I have began to assemble the frame to be exactly 3/4 of the one i have at home and it looks amazing thus far :). It doent feel sturdy but thats the point is it not 😉

Im just starting to create elements of the bench shown below is the back rest of where your back is supposed to go. im thinking of putting a fisher price logo where the weider logo is supposed to be to show how this weight is childs play for me, stay tuned. Ive bevelled the edges with a rasp and am going to work on a seat as well for your bum

You never truly respect a craft until you try it yourself. No one knows how hard it is to make something round out of something square but I am starting to. Without the use of machines things can be so much harder. This weight bar took me about 8-9 hours of continuous work with no breaks between shaving the individual pieces and gluing and holding…so it literally took about a 12-13 hours for the bar realistically. But it is finally complete.

For this project I have decided to make everything by hand including the dowells for the bench bar. so I have consulted Victor and he says that I can go one of 2 ways, either I can use a lathe or I can attempt to make dowels using a block plane. Some how I think a lather would be easier -_- but I know trying to get into the wood shop is like trying to pray in Mecca alone, it just never happens, so even though this seems rigorous im using a block plane to make these dowells

I figured with this open concept that I try doing something that I want to do. Ive been wanting to sculpt a piece representing me surpassing a physical peak of mine. Benching 225 lbs. I say this because it is a dream of mine to play football and at the nfl combine, which is a try out for college players to get into the nfl, players must bench 225 lbs as many times as they can to gauge how well they can block, stiff arm, stone blitzers and generally knock someone on their ass. Baring this in mind ive decided to scrap the trumpet idea and forge forward on making a bench, a bar and 225 lbs in weight to go onto the bar on a smaller scale than the ones that i have at home to denote how i have dwarfed that goal. Here are some pictures of the weights i have and some initial sketches and concepts.

For our second and final assignment we have an open concept and open medium task to complete. After an initial conversation with Rod, I may be creating another instrument. Judging by the conversation we were thinking a giant trumpet maybe 6 feet tall, and exploring plywood as a medium. We say trumpet because it is an instrument that I used to play but was terrified to ever make a note on because i didnt want tot sound like crap and have everyone laugh at me. So being playing with the scale and making it bigger than me we can assume that it dwarfs me. Stay Tuned.

After a brief crit with Rod, it seems like the piece is lacking. I have been given a few criticisms:

1. The piece looks to be too thrown together
2. The nails are all different
3. There is difficulty placing the object as a punk rebellious type piece or if it is supposed to look authentic
4. The use of material is a little off with particle board at the base however the base of the xylophone I have acquired from Mr. Pittman also uses particle board so i don’t really see where I went wrong there. But perhaps I can look into some kind of laminate to make it look more official.

I have replaced the nails in the piece so that they are all the same. For the purposes of the structure I have left it the same, I will perhaps attempt to flip the piece and use the other side so that it doesn’t look as rough and re-hammer the nails. But as of right now I like the piece the way it is and the music students seemed to enjoy playing it. Its structurally sound and in my opinion looks like a xylophone and is as clean and pristine as possible with some dripping stain but hopefully Ill be able to touch that up before the final deadline. But for financial purposes im not quite sure what more to add. Ill keep thinking though I feel as though I am almost there because I want it to look as authentic as possible. The rebelliousness of the piece is supposed to be in the implied action of smacking your head against it, here is this clean piece and your hitting your head against it, that is the irony im searching for hopefully it will come across after some tweaks because I have put a lot of time into it.

After putting a finish on the keys and using drilling holes for the keys to be fixated and in place and the base being secure. I finally feel like the instrument is at or near completion.

Ive finished making curves into the bottom of the keys and we have had our crits with Mike because Rod wasnt feeling to well. Overall received good criticism 🙂 pleased to say. Some of the recommendations I received called for me to:

a) create an internal structure so that the base is not so brittle.

b) put a finish on the keys so that they look more authentic.

c) raise the piece off the ground with legs or something of that nature. I probably wont do this however because the traditional xylophone is supposed to be played on the ground.

d) fasten down the pieces in some way on the one side so that they dont move. I also probably wont do this, because the keys are supposed to be able to move freely to an extent, however i will create holes so that nails can keep them in place and they wont be as loosey goosey.

Due to the inaccessability ive been facing trying to get into the wood shop over reading week and during school in general. Ive had to resort to making cuts or slits in the wood using both bandsaws and chipping away with a chisel to create the perfect curves. However it is leaving behind an unfavourable stubble. Its going to have to be sanded down thoroughly and carefully to avoid it being broken where the wood is glued.