Popular Post mattharris75 Posted January 28, 2020 Popular Post Report Share Posted January 28, 2020 I figured I'd throw up a thread here about all the things that keep me away from instrument building, causing me to have epically long build times! First up, I built a kitchen island for my house, with slide outs for the trash can and storage. Maybe not super interesting, but it's super functional, and turned out great! And my wife loves it, so bonus... I also built a bar area with legs and paint to match, which ties it in nicely. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willliam_q Posted January 28, 2020 Report Share Posted January 28, 2020 Very nice! My wife usually likes my DIY projects, but when only one of them turns out not as good as expected then the phrase ‘should have got a professional’ can be occasionally heard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 28, 2020 Report Share Posted January 28, 2020 Very nice, Matt! I hope no is tempted to use that top as a cutting board! SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted January 28, 2020 Report Share Posted January 28, 2020 i look at that and think... man... doing a white guitar was insane as I kept collecting fuzzies... I can't imagine a whole white cabinet! Looks very nice - you did a great job. that top is clearly one solit piece 2" thick? massive. beautiful. bet yer fingers were soar sanding out those coves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted January 29, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 29, 2020 Thanks guys. On a completely different note... Built my second beetleweight (3 pound) combat robot and competed with it at a local competition this past summer. It's a lifter named 'Vrepit Sa' (from Voltron). I hand made all the parts. The chassis, motor mounts, self righting arm, struts, etc, etc, are made out of 6061 aluminum of several thicknesses. The lifting fork is 1/8" thick mild steel. The wedge is 2mm grade 5 titanium. The plastic parts are UHMW. Finished 3rd in the competition losing to the eventual champion in the semi finals. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted January 29, 2020 Report Share Posted January 29, 2020 Lovely piece of work, my mrs would love that (the island that is, not the robot) but alas our kitchen is about the size of your island. So moving somewhere bigger is close on the agenda, something that will no doubt be increasing my build times too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 29, 2020 Report Share Posted January 29, 2020 Very cool combat bot Matt. Getting 3rd is solid too! SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andyjr1515 Posted January 31, 2020 Report Share Posted January 31, 2020 Both very cool - each in their own way 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Natural Posted February 7, 2020 Report Share Posted February 7, 2020 i am late to the party. Damn matt- that island is fantastic. well done (and the bot aint bad either) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted February 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 Thanks! And once again, something completely different. I purchased a Harry Potter wand at Universal Studios some years ago, and thought it would be cool to make a display stand for it. If you're familiar with the movies, I went with a sort of creepy 'Borgin & Burkes' vibe. It was the most extensive wood carving I've done outside of an instrument, and it was a blast! Not a lot of thinking and measuring, just get after the wood until it looks like something cool! It's three pieces of walnut glued up, finished with a couple of coats of danish oil, and then a black glaze to give it a more weathered and antique look. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted February 10, 2020 Report Share Posted February 10, 2020 2 hours ago, mattharris75 said: It was the most extensive wood carving I've done outside of an instrument, and it was a blast! Not a lot of thinking and measuring, just get after the wood until it looks like something cool! SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted August 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 16, 2020 A bunch more non-instrument related projects that have taken up my time this year. Here are a handful. The big one was a master bathroom renovation. New plumbing fixtures, new light fixtures, new mirrors, painted cabinets and walls, etc, etc. But the big thing was the new vanity cabinet I built with custom gothic mullion inlays. There's also a matching cabinet in the water closet room over the toilet. It's rare when a project actually turns out pretty much exactly as you expect it to, but this one did. You can see in the reflection of the left mirror the towel rack I made as well. It's made of a piece of the figured walnut out of the big stash I managed to score for free a few years ago. A simple project, but man that walnut is 'purdy'! Also, my kids started getting into Harry Potter so hey, it's time to learn a little bit about lathes and turn a few wands for them! Walnut and walnut + figured maple (more free wood from a cabinet maker buddy of mine). And finally, we had a robot combat competition here in town last month, so I decided to throw together a bot in just a few weeks time. Mostly with stuff I had on hand. This one is an 'antweight' (1 pound) named 'Gus Gus'. I finished 3rd in the competition, and if not for catching my plow on the chewed up floor I probably would have won the whole thing. Had a blast competing too! That's grade 5 titanium that's all bent up like that. It's impressive the amount of power that some of these little guys have! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted August 16, 2020 Report Share Posted August 16, 2020 Very very cool stuff Matt! I've got a few renovations I need done at my house......I presume your school year is a bit tenuous just now..... SR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RonMay Posted August 16, 2020 Report Share Posted August 16, 2020 All your projects are super. You are a man of may talents. Ron 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted December 24, 2020 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2020 Well, my nieces and nephew loved the wands I made for my kids, so Christmas presents complete! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted December 26, 2020 Report Share Posted December 26, 2020 Brilliant idea for offcuts Matt. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted January 15, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2021 Lots of projects going on around here. In addition to shop and house stuff, a new more sophisticated version of my last combat robot Gus Gus. Got a competition next weekend. Maybe after that I can get back on the mandola, the top is ready to be rubbed out... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 15, 2021 Report Share Posted January 15, 2021 We may need some video of that little beastie. It looks un-killable. SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted January 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 24, 2021 Almost un-killable, Scott. We lost in the event final to an articulating saw bot who managed to slip his saw into one of the slots in the top plate and punctured the LiPo battery, releasing the magic smoke and earning us a trip to the sand bucket of shame... Still, 2nd place, I'll take it. Here are a few of the fights, sorry for the video quality: https://youtu.be/7_03xZuVc9U?t=6498 https://youtu.be/7_03xZuVc9U?t=10436 https://youtu.be/7_03xZuVc9U?t=16670 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottR Posted January 25, 2021 Report Share Posted January 25, 2021 That was fun! SR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
komodo Posted February 5, 2021 Report Share Posted February 5, 2021 What is Gus Gus's method of attack? I mean how does it win? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted February 6, 2021 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2021 On 2/5/2021 at 12:05 PM, komodo said: What is Gus Gus's method of attack? I mean how does it win? Gus Gus is a control bot. The plow is designed to break horizontal spinners and keep vertical spinners from getting any bite. It's worked quite well through these first few competitions. It's also got a really fast and powerful drivetrain usually used in larger bots, so I'm able to push other bots around, another means of control. So I can break them, pin them against the wall, push them around, and eventually hopefully push them into the 'pit' area, which is a corner of the arena with a 1" wall that you can push other bots into. They have a 10 second countdown to get out of the pit or it's a 'knock out'. I managed 3 knock outs in 5 matches in this past competition. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted February 7, 2021 Report Share Posted February 7, 2021 On 1/24/2021 at 11:48 PM, mattharris75 said: managed to slip his saw into one of the slots in the top plate Other than that yuur design looks indestructible! Obviously the slots are needed for proper cooling so getting rid of them is not an option. Narrower slots sunk below the surface in the style of upside down ventilation grilles should provide both sufficient airflow and protection from saws and spikes. I don't know how difficult it would be making that type of grille to the material you're using, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted February 9, 2021 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2021 Yeah, that would be really cool , but I don't know how I'd manufacture that out of titanium. There's another competition mid April, and I've got a whole bunch of small tweaks for the next version of the robot, including using carbon fiber for the chassis plates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted February 10, 2021 Report Share Posted February 10, 2021 10 hours ago, mattharris75 said: I don't know how I'd manufacture that out of titanium. Hmm... I can think of two ways: The backyard method of using a ball-peen hammer or a more sophisticated way using a hydraulic press to shape the edge of a precut narrow slot. Both would require a mold of sorts, and the latter would also benefit from a similarly shaped tool on the other side. I guess those ventilation grilles are made by one pass which both cuts and shapes at least one slot at a time but the material is both softer and thinner than your titanium plates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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