New Use For An Old Case

[shtoink]

This is mainly an update for those of you who might be playing along at home or intend on playing along in the future.

CA glue is not the glue you want to use to stick these PVC tubes together. I knew going into it that CA glue wasn't ideal for the job, but figured that it should be a reasonable glue to use. I was very wrong! The big thing is that it's a brittle glue and doesn't really do much more than sit on the surface. I should have just avoided being lazy and gotten that purple stuff meant for PVC. A quick couple swipes with the dauber, align, and wait. Then it would have become one rigid piece without the fear of accidentally knocking them apart while I figure out how to a bunch of wood and plastic parts become one solid piece.

After quite a few, post accidental tube separation, choice words and phrases, I decided to set things down for a bit wait until I have the proper adhesive for PVC before I makes things worse.

[Basically Bob]

Wow! Awesome project ... looking forward to more progress reports!

[shtoink]

Good news!

I had to back-burner the project due to school, frustration, and incorrect adhesives, but things a getting back under way. I got myself some PVC glue so that I could convince about 50 individual tubes to become a single piece. The hard part was getting off copious amounts of CA glue that I slathered all over the tubes in hopes that it would have been good enough. Please note that is was not the correct glue to use, is brittle, sharp, and presents a real eye hazard when trying to scrape it all off. In the process, I managed to give my hand a minor laceration. Not something I'd have expected, so anyone reading along, store that one away for later referencing.

I'll post up some progress pictures once I have a bunch of tubes all glued up. I really set myself back by not getting the right stuff for the job in the first place, but at least I didn't have to cut another 50 or so tubes sections to length.

Before I'd dropped my bundle of tubes that were held together with CA glue, I was able to test fit them to the face plate and make sure that my holes lined up well enough. Using that template I made and taking my time with drilling out those holes really paid off. The biggest issue I had with that thing was keeping a scrap piece as a backing to prevent tear out.

Up next will be joining the tubes to the face plate and making the rest of it all one piece. I'm thinking that I should find away to fill any voids in between the tubes and the side panels for the punch block.

[WScott]

Keep plugging away at it, I am still watching!

[shtoink]

One thing that has proven to be a far bigger challenge than I anticipated has been these tubes. I'm really thinking that a couple chunks cut from a 4x4, glued up and cut to desired dimensions would have been far easier. Lay down a nice veneer for the face, fit into place, and call it done.

There's a total of 43 tubes, which means that there are 43 holes cut in the face plate and 43 sections of PVC of appropriate diameter mitered, deburred, filed, and checked for consistency.

I have 25 glued up and feeling pretty solid, but there are still 18 more that need to be affixed and still line up with the holes. Gluing up stages helps, but keeping things lined up correctly while waiting for adhesives to cure isn't exactly pleasant. Especially when you were hoping that the expanding foam properties would help fill voids between the banks of tubes being glued together without pushing things out of position.

The solid chunk direction is feeling like a much better idea, but I'm pretty well committed at this point. I guess if I ever attempt another one, or if you are following along with your own, tubes are frustrating and not worth the extra headache. Most drill bits should be long enough to reach the ~3.5 inches needed for each hole and using a template increases the odds of getting those holes in the right place.

Next up should some pictures and showing some of the progress.

[shtoink]

It's starting to come together.

It's a huge relief, too. Especially after such much frustration with being setback and having to start a few steps over again. As I am writing this, I am waiting for epoxy to cure with my fingers crossed that I don't need to do this yet another time. There's some areas that need to be cleaned up and some minor cosmetic mistakes that I can't exactly hide, but think that it's turning out pretty well. I just wish I hadn't had CA glue spill out on the front and has been paying closer attention to the drill bit placement, but those were minor compared to tubes not staying together.

[shtoink]

One more thing that I didn't account for when dealing with tubes was the variation in wall thickness. This translated into the tubes stacking a bit wider than what I anticipated for and I ended up needing to gouge grooves into the side sections to allow the bundle to slide int place. Did I mention that the I don't like the tubes yet?

The good news is that they fit now and I can start filling the voids along the sides and top to create a more solid structure. I'm just disappointed in myself for overlooking that detail as well as finding a few more spots where my lack of skills with a saw can been seen more clearly that I like.

I also ended up reaming out each of the holes with a drill bit to make sure that the handles of the punches actually fit. The minor offset of the holes and tubes coupled with epoxy that may have oozed in made that a necessary step. That whole "solid block" is sounding so much better each time I run into a new obstacle to overcome. It'd also be quite a bit lighter, too.

On to the pictures...

This is just showing the parts dry fitted and the grooves that had to be cut.

[immiketoo]

I love the idea of this as a project, and I can't wait to see it finished. I hear you on the solid block idea. Seems like it would be a lot less work, even if it lacks some of the cool factor.

[shtoink]

It's beginning to look more like my original mockup and is nearing completion. A few minor details here and there and it should be ready.

I'm convinced that the guy at the hardware store had no clue as to what material the tubing was that I purchased as it was claimed to be PVC, but I have never run across PVC that felt this "slippery" and had such a high resistance to adhesives sticking to it. I'm thinking that it's more likely that I ran across something that had Teflon in it.

Either way, it's almost finished, just not without a healthy share of frustrations and snags along the way. While trimming up the edges on the epoxy filling, a tube popped loose and I poked the side of my thumb with the chisel I was using. Fortunately it wasn't as bad as it could have been, but it isn't a real project unless blood was drawn.

Still left to do is a kickstand for the punch holder, cutting slots for securing straps on the right half, sanding, finishing, and securing it its final position inside the case. It's still free floating inside there so adjustments and corrections are still possible along the way.

Now, on with the progress pictures...

[shtoink]

I've been busy cleaning glue the squirted up a couple of the tubes and sanding.

I also figured it'd be an opportune time to take a couple pictures of the punch holder with punches in it. There was a temporary kickstand holding it in that position, but that's about the location I want it to sit while propped up with the kickstand I plan on making for it. I still plan on having it be removable, but that's one of the last hurdles to overcome.

My apologies for the blur. My phone is terrible for picture taking in low lighting and I've been lazy about using the nicer camera.