Loen.Design

What’s Happening Now – June 2021

Just finished off a few stools – basically playing around with various design ideas and fabrication techniques. Furniture is hard! Very picky to get something that feels the right size for multiple people.
Thinking about some ideas for Pride month.
Also thinking about some more public projects. Some outside, publicly available things. Probably longer term ideas.
Refinished and welded an aluminum outdoor bench.
Building a banana-shaped holder for postcards which will be attached to the sign outside our studio
Helped a friend fix a kitchen drawer
Met with Daniel Marciano, an interesting woodworker here in Ottawa
Had a nice BBQ lunch with our good friend Jon

The Clock video was released and got a lot of nice comments.
We updated the sign outside our studio – “Lets be effervescently strange.”
Completing a set of bookcases with a built-in sleeping platform – should be done this week.
Welded up a spike to hold a bird feeder in the front yard of our new house.
I got the camera working with our new-to-us X700 laser – so you can see an image of the item you are going to cut on screen in Lightburn and line up the cut quite precisely. I’m impressed by Lightburn.
Working on a new video for the Plasma Cutter. It will be nerdy video.
Working on a 3 foot by 9 foot live-edge walnut island for the kitchen in the studio. I’m welding up some legs for the island out of 2 inch square steel tube. This is a bit of overkill. I’m using a combination of MIG and TIG welding to weld all the pieces together. Gotta keep practicing the TIG! The photos below show the base with primer paint.
And, here’s the finished table!!

Also working on a stool. I’m starting with a design by Frank Gehry, and then I’ll see where it goes from there.
Finished that stool, and learned a lot. Too heavy. Impossible to sand. Add more alignment pins. Pin nail as assembling each layer. Hard to apply finish. All that said, I really like the looks of it. It’s pleasant.
Working on another stool, of my own design. I’m sure this one will also have it’s challenges! Photos soon.
I updated the sign – XYZZY which is a transporter command in an early video game.
I plasma cut some address numbers for our cottage. I think they came out nicely!

Chain Drive Clock is done!! Cleaning up the video of this project.
Working on a quick project – an Arch Light. Looking for a great big light bulb. (Found at 1000bulbs.com!)
Building some shelving for a bedroom.
Helped my Neighbour Laris with a quick maple/walnut live-edge table top.
Got the new laser running with Lightburn software. Also setting up a camera to work with Lightburn. I’m trying the model referenced here: https://lightburnsoftware.com/products/camera-mount-for-5mp-camera
3D printed the camera holder for the laser. The design referenced above was perfect for the camera I got.
3D printed a part for a ToTo toilet. One of those times where the project flowed so smoothly from concept, through design, and then came out of the printer and fits perfectly. Nice! I wish these things happened more often.
Built some table legs – some simple welding with the TIG welder.
Built some metal feet for the arch light – MIG welded it together
Updated the sign
Trying to figure out a recipe to spray latex paint with the Fuji sprayer. First results are so-so.

The chain drive clock is done! Now working on videos for it.
Getting back to other projects, and a pretty major shop cleanup!
Filming some footage about our Langmuir Crossfire Pro Plasma Cutter
Adding some safety features to the chain drive clock
Built a wall rack for various saws and tools. And then Giaco made a cool video about the same thing! His is nicer.
We keep getting nice comments about our sign messages. Thanks!
Darcy (@inventorartist) gave us a cool, 60W REDSAIL X700 Laser. Thanks Darcy! Great addition to our shop. We’ll show you more about that in some upcoming videos.
Got in a new controller board for the laser. Should help modernize it.
Finished Clock. Clock broke immediately. Clock maker annoyed.
Made a “Recording” sign. Spelled most of RECORDING correctly.
Installed new controller board, water cooler etc in X700 Laser. Got it up and running with Lightburn software, which is excellent.
Redid the motor mounts for the chain drive clock. A shaft on one of the teknic servo motors snapped due to misalignment. Have now installed proper couplers on all motors.
Reg built a seat that looks like a tractor. And then he added a power drive with a cordless drill. Cool Reg!

Updated the sign! Everything Happens So Much.
Working on the clock. It’s actually moving and telling time, and sometimes it really screws up. Quite maxing out the Arduino CPU running it. Working on cleaning up things so it looks nicer.
The LEDs in the Nazca cat are burning out for some reason. Maybe I got the voltage wrong. Or, maybe they were cheap eBay LEDs!
Working on a new video about the CNC Router upgrades we just completed.
Upgrading the DRO’s on our Aciera F5 mill.
Thinking about welding something.
DRO has been upgraded on the Aciera F5 to a 3 axis unit from DROPROS.com. Very happy with the upgrade.
Switching the clock over to Teensy 4.1 device – has a much more powerful CPU and a lot of nice capabilities. This is done now, and things are much improved.
Written 10 rendering routines for time, selectable by a pot, so you can set the clock to be quiet, or more rambunctious.
Released video for CNC Router upgrade
Continuing to improve the CNC Router – stiffening the rack and pinion gear system. Done!
Working on a small end-table for a couch
Updated the sign! I am not a cat – maybe.
Cleaning out the rubbish in the storage area. Old stuff from my childhood, micro-boards I’ll never use, old books and CD’s.
Updated the sign again! First I was afraid, I was petrified.