Fallout: Brotherhood of Steel Holotags

Mach, Nice test. Even the first press might be detailed enough for this build.
Did you make the silencer using sugru and a mold, or just by hand?
 
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Sugru and a mold. The layer cake that I was mentioning above looks something like this. It's laser cut.
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The middle layers are 1mm acrylic and the outer caps are 1/4" acrylic. Its pinned in the center 3x and on the outside 4 corners. Machining it out of delrin would be better but this was faster. I clamped it with several clamps and picked up alot of flash. Having pressure slots would make it easier to clean up. It took 1 pack of Sugru @ $10 for a 3 pack that would get pricey quick.

On the press test, I can bandsaw and file a rough shape at a 45 degree angle out of 1/8" carbon steel. That'll mean about 1/4" thick tags. Too thick?
 
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If your laser etcher has the ability to rather-etch, you can actually get curved edges. It takes some tweaking and lots of etching time, but it's possible.

I don't think there is any issue with a bit over 1/4" total thickness (excluding the three buttons)

On your steel, you can get much thinner steel than 0.01", it seems the thinner the steel the easier it would be to form (up until it rips apart)
 
I tried the new buck with the same steel as before. The buck is made from 1/8" carbon steel. I shaped it with a belt sander and files.

0.01" is definitely too thick. Note the folding across the top. The puckering will hopefully go away with thinner shim stock. I'll try 0.05" next in annealed stainless and carbon steel.

The buttons were much too high and punched through. I ground them back and will hit them with a buffer. The cutout on the window will take a separate plug to form properly.

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Mach

Wow. You are doing all the prototyping that I thought I was going to be doing. ;) (I won't be ready with space for a while)

You can't have any very sharp edges in your molds with pressings. Any sharp edges become punches. The buttons would also need rounded edges. I planned on using 45 degree angles on them just like the rest. Even then, I doubt the buttons will ever form properly without a second half mold.

The folding along the top is caused by two things, too small of a blank (pre-cut sheet), and not enough pressure holding the edges of the blank. If nothing is holding the edges taught then the edges will fold up. Just the same as if you draped cloth over a drum, compared to securing the cloth to a drum ring. Even then it may tear. Annealing, as you guessed, may be needed before the metal will properly stretch.

Have you tried a softer metal foil yet, such as Aluminum foil? I expect it would tear, but it may be worth a try.
 
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I tried aluminum with the keys and it split as you predicted. The button were rounded but too tall. Thats why the the right one split. I ground them flat thinking to dome them with a buffer but will likely redo them. Do you think 3 holes drilled though a piece of steel would work for the button mold? I may weld over the buttons and redrill. I can drill both at the same time - buck and button mold.
 
I printed the silencers with Ninjaflex and then spray painted with Plasti-Dip until the layer lines were covered. Worked pretty well. I've got a couple of Adafruit Trinket that will just fit for the heartbeat. I had a custom circuit using ATTiny 85 but it was easier just to use a trinket.

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That looks amazing Mach,
Will the Trinket do something like make it pulse?

I am sort of distracted on my own build, I have a bunch of materials sitting here, just need to make the time to mess with them.
 
Yes, the intent is a heartbeat like pulse. Work is slowing down enough that I hope to rework the buck for the hydraulic press soon. Pics forth coming.
 
Finished off the second tag - calling this set done as this about as close as i can get with the pewter. Started reworking the steel buck buttons.

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Sorry not planning on a run.
 
I redid the steel buck buttons and also a second step buck to better define buttons. The gold color is brazing rod.

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This is 0.006" annealed stainless. The secondary buck seems to have worked but looking at it from the side...

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the stretch was apparently too much. Thinner material might work but its approaching foil thickness. I'm going to cry uncle on this approach in favor of the pewter cast ones.

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It looks like you would need a two-half mold, and just the right strety steel to get this working using a press. It is amazing what work you have done.
 
Thanks Zap, yeah I was thinking a top and bottom mold cast in aluminum bronze could work but at that point I'd just mill it. Either way, it'd be more prototyping time and my OCD has been satisfied on holotags. I've got a new laser cutter and CNC router kit to setup before I think about the cast bottles.

If I was doing a run, I'd skip the stamping. The pewter weight just feels good. I'd do larger scale pewter spin casting (to reduce the finishing time), custom flexible pcb, ninjaflex silencers, and the acrylic lens inserts. Wiring the trinket was very fiddley.
 
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