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IDOTRIX Elite user Darien,il 467 Posts |
Thought I posted this yesterday but it's gone. My question was what wood do you use for the die and also what material and how to bend sh--l. Thanks
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
This depends on the size of the Die Box. You can find square stock in good hardwoods like Poplar up to 3"x3" at some home improvement stores (It actually measures 2.5"x2.5"). You can slice off a hunk of that and sand the cut edges. I use this for things like my Vampire Block Escapes.
Although larger stock can be found, it is usually construction grade 4x4s (not so good for our use), or something like basswood, which can be ridiculously expensive in those sizes. What I do for larger blocks is make them as a six-sided cube built from Baltic Birch Ply. I use rabbeted edges and typically have to sand well and use grain filler along the end grains so they paint well. This takes a little time to do well, but the advantages are that you can make them just about any size you need, and they are a lot lighter weight than solid wood. For the shell, the larger ones can be made from 1/8" Baltic Birch and a knack for good joinery. It was good enough for Ben Stone at Delben, and I've done it that way, too. Bending metal shells requires either a finger brake, or a lot of creativity with a standard brake, and some custom made clamping bars. They will still require some soldering, which is best done with a jig so you can clamp the adjacent sides exactly where you want them. This way, you can get a soldered edge with no overlap (best for smaller shells). You can also use overlap flanges on larger shells, as the overlaps are less likely to impede the fit of the block within. care must be used when soldering as too much heat can warp the metal. You might even be able to make the joints with a spot welder, as long as you can get the tong points into the right place.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
IDOTRIX Elite user Darien,il 467 Posts |
Thanks Michael. I find this part of the project will be the most troubling. Problems like this make me stop the project before they begin. I don't do any metal work. I'm thinking a High school metal shop to do the shell for me and the fake door panel.
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gimpy2 Special user 960 Posts |
I am a big fan of the Delben die box that Michael mentioned. The shell is made of 1/8" Baltic birch. One advantage of a wood shell is that you can stain the inside of the box and shell so you don't have to paint the inside black. The stained inside is deceptive as well as attractive. The early Delben dies were pretty simple hollow blocks with 1/2" ply on two ends and 1/8" made the 4 sides. The latter dies had some pretty fancy joint work to get rid of the but joints. If you want a solid block try tupolo, Its sold for wood carving and you can get a small chunk for a few bucks online. This wood is lightweight, dense, durable, is easy to work and paints up like a dream.
Gimpy
www.gimpysmagic.com |
Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Oh, you're doing the door fake also? Those can be a booger, too. Good luck if you decide to use the turn knob type catch. I used those on a couple early Die Boxes and later on the Find The Lady Cubes. That trick has three of them has one. I must have hated it, because I have never made another one! Ha!
Mel Babcock's Die Boxes have a unique DD method, which is MUCH easier to build. I recently worked on a large Delben Box that had an entirely unique method. I have opted for other means to apparently show the die in the box when it isn't, but typically as a "peek" where the audience catches a glimpse of the die in the opposite side. I recently bought an old Loyd Madison Die Box (also made later by O'Dowd as the Monarch Die Box). It has a completely different method for the DD feature. I may try my hand at one of those down the road. My metal working abilities are very limited by my lack of decent tools.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
Christian Wilde New user 90 Posts |
I recently made my first die box. It went through a few botched iterations before the design came together. I made the sh**l from 3 mm mdf . It works really well. And mdf is super easy to work with.
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Eldon Inner circle Virden, IL 1137 Posts |
Years ago we contracted out just to make the shells for a builder in Atlanta. I remember we made a custom jig to bend the metal. We used some type of adhesive instead of solder or welding but I can't remember what it was. I wish I did because it worked very well.
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jimgerrish Inner circle East Orange, NJ 3209 Posts |
Just so you know, it IS possible to make both the die and shh! from 1/8 inch thick Basswood, as shown:
It's shown in The Wizards' Journal #27. Mine is rather large, but you can make it any size you wish. No metal working required. This is from the Kitchen Workshop Journal, so no power tools are used in construction, either. Of course, you can cheat if you wish, but it's fun to make something entirely by hand using only hand saws and razor knives and such.
Jim Gerrish
magicnook@yahoo.com https://www.magicnook.com Home of The Wizards' Journals: https://magicnook.com/wizardsTOC.htm |
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