CNC Coasters

Coasters!

So....you had succes with the CNC basic lesson and created an awesome wall tile.

Though it looks cool, it's not very functional. We're going to change that. We are going to make coasters. 

There are tons and tons of youtube tutorials online on how to make coasters, but in this class we are going to do things a little different.  So let me first do the MUSTS of this lesson. After this I will give you the tools to make the best designed coaster ever!

Your project MUST be:

Why do we use pallet wood?

This series of lessons is part of the workshop part of Makerspace. You will have to sand the ugly old wood back to it's beauty. Then we will use the CNC machine to turn into something more beautiful.  We will finish it off with paint and varnish.

After that bring it home and use it. Your parents will be amazed!

How will we be graded?

We wil use the grading rubric for this project. Which you can find here!

Procedure:

Step 1:

 Choose a piece of pallet-wood and determine the size of your coaster. Some coasters are bigger, some coasters are smaller. Even the shape is up to you. You can use rectangles, cirkels, hexagons or any shape. As long as it's clear that they are coasters. Start sanding the piece and determine the good pieces of it. You then will cut these pieces. Make sure there are no rips in the wood (see the red circles)

You have now a good piece of wood. This is what we're going to use for the coasters.  Start measuring the sizes of your piece of wood. Remember: The CNC machine can not cut pieces bigger than 16 inch. If your wood is much longer, you'll have to cut it. Write the measurements down somewhere, you will need them for step 2.

Step 2: 

I created an instruction video for the design part of your coasters:

Best way is to watch the video and follow it step by step. You can pause the video anytime.

Step 3: CNC cut 


After the CNC machine is done with it's work, you'll push the coaster out of the wood (now you see why the tabs were important!) en lightly sand it by hand. (NO machine). Gather the pieces on a coardboard for step 4: 

Step 4: Paint & Sand!

A. Spray the pieces




B. Let it dry

C. Use the belt sander in the classroom to sand the pieces. BE CAREFUL. The belt sand machine sands really quick and can do potentially a lot of harm. Make sure you tell the teacher before you are going to sand. That way it'll be safe.







D. This is how it must look like in the end!

Step 5: Varnish!

Lay the coasters back on the cardboard

Use a brush and Varnish the pieces!

Done! Now let it dry.

End of the lesson

Well done! Get graded by me and bring your coasters home!

They will be amazed by what you made.


Mr. Pieter