It is OK, but I’ve always felt the phone doesn’t get a lot of support and I’ve never liked the look. So I thought it would be nice if I could make one that reminded me more of a vintage radio rather than white rectangle.

First thing I did was gather supplies:
-a Class T amplifier
-iPhone adapter
-Speakers
-Hemlock board

I was tempted to make the Amp and adapter myself. But to keep things easy, I just bought them. Maybe if I do another version, I’ll spend some time and build an Amp with charging circuit. But I wanted this up and running quickly.

The first thing I did was grab some scrap plywood and make speaker holders:

I taped them together to cut them both at the same time:

And put them on the board to work out the dimensions I needed:

After getting that set, I marked up the boards so I would know where I’d been:

So I clamped it to my workbench and got to making shavings:

Which, if you were wondering, is entirely too light for handplane work, so I put a bag of cement on it:

I have to build a workbench soon if I plan to keep on doing this. There is something very pleasantly zen about taking shavings off of a board. The lightness of the Workmate also made it hard to do any sort of fancy joinery, so the whole thing is just glue joints.

I didn’t take many pictures of the actual construction process, because it is really pretty simple. I didn’t draw up a plan, rather I followed what I saw it looking like in my head. I need to get better about drawings.

Anyway, here it is before staining:

I’ve rounded and eased most of the corners to take away the hard lines and make it a little softer looking.

After looking at the stain aisle at Home Depot, We decided the best color was called Gunstock. We wanted something a lighter brown with just a bit of red in it.

I put two coats of stain and two coats of a semi-gloss polyurethane coating for protection and to make it shine a little. I tried to make it less blotchy, but that is just what this wood does.

I mounted the speakers and installed the electrics:

And here is the almost finished final product:

The front has a vintage looking aluminum knob. I was going to wait until I was finished before I posted this, but I have to go away for a few weeks so that has put a stop to that. I need to build some speaker covers.

I ordered some grill cloth, a goldish yellow style to fit the design. I also want to make a decorative piece to cover the hole the iPhone wires come out of, but I’m going to do that in a way that matches the speaker covers.

A security guard frisked me because the metal detector was broken. I went through that and went over to the machine and started to gather my belongings. The guy in front of me grabbed my laptop and tried to put it in his bag. I grabbed a hold on my laptop and held on to it. He gave it a pull and looked at me. I held it and looked at him. He let go and apologized saying he thought it was his.

Which would be a little more believable if he would have had a laptop to start with.

I’m not sure if I can justify the 650 dollars at this point. I need a new reciever first.

I’ve been looking at computer controlled systems like Shopbot, Plasmacam or Mechmate.  All cost about the same. Between 7,000 and 20,000 dollars depends on the options. I like the Mechmate the most because it has a DIY aspect to it and is a little cheaper and beefier. There was also a few little ones, But once I started pricing them out, the price difference for the added functionality of the larger units isn’t that bad.

I  just purchased a large bulk of the bits for the Mechmate that need to be pre-formed and precision cut. I’ve taken the first step into a much larger world.

But Margo needs a computer to take to school and it is too noisey for he to use in class. So I decided to treat it like any other noisy machine. I put a little 3 in 1 oil on the fan bearings. So far, it smells like 3 in 1, but the squeak has stopped.  So, Mission Accomplished.

I want to get a netbook, butI can justify the expenditure at this point. So I will just see how this one works out before I get something new.

Electronic devices

Originally uploaded by Fronzel

I got the call to leave Bakersfield and go home. I may be going to Mexico soon, but for now I am home.

On the flight back I noticed this sign. It is actually, pretty hard to take a picture of this sort of sign. And I have no idea why the camera on my phone is worse then a 1 megapixel camera ever was.

So I need a new camera.

I just happened to see this for the Sony Ericsson C905. It takes great pictures and will automatically geotag. I considered just getting the Ericsson half so I don’t give money to Sony, but it looks like the Nokia N96 can do the same thing.

Still, I think I need to finish my tank first. I did find a DIY Lasertag system.  I think I might create a laser system to play with in the yard and a paintball system if I ever go play with the other guys that make tanks.