Rassilon
Well-Known Member
I was thinking that this might be a good thread to do on the making of the display stand. And how I came up with that design for the Dr Who design a sonic competition.
As the total prise for the winner is $1000Aud I had to come up with a display stand that would not blow the budget, or to much of the $1000Aud on the stand.
The specifications for the display stand, I think should have the following features.
Circular Acrylic cylinder as the display cover.
Internal Display lighting.
The seal of Rassilon at the base.
Engraved brass ID plate.
Acrylic mounts for the winning sonic.
Like many designs I work on, I first start with a design drawing, this helps me to get my ideas onto paper first and to cut down on rework, and also to keep it for reference should I need to make another one at any time. As I don’t know who the winner will be, I have to assume that the sonic my or may not be any longer than the eleventh Doctors sonic, so, with that in mined. I started to work with displaying a sonic of that size and shape.
Once I hade the design on paper I next went looking for a way to light the sonic display up with, and for this I used a domed night light.
I now had a way of installing light in the display at an affordable cost, next came making the dome night light into an actual display base without modifying it to much.
As the dome night light is a circular shape I kept to this design feature and using the CNC router cut out 4 of 12mm thick rings from MDF board, and using wood glue stuck them together. Two of the rings have a collar inside to allow the 3mm white Acrylic seal of Rassilon to fit into, and the other is so that the dome light can rest against.
Now that the base is close to been almost finished, next was then to then set up the CNC router and started to engrave the seal of Rassilon 1mm deep into the 3mm acrylic white sheet.
This will allow more light to radiate from certain parts of the seal, and to give it that ghost shadow appearance at the base were the sonic will be supported.
NOTE:
Ok, at this point of the build I did have one of my change my design moments, I had a design revelation. This often happens when I almost finish a build;
I then get a design revelation and start to change it at the end of the build.
This happens a lot and it is very annoying, however it is for the better.
I think, as you will see that the display, which I will now be making, will be an evolution.
And I have given it a name, and it will be called;
“The Rassilon Sonic display Carousel”.
This revelation came to me, as so many of them often do, and it is often when I’m having a good Aussie beer and watching some Dr Who episodes and playing Dr Who pinball with Dalek Cann and friends.
And it go’s something like this; “The Rassilon Sonic display Carousel”
will display 4 Sonics at once, the 4 Sonics will be suspended from the apex at the top of the Acrylic cylinder, and can be rotated to any position in the carousel by turning the rotation carousel knob at the top.
As the Rassilon Sonic display, or Rassilon Sonic display Carousel, is a cylindrical shape all 4 Sonics can be displayed at once in the same display. “Just brilliant” and can be remove individually by removing the carousel Sonic frame from the cylindrical display.
So the new specification are now.
Circular Acrylic cylinder as the display cover.
Internal Display lighting from the base.
Must display 4 Rassilon Sonics at any one time.
Engraved brass ID plate located at the base.
Acrylic mounts for all 4 Sonics as well as the winning sonic.
So with the above new specification I then made a start on the clear acrylic carousel Sonic frame that will be suspended from the apex at the top the acrylic cylinder, and there is no better machine to do this with than the CNC router. I used 5mm clear acrylic for the carousel Sonic frame.
Once the cnc router cut all the components, I then assembled them, and there you have it, a carousel sonic frame support.
The Acrylic tube has not arrived at this point, I ordered the Acrylic tube with the following specifications, 140 O/D x 2.5 thk x 220 lg.
As the Acrylic tube will came in 1 Mtr or (3”) lengths, I will have to use a drop saw to cut the Acrylic tube to length.
As the total prise for the winner is $1000Aud I had to come up with a display stand that would not blow the budget, or to much of the $1000Aud on the stand.
The specifications for the display stand, I think should have the following features.
Circular Acrylic cylinder as the display cover.
Internal Display lighting.
The seal of Rassilon at the base.
Engraved brass ID plate.
Acrylic mounts for the winning sonic.
Like many designs I work on, I first start with a design drawing, this helps me to get my ideas onto paper first and to cut down on rework, and also to keep it for reference should I need to make another one at any time. As I don’t know who the winner will be, I have to assume that the sonic my or may not be any longer than the eleventh Doctors sonic, so, with that in mined. I started to work with displaying a sonic of that size and shape.
Once I hade the design on paper I next went looking for a way to light the sonic display up with, and for this I used a domed night light.
I now had a way of installing light in the display at an affordable cost, next came making the dome night light into an actual display base without modifying it to much.
As the dome night light is a circular shape I kept to this design feature and using the CNC router cut out 4 of 12mm thick rings from MDF board, and using wood glue stuck them together. Two of the rings have a collar inside to allow the 3mm white Acrylic seal of Rassilon to fit into, and the other is so that the dome light can rest against.
Now that the base is close to been almost finished, next was then to then set up the CNC router and started to engrave the seal of Rassilon 1mm deep into the 3mm acrylic white sheet.
This will allow more light to radiate from certain parts of the seal, and to give it that ghost shadow appearance at the base were the sonic will be supported.
NOTE:
Ok, at this point of the build I did have one of my change my design moments, I had a design revelation. This often happens when I almost finish a build;
I then get a design revelation and start to change it at the end of the build.
This happens a lot and it is very annoying, however it is for the better.
I think, as you will see that the display, which I will now be making, will be an evolution.
And I have given it a name, and it will be called;
“The Rassilon Sonic display Carousel”.
This revelation came to me, as so many of them often do, and it is often when I’m having a good Aussie beer and watching some Dr Who episodes and playing Dr Who pinball with Dalek Cann and friends.
And it go’s something like this; “The Rassilon Sonic display Carousel”
will display 4 Sonics at once, the 4 Sonics will be suspended from the apex at the top of the Acrylic cylinder, and can be rotated to any position in the carousel by turning the rotation carousel knob at the top.
As the Rassilon Sonic display, or Rassilon Sonic display Carousel, is a cylindrical shape all 4 Sonics can be displayed at once in the same display. “Just brilliant” and can be remove individually by removing the carousel Sonic frame from the cylindrical display.
So the new specification are now.
Circular Acrylic cylinder as the display cover.
Internal Display lighting from the base.
Must display 4 Rassilon Sonics at any one time.
Engraved brass ID plate located at the base.
Acrylic mounts for all 4 Sonics as well as the winning sonic.
So with the above new specification I then made a start on the clear acrylic carousel Sonic frame that will be suspended from the apex at the top the acrylic cylinder, and there is no better machine to do this with than the CNC router. I used 5mm clear acrylic for the carousel Sonic frame.
Once the cnc router cut all the components, I then assembled them, and there you have it, a carousel sonic frame support.
The Acrylic tube has not arrived at this point, I ordered the Acrylic tube with the following specifications, 140 O/D x 2.5 thk x 220 lg.
As the Acrylic tube will came in 1 Mtr or (3”) lengths, I will have to use a drop saw to cut the Acrylic tube to length.
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