Most of us are often perturbed by the common inquiry our non-craftsman pals enjoy probing: “What do you create with all those high-end tools?” Mostly, the response is a simple, “More tools.” This usually results in our baffled buddies furrowing their foreheads, nodding and leaving, without any comprehension of our fixation.
Sometimes we get to making something related to another hobby, and that can certainly be satisfying. It seems like the rarest opportunity of all is to make something a loved one really cherishes. I got a real kick out of this jewelry box project when I came across it. The idea was to create an heirloom quality jewelry box that had a special and very unique compartment where an engagement ring would be placed. The box would then form an integral part of the marriage proposal. The case itself is awesome, and I called this article “A Little Bit of CNC Goes a Long Way” because it was made on a very modest Shapeoko CNC machine. Here’s a photo essay that shows the project coming together:
Here’s the little Shapeoko CNC used for the project…
The lid, tray, and box bottom were all whittled out of oak burlwood using the Shapeoko. The oak itself was sawn from an tree with a chainsaw…
Here’s the special mechanism. A key with a heart operates the iris on the left…
Once opened, the engagement ring is revealed nestled inside. Very nice!
Have you done any machining projects that delighted your significant other? If so, please share some photos in our comment section. We’d love to see what you’ve done.
Like what you read on CNCCookbook?
Join 100,000+ CNC'ers! Get our latest blog posts delivered straight to your email inbox once a week for free. Plus, we’ll give you access to some great CNC reference materials including:
Bob is responsible for the development and implementation of the popular G-Wizard CNC Software. Bob is also the founder of CNCCookbook, the largest CNC-related blog on the Internet.
What a great idea, and people really do love homemade goodies. I try to make my parents something different every year for Christmas. Here’s just a few:
A beautiful piece of work.
Re. your article on cutting ally. I actually cut steel on my home made router. I was in the process of converting to chain drive,got three 9tooth sprockets from the US, and immediately lost one. I CAD drew the profile and proceeded to cut. With a SuperPID on my spindle (Makita laminate trimmer)capable of running at 5000rpm I took .005inch cuts with a 1/8inch cutter. Took ages and the cutter was shot at the end of the job. Brazed in a boss and it worked well. Of course, a few hours after I finished I found the lost sprocket. /life’s like that
A very nice project, indeed. I don’t suppose plans or model files are available, are there?
John, I haven’t seen any plans. I came across it accidentally on a very non-machining oriented site. Not much more detail is available.
I think I saw mention of this on the Hackaday.com site a while back.
Bill, please help us out by providing a source link and attribution to the site.
Source:
http://www.reddit.com/r/woodworking/comments/2f9el6/i_made_the_most_over_engineered_ring_box_for_my/
He also has a video up:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXTFxVgUZ0A
What a great idea, and people really do love homemade goodies. I try to make my parents something different every year for Christmas. Here’s just a few:
custom Settlers of Catan board:
https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xaf1/v/t1.0-9/312460_472511706149776_2141298488_n.jpg?oh=4127727f3a5a9ef4a87cca0a8314de8b&oe=5541909C&__gda__=1430295117_c6d06ab8ec4db6b855ab865565ec6c32
Lithophane of my niece. Ended up making it into a tree ornament and used the tree lights to back light it:
https://scontent-b-ord.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/72542_104719849595632_2516980_n.jpg?oh=1f98e290be2fe21b44a9b9bc40b36d09&oe=5525064D
A beautiful piece of work.
Re. your article on cutting ally. I actually cut steel on my home made router. I was in the process of converting to chain drive,got three 9tooth sprockets from the US, and immediately lost one. I CAD drew the profile and proceeded to cut. With a SuperPID on my spindle (Makita laminate trimmer)capable of running at 5000rpm I took .005inch cuts with a 1/8inch cutter. Took ages and the cutter was shot at the end of the job. Brazed in a boss and it worked well. Of course, a few hours after I finished I found the lost sprocket. /life’s like that
cheers
Graham