Michael,
I’m looking at taking a piece of 3/4 purple heart and using it to make a few 30mm and 24mm circles with a hole saw bit and inserting them into a piece of 3/4" poplar (it’s haunting me I swear! I’ve got so many scraps it’s just a pet project I wanted to try). The poplar’s easy on the machining, but the purpleheart is a beast on my router so I didnt know if the roundover bit would try to “grab” my workpiece when I got to the portion of the wood that had the inserts.
Aaron
Aaron,
One thing you need to keep in mind is the thickness of the holesaw. You will have that amount of space between the plug and the sides of the hole. If you can get a tight fit and it is well glued in place you shouldn’t have much of a problem. Just take small bites not the whole thing in one pass. Also go with a slow feed rate. That way the difference in hardness is not as drastic. I’m interested in seeing the end result if you do a test piece.
Michael
Micheal,
Cool beans I will be in the shop finishing up a few orders so I think I just might try it; though you do make a good point on the fit. I suppose if there’s a one mm gap from the holesaw I could line the hole carefully with a little tight bond and poplar shavings then slide the purpleheart in. If I can get to it tonight I’ll post a few pics of the test piece (fingers crossed)
Use epoxy instead of tightbond. You can also add a drop or two of a transtint to the epoxy and get a matching or contrasting color to the purpleheart.
I’ve gone through this thread, but can’t seem to find anything related to the way the edges are finished… how does one get edges nicely finished?
Would love to learn the way Voltech boxes are made, but that seems way too advanced, i’m thinking more along the lines of this…
http://www.mathewkwan.com/fightstick/06.jpg
image from this post
http://forums.shoryuken.com/showpost.php?p=6856534&postcount=13338
The edge treatments were done with a router mounted in a table. Follow up with some sandpaper to smooth out any rough spots and your golden. Looks like a 1/2" roundover bit was used on the front edges first then a chamfer on the sides. He had the speed a bit too fast on the chamfer bit and/or it was dull. That is why the wood is burned.
Michael
can i find a router that is cheap and good for sticks
another question, i was looking into jig saws, my question is will a router do what a jig saw can do or do i need both and about electric sanders, are they really needed. thanks for your help
What do you need a jigsaw for? I don’t think they really serve any purpose in case building, for other tasks they are useful (cutting shapes or cutting metal and plexi). If you are cutting straight lines in wood then a saw is much better.
Electric sanders work well, the random orbital palm ones are my favourite because you can do rough work or detail work (with a soft pad). They are a bit pricey and unnecessary though because sanding by hand with a sanding block, sponge or squegee (it’s a flexible rubber sanding block) can do everything an electric sander can and more. I have one of the electric sanders with a triangular pad and I use a hand sanding block 90% of the time. Electric sanders are good for large surfaces, like when you are working on a car or if you’re painting a cabinet/table/desk I guess. For cases I would not use one.
Let me say one thing. “You get what you pay for.”
I agree with crazed, don’t bother with a jigsaw. They don’t cut a straight line no matter how hard you try. You would get better results from a hand saw or circular saw.
For electric sanders there are two kinds that I would consider for building sticks. The first one is the random orbit sander. Get one with variable speed and that you can connect to a shop vac. The second one is a 1/4 sheet finish sander. These are less aggressive then a random orbit sander and allow you to save money by buying regular sandpaper instead of the velcro or sticky papers. You can also use higher grit papers with a finish sander for a smoother surface.
Keep in mind that no matter how much you pay for a tool it is only as good as you are. To get better results you need to practice woodworking just like you need to practice your SF moves. However on the flip side if you buy cheep tools you will never get good at woodworking. Cheep tools have a low price for a reason. Usually it is because they use low quality parts or designs. They also don’t last that long. You will pay more for cheep tools over time than if you bought a good tool the first time. Just think how many game pads you go through compared to a good quality custom stick.
I get feedback from customers all the time shortly after they start playing on a stick I built for them. They all basically say the same thing, “Thank you, I never expected this stick to elevate my game play as much as it has.” It is feedback like this that makes me want to keep getting better in my woodworking. Here is a quote from one such email that I received just yesterday.
Here is my all wooden arcade box. 3 coats of teak stains and 6 coats of varnish.
I used a router for the slanted edges and recess button in the front.
http://joystickvault.com/data/763/medium/arcade_002.jpg
That’s pretty nice man. It has an antique furniture kind of look. Classy.
coo thanks for the info. So then what is a good price for a router and what brand names should i be lookin for. I have gotten great feedback for the cases that i have built for customers already and that was just from using a handsaw, sanding, and a drill. I really just wanted a router for cases only so that it would make my job a little easier and more professional looking, not saying my other cases were bad i just want something other than a square hahaha. thanks for the info
I personally think you can’t go wrong with a maikita. I wish i could afford maikita tools, but i’m in the “you get what you paid for” category…
I’ve just got cheap tools that’ll do the job.
how much did you pay for the router and how does it work for you
You are looking at $100 - $200 for a good router. Sometimes you can find one for sale for less. Here is a good one on sale currently. http://www.woodcraft.com/product.aspx?ProductID=148513&FamilyID=20403
I’ve got a black & decker router, which i paid about 120 AUD ish, i think the quality of the router bits would be a bit important too…
Using a skil plunge router right now $50 used and a ryobi fixed base router w/table at home depot for super cheap 100.00 flat. The ryobi is a pain though when swapping bits :s
The woodcraft deal is a very good one though, and you can use bigger bits with the 1/2" collet.
I suggest using bits with the 1/2" collet as the 1/4" ones don’t look very strong and as safe as a 1/2" collect router bit.
I just might try that (got a little busy last night…heh). I’ve used it before in plexi boxes but not too much with wood, so it will be fun to see how that works out 
What brand do you use? Been using J&B weld but the smell is God awful :s
Thanks so much for contributing that resource, if you do have anything else please feel free to post away