I went to a hardware store to purchase the hooks.Actually these are made for wood,but made just enough interference fit that the soft hook would actually tap it's self into the aluminum.Kind of a jury rig idea,but it worked.Looking at the finished product,I wasn't satisfied.I knew we could do better than cheap wood hooks.Thought the idea over and came up with a different style hook idea.And not only that,I totally redesigned the whole project.The beauty of being a free spirit and just kind of letting your thoughts and ideas transform into a product.
I enlarged the whole item to approx 10 inches long by 6 inches high.This pic is the first larger piece I tried
rolleyes machining.The scrap aluminum was 3003 type and is gummy and is some what difficult to machine with out coolant(coolant hose was not in proper location)As the pic shows the high burr and the total movement of the part when the end mill welded itself with aluminum.It has a tendency to turn red and melt and then move the part in the vice as the pic shows.(this is why you make a first piece run and tweak as necessary)
You must be registered for see images attach
So after this fiasco I ordered 6061 aluminum which is much friendlier to the end mill(machine)and polishes nicely.
So it's a learning curve,and we proceeded from there.Had 2 bars of aluminum delivered that was 6 inches wide by 3/8 thick and 12'long.Cut that to desired length and went to work.
Here is a pic of the new design hook.3/4 dia face with a necked down body of 3/8 and a smaller end that is 1/4 inch to press fit into the body of the key chain holder.
You must be registered for see images attach
As you can see these were etched with a small ball end mill.When it gets this small it is a very fine line of not machining to deep so that the lines of the logo run together.But still etch deep enough so that the logo still is defined enough so that after pre polishing and painting and then re polishing the logo stands out and is not just a blob of paint or that the logo is not just polished off.Some what tricky.
You must be registered for see images attach
So after I cut pieces to desired length and set up in vice,a fly cutter was used to machine the surface flat.This way when you etch,it stays consistent in depth.After a few minor adjustments things went well.Both styles of logos were made.Drilled and reamed a .249 diameter hole ( times 4) to accept the hooks that were made prior.Pressed in the hooks after polishing and painting of both items and they were done.Also to mention that a hole was drilled in back of item to hang on nail.And to make it not tilt when a heavy key chain was put on hook,I used 2 sided carpet tape so that it would adhere to the wall it was placed on.
Here are a few pics of the finished items.
This pic shows the size difference of the 2 items.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
Prepolished and painted before the final polish.
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
One of my favorite pics.Love that purple~~~~~~~
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
So after that was done.I had some scrap pieces that were left after I cut out the logo on the band saw.
You must be registered for see images attach
The black marks (on the item)were the pieces that were left.So the stacks on both sides of the item are the pieces that were made from the scraps.These are etched shields.What purpose they have,I have no clue but I had to make some thing out of them.
A pic of a few painted.Still don't know why I used that(gawd awful color):
You must be registered for see images attach
