Aluminum blocks
Categories: Products; Jewelry; Projects and equipment
Word count/read time: 302 words; 1-1/2 minutes
Thankfully it's not because I smashed some body part, and amid the cursing
everything went hazy and blurry as the pain threshold exceeded my limit.
Because that does happen on occasion.
These are physical stars minus the 10,000,000deg temperature and some other
minor details. They were designed for a dual purpose. Using common metals like
aluminum or copper makes simple holiday (tree) or other decorative ornaments.
Made with silver, they are great jewelry whether earrings or pendants. At
a maximum size of about 2.5" they won't be gaudy or intrusive.
There are seven jigs based on three- to nine-sided figures. The
extra holes allow doubling up, secondary points between the main points,
or smaller shapes altogether.
Trying to do the math on possible shapes? Let me know how that goes.
I made prototypes in delrin (high-tech plastic).
The new aluminum blocks will last a lifetime.
Stainless steel would have been stronger with a higher cost and heavier weight
but it was overkill in this application.
The pins, however, are stainless steel
because they must not oxidize or they won't fit into the holes.
Speaking of the holes and the pins, the hole was so accurate that the
pins had to be sanded to fit, and fit they do.
Could have been a glutton for punishment and enlarged all 1000+ holes, I suppose.
While a manual mill could have worked, it
would have been prohibitive. Besides, each hole required two drilling operations,
the first acting as the pilot divot and quasi-countersink. No thanks.
One specialty drill bit was $70 alone!
Programmed into a CNC machine, they were exponentially faster than
anything I could have churned out. Everything is perfectly aligned and positioned
no questions asked. Making these jigs removes one more
item from the to-do list, which now rests at infinity minus one.
Posted by M: October 9, 2023
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