Tardis Bookcase Build: A long journey ahead

Hello,
would like to say congratulations to everyone here. The quality of the stuff I've seen so far is amazing. Not just Doctor Who,
but everything else (well the stuff I'm familiar with anyway). Hope, in time, I'll contribute a little something...eventually.

The Beginning...:
Will do my best not to write a novel's worth, but starting from the beginning seems to be a good idea.
Been watching Doctor Who for a little while (guess my first Doctor is Matt Smith), seen all of the new series and
enjoying the classic Who. A few months ago, I got the wife into the Doctor (in French) and since then been we've been watching
the show together regularly.

Not too long ago, I stumbled across a picture of a bookcase made to look like a Tardis. Got a good laugh and showed the wife.
She loved it, saying the symbolism of a Tardis hiding a whole world of books behind its doors was quite fitting. She then suggested
building one. A surprise to my ears to say the least. I really like the way it opens but that's about all I like about it.
(this one: http://static03.mediaite.com/themarysue/uploads/2012/12/TARDIS-bookshelf-580x423.jpg)

Trolling the Internet...:
Searching the InterWebs and Google, I came across this forum as well as "tardisbuilder.com". Found lots of information on both
sites and in other corners of the InterTubes. Not only do I need to research building a Tardis, but bookcases/bookshelves as well.
They are not the same, hence need a different outlook on how to build and plan. However, finding information on bookcases is
rather easy compared to a Tardis. Not to say one is easier or harder, but like anything the more ornate/complicated the more
time and resources are needed.

The Planning...:
After seeing an amazing build by Rebelscum, I contacted him about measurements and his design plans.
He was nice enough to share a bit, which got me started with my project. His design page and a few others found on
The other forum (containing many measurements) really helped me in figuring out key measurements. Since my Tardis will be a
bookcase, it won't be square like the prop Tardis. So the sides will be narrower and be part of the door.
The back will most likely just be flat.

Doing this by hand (and taking my time), as the build is scheduled for next summer. Lots of time to calculate, extrapolate and
convert into my desired size. Seeing it will be indoors, it needs to fit in a room with a standard height ceiling.
So far, unless things change, it will be 80 inches from top to bottom. At the end of the day, it won't be a replica as many
of the details will not be present or the same.

Taking the Plunge...:
The plunge I'm referring to is writing to this board. Although everyone seems nice and polite towards one another (you all Canadian?),
still intimidating sharing such a project when so many others have done great work. Also, I've just begun and starting a thread with so little
is a bit nerv racking as well.

Updating this will be a source of motivation, as this will be my build journal/diary. Will do my best (like so many others have said/done)
to write here when adequate progress or breakthroughs are done.

The Plan...:
Since the build can't actually start during winter, will be hammering out the dimensions and plans. Transfer them in a CAD application for more
accurate printouts & scale (maybe blender for show.. don't know). After that sound and lighting effects will be made/designed.
Got a spare Raspberry Pi, should do the trick. Making a list of tools I have, and may need to purchase or borrow depending on their use/necessity.
I plan on sharing everything. The ups and the downs, and whatever plans I come up with and code and diagrams that will go with sound & light effects.

How committed am I?...:
Well got the garage finally cleaned out.

First picture...:
I've included some rough (really rough) sketches and basic math formulas in what one would call "bad hand writing". So far I've got the
dimensions of the two front doors & windows. Not much to see, but I've got about 7 pages of math and little drawings. Didn't see the point
of picturing it all.

It's a start right?

Cheers.

So It seems it's been five days since my initial post. Feels longer, been rather busy with work and family life.

Hammering at the plans and converting\scaling down to my size requirements. Not the most fun part of any project I guess, but a necessity. However I'm glad going at it the long way (using pencil and ruler versus a computer app). This way I have more time to see what pieces I need to cut out, how big and how I'll have to cut them. So all in all, it's a win-win for me as I honestly hate CAD applications and a magic mouse is not the best thing (IMO) for such things.

Although I'm not entirely finished with the plans, I did have a go at cutting the base of my Tardis bookcase. And for a first time doing such a thing, quite happy with the results. Took me a few tries, and several hours. Figured I'd take my time since I've never done this type of thing before.

Exterior dimensions: 40 5/16" x 15 7/16"
Height: 2 5/8" (a bit lower than what I planned but I like the longer slope it gives so keeping it)

Most experienced builders would've done such a thing in minutes, I'm not one of them and don't see me wasting my time comparing myself to them. However I do appreciated guidance and tips. One thing I did learn, once you've set your tool for a certain angle (be it miter or table saw) leave it. Cut everything that needs that angle and then move on to another cut. Had to start a few pieces over because I moved the settings once or twice. Oh well, live and learn. At the end of the day, was happy to see my base built and square. All that's left is to sand & assemble.

Side affect of mistakes:

Kindling & firewood...

So next on my todo list:
Finish up the plans.
Prepare the Raspberry Pi with magnetic switch.
Setup for lights/sound to turn on when opened.
And yes, my bookcase with have WiFi (no Internet however)

Should be interesting.

Congrats on diving into the project. Your work so far, looks great. Nothing wrong with planning but it's no substitute for getting your hands dirty. I'm definitely following this thread.

Looking forward to seeing this come along, subscribed!

Thanks for the comments guys, much appreciated.

Well progress is slow in every aspect of the build. Parts I ordered for sound/light control didn't come as expected... they didn't send the right item. So fighting to get everything settled.
I've hit a snag in the garage. Figured I'd get setup for some heating. So I checked to make sure everything is safe for me to use the wood stove. Well apparently the previous owner decided to be cheap and used wood chips to insulate the garage. Just happy the city inspector didn't go in my garage...



So I need to get that fixed.

At least I got my base assembled and I started the sanding. Had to use a bit of plastic wood... wondering if I should just redo. Happy with the result so far, but should I push my luck and try to make a better one.



Well wish me luck. Shouldn't take too long to fix the ceiling. Than again, I still have to paint my wife's office (I hate painting).

This is a wonderful idea. I was thinking about making a door frame TARDIS way back. managed to find a PDF with full blueprints. I will have a mooch in my "projects" folder to see if they're still there if you want them?

Can't wait to see your finished piece.

fabrik said:

This is a wonderful idea. I was thinking about making a door frame TARDIS way back. managed to find a PDF with full blueprints. I will have a mooch in my "projects" folder to see if they're still there if you want them?

Can't wait to see your finished piece.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the offer, I may take you up on that.

Well another quick update. Had 3 days off, which gave me enough time to get things settled in the garage (I've got heating!).
The good news, the ceiling is properly insulated and I now have a good table for my saw. Bad news is, I'll have to redo my base.

So yesterday I started a corner post. First thing I did, which will now be my ritual before doing anything, was a rough cut template.
From the dimensions, the corners would need to be 3 1/4" on the long side and 1 1/2 on the short one (it's rectangle not square).
After a bit of thinking and looking closely at the piece I intended to use I came up with this:



Doing the template also helps on how to get the proper cuts...
It's a 2"x6" cut down to size, not bad me figures. Taking it slower, I figured I could do all the corner posts this way.
So I took a full length 8' piece nicer 2"x6", planned and cut to my desired dimensions (3 1/4" & 1 1/2"). Was rather proud of myself,
seeing this is the first time I've ever done this kind of work.



And now the moment the bad news struck. I couldn't figure out how to attach this properly to my base. I had factored in an extra 2" in
the post's total length to screw in the base. But it's so thin there wouldn't be strong enough, there's just not enough material...
Walked over to my neighbor's for some help and advice (A very nice man I must add). Showed him what I had done so far, explained
what it needed to be and do etc.
And after a few hits and misses he came up with a simple 2"x4" cut with a lip to it fits over my base.



And placed on the base:



Which is pretty much what I need\want..
The down side, the added material left for strength reduces my shelf depth from 11 3/8" to just over 10 inches. Not much considering
it won't be a big bookcase to begin with. My neighbor suggested I redo the base, "You can use the base you have, but if you want to
do it right redo the sides. Making furniture is not easy..." Words of wisdom.

The lessons learned however made up for the disappointment in having to back track. I gained experience with the table saw (or bench saw).
Neighbor showed me some neat little tricks, seeing I don't have a dado blade. And I got a better understanding of the overall project, giving
me hope I can do this.
Another good side effect, with the sides being a bit longer, the detailing will be more visible.
I've discovered, using the scaled down dimensions I'll be losing lots of little details (like that trim\cut down the sides posts). So since this
is not an accurate replica, I'll be exaggerating just enough to see them.

Finally received the stuff for my the sound\light control, it's called a PiFACE. A digital interface for the Raspberry Pi mini computer. It sits
right on top of the RPi, connects into the GPIO pins and comes equipped with 2 10A-250V AC relay switches. And since this is all tied into
the RPi, with a bit of Python coding getting some sound and a light (or series of LEDs, heck even a blender) to turn on on cue shouldn't be
difficult.
The PiFace is like 35$-ish... and comes assembled. Had I purchased the relays, a small bread board, wires to and from the RPi would've been
cheaper yes.. but for about 10$ more I'm saving on the hassle of assembly. And it all fits into a nice little package.



So that's about it for today.
If I'm lucky I'll be able to get back the garage this evening to start re-cutting the sides of my base.

Thanks for viewing...

Great project, and one I'd be keen to try myself in the future. I'm considering making the entrance to my basement a TARDIS look.

hehehe
Been awhile, but with current work load, bad\extremely cold weather and of course the holiday season its been hard to get anything done on this project. It's not a race so I don't mind.

I have 3 of the 4 corner posts done. Sorry no pictures as it would be rather "boring". I took the time I wasn't able to heat the garage adequately to setup my RPi with the magnetic switch. I was surprised and a bit disappointed.. after an hour everything worked. I say this as I thought it would've taken me a bit more time to code everything. There is however much room for improvement. Still, the the switch is separated (door opening) my relay closes the circuit (nothing plugged in yet but there is a light showing it's closed) and a randomly chosen MP3 file plays. Door closes sound stops and of course the light "would" turn off. Funny...

Seeing that I started this thread, and don't want to leave it hanging for months on end, I thought it best to update it. A little progress, but why not. I've learned much and getting better with the tools (and heating my garage). The wife was nice enough to get me a clock Now I won't be late for work...

That's it...
Wish you all a good and safe rest of holiday season..
See you next year

You have no idea much I want one of these

Koipond said:

You have no idea much I want one of these

Click to expand...

Pretty sure I do That's why I'm building it.