Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Design Decisions.

You would think that I would be better at making decisions about my designs before I have started to buil a project...designing things is what I do for a living.  Being able to put off those tough decisions until the the last minute turns out to be one of the really liberating thing about doing projects at home, for myself.

I am beginning a build for a record case which will be a gift for a friend who is DJ'ing our wedding later this summer.  He still spins vinyl so I thought a classy case for him to haul records to his gigs would be great.  The basic design is styled around tansu hardware from Lee Valley.


I've got some cherry glued up which will make the case sides.

and I have a chunk of maple burl which I plan to slice off veneers for the top from.


I think this is the layout I'm going to with for the top.
The next big decision I need to make it what proportions to use for the upper and lower portions of the case. The version on the left has a much deeper top at 5 1/2 inchs while the one on the right is 3 1/2. I ordered both types of hardware layed out in the two options.  The deeper top will leave more of the records exposed which should make removing them easier, but for some reason I'm hesitant to commit to that design.



Any thoughts and suggestions would be appreciated..






2 comments:

  1. Jeremy,

    Disregarding function and looking strictly at aesthetics, I think that the deeper top looks too deep, proportionately. Keep in mind that a deeper top will need more clearance of the contents to hinge open freely.

    I also think that the shallower top looks to shallow. I think I would choose a top that is somewhere in the middle. Or you might also consider an L-shaped lid that sits between full-height sides.

    Chris

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  2. Chris, Thanks. I think something in between those two is what I'm leaning toward if I stick with that design. The lid is going to be fully removable with a pair of case latches on each side so the hinge clearance won't be an issue. The "L" shaped lid idea is intriguing. I think I'll do some sketching to see if I can wrap my head around how that would work. I like the idea of being able to keep the handles a bit further up on the sides while providing easy access to the contents.

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