HOW TO MAKE A SPIRAL NORTH POLE. By Ben Vukonich (Helenaguy) & Craig Dye

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "HOW TO MAKE A SPIRAL NORTH POLE. By Ben Vukonich (Helenaguy) & Craig Dye"

Howard Stokes
6 years ago
Views:

1 HOW TO MAKE A SPIRAL NORTH POLE By Ben Vukonich (Helenaguy) & Craig Dye

2 MATERIALS FOR THIS PROJECT 6 or 8 white acrylic globe w/ 3 neck dia. ¼ plywood for dividers 7/16 chipboard or ½ for globe mount and end disc 1 white PVC pipe for inner support x 36 long 4 zip ties Smart RGB Strip Lights, WS2811 4mm White Coroplast for cover, cut 12 x32

3 TOOLS FOR THIS PROJECT Hole Saw Set, Harbor Freight, Amazon, Lowes, HD Adjustable Hole Saw Drill Press and assorted C clamps Drill Fixture Assembly Fixture Hot glue gun and glue sticks

4 BENS HOW TO Start with a 10 piece of pvc pipe for the center support. I used the cheap white pipe as it won t be exposed to the sunlight and there is no bulge on one end for the coupler, but since you will have 1 foot of waste, that wouldn t really matter. I cut Mine to be 36 tall. I sized mine to try to minimize the waste on the coroplast. You will need a total of 11 4 circles, 9 for the dividers and two for top and bottom. You will need 1 3 circle to mount the globe (I used 7/16 chip board for the globe mount to give a little more area to drill in to) I built a jig with screws to make lining up the dividers easier. The bottom disc is 1 ½ from the bottom of the pvc pipe. The first screw on the bottom side is 2 7/8 from the bottom circle and each of the other screws are 2 7/8 between them as well. The first screw on the top side is 4 ¼ from the bottom circle, then 2 7/8 between the rest. The top circle and globe holder are 29 ¼ from the bottom circle.

I used the variable hole saw on those, as I wanted a tighter fit.

5 Jig Bottom end of jig with dimensions Cut a 1 ½ circle out of center of all but the two top and globe mount. I used the variable hole saw on those, as I wanted a tighter fit. If you don t want the expense of the variable hole saw (probably more than the whole set from Harbor Freight), You could use the next

6 smaller size and use a rasp to widen it enough to fit snugly around the pipe, or use the 1½ hole saw on those too and just use lots of glue, put make sure it is straight! On the 9 dividers, cut them in Half after you drill the center hole. You will loose about 1/8 for the blade width (I used a power miter saw and held it with a short length of pipe to assure I didn t lose any digits using a hand saw would be safer!) but since the 1 ½ is about 1/8 to big in diameter to begin with, it works perfectly. The ½ extra width the other direction allows you to twist it on the pipe. Start gluing the dividers on the top from the lower screw to the upper one to it s right. Continue with all 9 top dividers this same direction.

Once the glue has set, turn it over so the top dividers are laying on the jig and install the 2nd half of the dividers between the top of #1 to the bottom of # 2.

8 Once the glue has set, turn it over so the top dividers are laying on the jig and install the 2nd half of the dividers between the top of #1 to the bottom of # 2. If you cut the accurately in half, they should match up with no gap. If not, just overlap a little. I have tested several variations and it doesn t seem to matter if you are completely perfect here. It will be on the back side after all.

I drilled the center holes first through each of them separately and then drilled pilot holes and fastened them together with a small #8

9 The globe mount as I call it is simply a 4 disc and a 3 disc, with a center hole approximately 1 3/8 in diameter for the outside diameter of the 1 pipe (the 1 refers to its inside diameter ). I drilled the center holes first through each of them separately and then drilled pilot holes and fastened them together with a small #8 wood screw. I used 7/16 inch chipboard so it would be easier to drill into the side to mount the globe. Drill small (3/32) pilot holes through the acrylic globe edge and into the chip board globe mount on opposite sides of the globe.

10 Drill small (3/32) pilot holes through the acrylic globe edge and into the chip board globe mount on opposite sides of the globe.

11 Then, use a bigger bit and gently bore out the hole through the acrylic globe with a hole large enough for the wood screw you are using. If you don t use a large enough hole through the acrylic, it will crack (I found out the hard way) 3/16 seems to be a good size for # 8 wood screws. I then cut a groove to accommodate the wire from the end of the strip in the bottom to the 3 sections in the globe. I used a slot so I could do my soldering before I installed everything. You could drill a hole and insert wires through it into the globe and then solder the upper 3 strips to the wires. I just find it easier to solder all my connections and shrink wrap them before installing them. I am just filling the slot with silicone sealant, as it won t be visible anyway. Glue the globe mount so the slot is on the back side of the pole.

12 After you have installed all the angled dividers, the bottom and the globe mount, you are ready to install the strips. I found that hot glue doesn t stick that well to the silicone sleeve of the pixel strips. A piece of black electrical tape over the end will help hold it, and I glued the wires to the pole where they entered the strip. Glue and/or tape the beginning of the strip on the back side at the bottom and your first 3 pixels will be lined up front and center on the bottom. Simply hold the strip in one hand and twist the pole clockwise with your other hand and stretch the strip down through the dividers and on to the pole. I had planned on using 12 groups of 3, (36 leds total), but it didn t quite reach, I needed 13!

13 Glue and/or tape the top of the strip and run the 4-6 extension wires soldered to the end of the lower strip through the slot and attach to the 3 sections of strip for the globe. Glue them on starting in the back as well and wrap twice around and secure at top with glue and tape again. I used a 5 3 core extension,cutting the extension 6 from the male end and soldering that to the bottom of the strip and using the other 4 ½ section soldered to the top end and fed down through the pipe and out the bottom end. Only issue with this is if you are planning to use rebar to mount these to the ground, it may damage the wire inside the pipe. I am still working on a mount using landscaping stakes glued with epoxy to the outer sides of a 1 pvc coupler.

This does make a slight gap at the back, since dividing 12 by pi is about 3.

14 As I said earlier my dimensions are to maximize use of coroplast. The Coroplast base is 12 wide x 32 long, meaning you can get 12 of these out of one sheet of coro. This does make a slight gap at the back, since dividing 12 by pi is about 3.8, but if you are concerned about it, you can always add some silicone or use a rasp or sander to reduce the size of the top and bottom disks by 2/10.

15 To get the round shape you will need to use a coro claw and cut through one side of each flute except the first and last ones. Leave them solid as you will be drilling holes for zip ties along the edges.

16 Once you have done this, fold it over so the edges are on top of each other and drill holes every 4 along the edges through both layers in the first flutes that you didn t cut the outside layer.

17 Now lay the coro sheet down on a soft surface (carpet works good) and then lay the assembly down on top of it. The top of the coro sheet will be over the screws used to hold the globe on, the bottom should line up with the bottom of the pipe.

18 Secure loosely with zip ties on all holes and then slide up or down as needed to line it up, then tighten the zip ties.

19 At this time, those of you in wet areas may want to add weep holes just above the globe mount shelf (4 disc) as water would collect there, and sealant along the back seam and possibly weep holes above the bottom disc in case water does find its way in. That completes your Pixel Strip Spiral North Pole!!

Hinge Mortising Jig. One of the make it or break it parts of building a. 6 ShopNotes No. 74

Hinge Mortising Jig A Mortise for a Hinge. Quick, clean, and accurate that s the only way to describe the mortise you get with a trim router and this hinge mortising jig. One of the make it or break it