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Thread: elliptical mirror finally complete

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
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    Milwaukee
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    907

    elliptical mirror finally complete

    Some of you may remember my earlier posts about building David Marks elliptical mirror. I've finally completed it. While David's program Wood Works was helpful, in no way did I proceed the way he did. For one reason or the other I changed procedures to suit my expectations, skill and tool availability. So here goes:

    First, I used Autocad to both figure out the ellipses I wanted and to see for myself that a router on a jig could cut it.

    Next, I made a jig to guide my router giving me the elliptical templates directly.

    I made 4 elliptical templates. One for the basic shape, one each for the mirror and the panel to hold it to the frame and one to make the second part of the two step rabbet on the back.

    I also made 5 templates for the individual pieces that are mitered together and give the (very) rough ellipse. 3 of those templates are mirror image.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  2. #2
    Join Date
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    The frame uses floating tenons. I made a jig to guide my router with a collar and cut the mortises. On Wood Works, David uses a multi router. A cool machine, no doubt, but far beyond my hobbiest budget.

    I first test clamped and determined what clamp could go where. For this project, the number of clamps of these sizes doubled. That is, I only had 1/2 as many needed, so went to the store for more.

    I used Gorilla Glue to put it together. I think yellow glue would have been plenty good enough, but my experience says that when I'm doing a complicated glue up, I'd better have a lot of open time in the adhesive or I might be in trouble.

    When the glue had cured, I took that first template, taped it on with double stick and mounted up the big template bit and got to it. Then I routed the first rabbet and used another template to make the second rabbet. The mirror with a 1" bevel sits in the first rabbet and the plate to retain the mirror to the frame sits in the second. Then I rounded over the back outer edge with a 1/2" and flipped it over and rounded over the top inner and outer edge with a 1" radius.

    These template routing, rabbeting and rounding over operations are the place I did things different from Mr. Marks. First, David says his frame is 1 1/2" thick. Well, the first frame I made (poplar) I did that and discovered that there is no land for the ball bearing guide to ride on. I ended up using a much smaller radius on the back outer edge to compensate. I also learned on the poplar frame that routing in the usual direction left a good amount of chipout on both the rabbet and the rounding over. All that chipout was unacceptable, but fortunately, I also learned that climb cutting is not so bad, especially with the huge heavy router I was using, my PC 7539. Especially with a big auxiliary base and some feet I had attached to it to straddle the frame while working on it. Those things provided lots of friction and stability to the router since the frame was so narrow. So when I made the "good" frame, I made it thicker for the bearings on the bits and I climb cut every inch of the way.
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  3. #3
    Join Date
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    So now we get to the fun part. I did the carving David did to his. Same tools and technique. A die grinder from Harbor Freight along with some carbide burrs (1" spherical and a big flame tip). My little pancake barely kept up. I used carving gouges to refine the shapes. This is one area where making two frames helped a LOT. I learned a great deal on the poplar that when I made the cherry frame it was darn near perfect.
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  4. #4
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    And the last is to say what I used. The first frame was poplar glued together with epoxy. I didn't like the line the epoxy left.

    The frame you see is cherry. Finished with 5 coats of Waterlox and 2 of the Sam Maloof oil/wax mixture from Rockler.

    The keyholes allow the frame to sit tight to the wall with no obvious method of attachment to give it away. I'm going to tell people that ask that it's held to the wall with magic.

    I made 4 copy machine paper boxes of scraps through all this.
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  5. #5
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Location
    Rio Rancho, NM
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    John, that is beautiful!!! I really like it.

    Nancy
    Nancy Laird
    Owner - D&N Specialties, Rio Rancho, New Mexico
    Woodworker, turner, laser engraver; RETIRED!
    Lasers - ULS M-20 (20W) & M-360 (40W), Corel X4 and X3
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  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
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    SE PA - Central Bucks County
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    Now, that's kewel, John!!!! Nice work!
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  7. #7
    John,

    Beautiful job. Thanks for posting the detailed project description and pics.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Laguna Beach , Ca.
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    really nice work! The details and eecution are terrific!
    "All great work starts with love .... then it is no longer work"

  9. #9

    Thanks John

    Documentation like you provided is time consuming and I want to say the effort is really appreciated. Your description of process- the multiple templates, test piece and so on inspires me to slow down and try something challenging one of these days instead of dumbing down my designs to match my current skills. The finished mirror is just beautiful.
    Larry R

  10. #10
    Nice design and nice work. It's so simple. But a close look shows how complex something which appears so simple really is.
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  11. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Milwaukee
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    907
    Thanks to all.

    I tried to describe some of things I did differently from the Wood Works program.

    I noticed while arranging the "keystones" that were the individual parts mitered to become the frame that they could slip past each other yielding a possilby a lot of different elliptical shapes. That's why I fixed the top and bottom in the approximate position I needed.

    It was also a very good thing that I took David Marks advise and built two frames. I made so many mistakes on the first one, subtle mistakes, mistakes that make it look like a high school project, that I was very happy to have done it to learn from it. The one I've shown is the second one in cherry.

    Yes, there was a lot of work to get to making the frame. Lots of templates, that jig and studying how to cut an ellipse without doing the string method Mr. Marks showed. He may be able to cut a perfect ellipse by sanding to a line, but I don't think I can. It was better for me to have used a jig.

    I'm estimating the the support work was about 60% of the effort. The first frame taught me a lot of details. I'm guessing that if I were to make another one, it would take just 2 or 3 weeks.

    Thanks again.

    No project is beyond your reach if you break it down into it's tiny individual steps.

  12. #12
    Quote Originally Posted by John Piwaron View Post
    No project is beyond your reach if you break it down into it's tiny individual steps.

    Ok, he said break it down into tiny individual steps...Now where is that extension cord in all of this mess! Nope, I have to start even start smaller than that.

    Bruce

  13. #13
    Nice job John!
    I've wanted to make one the first time I saw it.
    Looks good!

  14. Nice work, John!

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Fallbrook, California
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    3,562
    That's a great design and the final product is fantastic!! Thanks for sharing.
    Don Bullock
    Woebgon Bassets
    AKC Championss

    The man who makes no mistakes does not usually make anything.
    -- Edward John Phelps

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