Lighter screwdriver bit holder

A sign of a brilliant project is one that is "obvious with hindsight" - when you see it, it suddenly seems so simple that you end up annoyed at yourself for not having thought of it yourself.

For me, Laura Kampf's Zippo Lighter driver bit case was one of those projects.

I've had a similar lighter kicking about in the junk drawer for years, always holding onto it because I liked the aesthetic of it and wanted to use it in a project, but never knowing what that project was.

So I'll admit, this was a shameless copy of Laura's project, but as I don't have access to a milling machine, I had to take a different approach. The insert that I have created is 3D printed, and relies on a friction fit to hold the parts rather than magnets.

Rather than use the free plan, I decided to create my own, adding an additional hollow in the middle of the insert. The idea was that this less-accessible compartment could contain less frequently used driver bits, but still keep them together with the others.

In reality, the fit of the insert is a bit too tight to allow the compartment to be easily accessed, but it does still serve a purpose in reducing the amount of filament required to print the model (compared to leaving that part solid).

I also found that my lighter has a small metal tab in the lid that got in the way once the driver bits were in place, but this was easily removed with pliers. (I'm not sure is this is a typical thing of these lighters, or just because the one I'm using is an off-brand knockoff.)

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Jul 22, 2018 at 3:38am PDT

I have to concede that the insert would've looked better in metal, but from a functionality perspective it works just as well, and sometimes you just have to work with what you've got.

The STLs for the model can be found on Thingiverse, and the OpenSCAD code is on GitHub.

Ring Box part 2

In my last post, I showed the process of building a small wooden engagement/wedding ring box. Obviously it needs some lining to be fit for use.

The original sketch had a note next to it about an LED in the lid which I definitely wanted to do, but there's some space constraints to consider, namely where to fit batteries in the box while still keeping the traditional ring box appearance.

To create the padded sections, I used some leather offcuts, rolled up with the suede side exposed. The front "pad" is literally just that.

The rear pad has rolled from a 'L'-shape piece of leather, like in the illustration. When rolled, this creates a small hollow in the tube, where the batteries will reside.

Electronics
The circuit is very simple. A white LED in the lid of the box will be powered by two G3A batteries (v. small cell batteries), and triggered by a normally closed reed switch. (i.e. putting the switch near a magnet breaks the connection).

The reed switch is carefully placed in the hinge near a small magnet (hidden under the leather), so that when the lid is closed, the magnet holds the reed switch open.


G3A is not a common type of battery, I just happened to have a lot that I recovered from some recycled electronics. As a result I couldn't find a battery holder for them, so I adapted this CR2032 design from Thingiverse.

The battery holder. View on Thingiverse.

The LED itself is just mounted with hot glue, angled down toward where the ring will be situated. The wires run down the inside of the lid to the hinge, where the reed switch is positioned.


On the base side of the hinge, is the small magnet which triggers the reed switch.

All of this is covered by another strip of leather, which is glued - suede side up, to the inside of the lid, and runs down to the hinge, overhanging it into the base (see photo). This overhang is tucked behind the leather roll containing the batteries, hiding all the wiring, but meaning it is still accessible should the need arise (to change the batteries, for example).

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Jul 6, 2018 at 7:46am PDT

The finished box

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Jul 10, 2018 at 12:40pm PDT

A moving shot to try and illustrate the sparkling of the ring under the LED light.

Ring Box part 1

Between the sign and the cake stand, and now this, my projects seem to be very wedding-focused of late.

Originally this ring box was going to be a project for the same wedding as the other two, but unfortunately due to various circumstances, it didn't materialise in time for the big day.

So when my brother got engaged recently, I gave him the designs I'd already sketched up and he picked this one for me to build for him.

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Jun 23, 2018 at 3:01am PDT

The woodworking component of this is pretty straightforward.

The wood I used is oak for the main body, and a darker hardwood (of the well-known species 'offcuttus miscellanei') for the sides, to provide a nice aesthetic contrast.

I was referencing an existing ring box for scale,
and purely by coincidence, the wood sections
I was using were a spot-on size.

Because of the small scale of the box, it's difficult to do any advanced joinery, so the pieces are simply glued, but the wood is light enough and small enough that the joints are still sufficiently strong.

Once all the glue-up is complete, it's off for some sanding to ensure everything's cleaned and squared up, leaving us with a sealed hollow cube.

Some work in progress shots of the ring box. This was certainly one of those projects that at times seemed a mess and you had to keep faith it'd look good when it's done. #diy #maker #woodworking #handmade #wedding #ring

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Jun 24, 2018 at 3:57am PDT

With that done, the cube needs to be cut. Typically, it seems, most ring boxes are about 50-50 (half the height in the lid, half in the base). However, I've opted for a 25-75 split, leaving a larger base, as the plan is to include a small LED light, and I'll need space for batteries and wiring.

I took the hinge from the existing ring box I was using for reference. To fit it, I drilled out a small cavity in the back of the box for it. As the wood is only about a quarter inch thick, this was the most nerve-wracking part of the whole project.
Once I got it fitted, I sanded off the top of the base-back and the lid, so that their edges didn't collide when opening.

When satisfied with the opening mechanism, I epoxied the hinge in place.

Then the rest of the exterior is just a case of shaping with the sander and a coat of danish oil to finish.

Then onto the interior...

Stitching Pony for Leatherwork

One of the great parts of being a multi-disciplinary maker is the ability to use skills from one discipline, e.g. woodworking, to help out with a project that uses another (e.g. leatherwork).

A "Stitching Pony" is a leatherworking tool used to hold leather securely, freeing up both hands for doing the actual stitching. In woodworking parlance, it's comparable to a vise or a clamp.

The construction is a flat base, with one fixed jaw extending vertically, and the second jaw being connected to the base with a hinge, so that it may open and close.

To control the movement of the jaw, a bolt extends through both jaws, and is controlled by a wing-nut, and a spring situated between the two jaws serves to maintain a bit of tension and avoid the movable jaw becoming floppy or loose.






To protect the leather being clamped from indentations, the jaws themselves are covered with some leather offcuts, which were simply attached with contact cement. Brass tacks were used to hold the leather in place while the glue dried (and help to add to the aesthetic of the piece).

The jaws of the clamp.
The bookend woodgrain was a fortunate coincidence

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Jun 5, 2018 at 12:53pm PDT

Wooden Pallet Mallet

I typically don't do much woodwork over the winter as the weather has a tendency to suck the enjoyment out of things.

When I set-up to start again in the spring, I usually find that I need a simple project to warm up and refresh my techniques before I get involved with something more complex.

Normally it's a bit of a throwaway project that I wouldn't put online, but this one was very simple to create and has been very useful, so I thought that it might be of use to others.

This year I made a wooden mallet as I needed one for leatherwork.

The handle was two strips of pallet wood glued up and shaped around a hammer handle.



The head of the mallet is one of the end blocks, also from a pallet.

The finished mallet. Simple, but effective

The technique is simple - drill through the centre of the block to create an opening that the top of the handle can fit through, but is narrow enough to make a tight fit.

Then drill through the part of the handle that protrudes from the top of the block and wedge a dowel in place to prevent the block from slipping. (The block is actually a tight enough fit that this is a little bit unnecessary, but it adds an extra layer of safety, and a bit more of an aesthetic quality to things).

Everything after that is just a matter of sanding and shaping.

Woodturned Pen

This isn't a project as such but last weekend I attended Makers Central in Birmingham.

It was a brilliant event, and great to be amongst so many creative people and share the wealth of knowledge and experience.

This pen is the result of my first attempt at wood turning courtesy of the Record Power stand.

It's certainly not perfect, but as a first attempt I'm pretty pleased with it, and a lathe is certainly on the workshop wishlist.

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on May 8, 2018 at 10:38am PDT

Wedding Cake Stand

Off the back of the "Dutch Courage" sign that I made for the wedding, I was asked if I could also help with a custom cake stand for their wedding cake.


They're not having a traditional wedding cake, instead they've opted for brownies, in 7 different flavours, so the cake stand needs to accommodate them all and at the same time be able to differentiate between them.


In addition, there's a multi-colour theme to the wedding, so that needs to be included with the design.

The obvious thing to do was use different colours to separate the flavours, and my initial ideas centred around something like a painter's palette.



I was looking at a segmented circular design, but it was looking a bit strange with an odd number of segments, so I opted for six segments with a smaller platform in the middle to provide for the 7th segment.

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Apr 9, 2018 at 4:25am PDT

To calculate the size I was told that there will be one tray of brownies per flavour, and that would be about equivalent in size to about a Roses tin, which is roughly 9 inches diameter by 4 inches tall.
Using that as I guide, I based the design on a circle of 18 inches diameter divided into 6 sectors (so 6 triangles with two 9" sides and a 6-and-a-bit" rounded side).
This equates to approximately equivalent size.


Construction

The back segment (red in the original diagram).
This one also has a small solid tip added
as it will overlap the central segment

• The base was cut from some chipboard up-cycled from some flat pack furniture.
• Each segment was cut from 3/8" marine plywood.
• Six 9x4" rectangles were cut to create the face panels, and attached to the sides of the raised segments (2 for the rear segment, 1 each for the other raised segments.)
• Supporting posts for each of the raised segments 
• The central "tip" of each segment was trimmed to allow room for the wooden pole that will support the centre segment.

These were secured to the base of the stand, but could be easily disassembled.



Rounded supports were attached to the underside of the curved edge of the segments. These were made from scrap, and supported a thin hardboard which was curved around to provide a solid outside to the segments. This was attached with staples, as the hardboard was too soft and nails passed straight through.

Each segment was wrapped with coloured fabric, fastened in place with staples and spray adhesive.

The centre segment was a smaller disc with a segment removed to allow the red segment to overlap. The supporting pole was approx 1.5" diameter and attached to the centre segment with a combination of glue and nails.
This assembly was wrapped in white fabric and attached to the base with a couple of screws (so to avoid rotation).

A post shared by Anthony (@darkmidnight_diy) on Apr 15, 2018 at 2:12am PDT

I'm really pleased with how this project turned out. With a lot of projects, the actual building usually highlights issues not thought of during the design, and so adaptations have to be made, but in this case, the end result came out pretty much exactly as the initial design.

Working on this project also helped develop a new workflow - due to geographical and timing constraints, most of the design discussion was co-ordinated via WhatsApp. It was a case of being sent links and screenshots of ideas, sketching up a plan, photographing it and returning it etc. It was a surprisingly good system and something I'd definitely use again.