its up and mounted!
i went over yesterday and attached the plexiglass, and finish it off. instead of buying some "frosted glass" spray to frost them, i decided the save the 5 bucks, and just sand them down, which seemed like a great idea at the time, as ive already spent quite a bit on this thing. unfortunately, i didnt realize the only sandpaper i had left, was some 550, and 1200 grit paper. which took FOREVER to get a nice frosted effect. also, plexiglass clogs up sandpaper like you wouldnt believe, so i was constantly having to get a new sheet.... after a few pieces, i was ready to just say F it, and buy some of the spray, but they wouldnt have been uniform, and i didnt want half of the pieces more frosted than the others, so i just sludged on through and got em all sanded on both sides. then i used some clear silicone to glue them down.
went home and moved the bookcase that was in the spot i was planning on mounting Han, and drilled some holes to try and find the studs..... and had no luck at all. started freaking out. our house was built in the 20's, so its all plaster and slat walls, nowhere near strong enough to hold this thing. so i start researching toggle bolts and anything i can think of to attach this thing. luckily, my buddy came over to help me mount it, and found the studs, no idea how i managed to miss them repeatedly, but that was a huge weight off my shoulders.
i mounted it to the wall using an 18 inch french cleat mount, like many others have. the studs arent perfectly centered with where i wanted to hang it, as its a short section of wall, so there is a few inches of overhand between the section mounted on the wall, and the section mounted on Han, but not enough to worry about.
the lights i installed i got off of ebay, were
these. i got 10 meters, which i measured out to be just enough to go around the inside twice, once on top, and once on bottom, of the plexiglass ports. they are multicolor, and can be set to change and do almost anything, the one problem i didnt plan for, was going up and over the 2x4s inside, which took up a few inches here and there, and led me to be a few inches short on each string of lights.... but untimately that didnt matter, as they are bright enough that you dont notice. they also come with a remote, with a little infared reciever on a wire, which i attempted to drill a hole through the plexiglass on the bottom and dangle that out of, but while drilling, i cracked the entire corner of the plexiglass off. which i should have known would happen, but oh well, it was just a small corner, thatt led me with jut enough room to dangle both recievers out of the bottom. they attatched inside with double sided tape, but i can tell, im going to have to take the thing down and use a more permenant method of attatchment, as they wont stay stuck forever.....
ON TO THE PICS!
loading it into the back of my buddys truck.
all hung up and lighted.