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View Full Version : How I made the big mag light jig



Michael McDuffie
01-08-2006, 4:34 PM
Making a jig for flashlights and other cylindrical items.

The following is the thought and design process I used to create a jig like the one I posted in the Pic-o-jigs thread (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=27675).

First, what do I plan on using the jig for? Mostly C and D cell Mag lights but also rods, tubes and other cylinders. One or two lines of text per pass, I can rotate and engrave again if needed.

What is the diameter? From about 1 ¼” on up to about 3” or so.

How much time am I willing to spend making it? Not much but it needs to work.

What have I got lying around the house? Some scrap MDF, the hardboard leftovers from an Ikea entertainment center and a hot melt glue gun.

I need to be able to change the text easily and keep it centered on the flashlight. I need some marks or a ruler so I can put the text where I want along the length. Also, because the reflector is bigger than the barrel, I need to allow for it. Because I like the text to read left to right with the reflector on the left, I need to leave enough room between the left edge and the start of the uprights.

1) I think a handy size would be 14” long by 6” tall so I create a page this size.
2) I want the text centered on an easy to remember number so I draw a line 3” down from the top the full width of the page.
3) I figure that the uprights should be 1” apart so I Duplicate (Crtl-D) a line ½” above and below the centerline.
4) My scraps of MDF are 9 ¾ long so I draw a vertical line at 4 ¼” from the left edge. This will give me enough room for the reflector.
5) I save the file now.
6) I burn the lines into the hardboard, which isn’t exactly 14” by 6” but that’s not a problem. Now I have guides that will let me glue the uprights on exactly where they need to be. They are 1” tall and ¾ wide for no other reason then that’s what was lying around. I could have used 1 by 2 lumber just as easily but I would have had to cut them to length and I’m lazy.
7) Before I glue the uprights on. I throw on some text in the lower left corner reminding me that center is 3” down and I like to run flashlights at speed 100 power 40.
8) Thinking it would be convenient to have a ruler to help align things, I Duplicate some 3/8” vertical lines ¼” apart, starting at 4 ¼” from the left and just a bit below 3 ½” down from the top.
9) Save the file again. See? I can learn from my mistakes.
10) I waste a bit of time fiddling around with these lines, making some longer and some shorter and adding numbers starting at 5 so it looks more like a ruler.
11) After burning the ruler to the MDF, I move it to the guide layer along with the three horizontal lines. That way, I can line things up quickly and easily

This takes me 15 minutes or so, including scrounging the scraps. It works perfectly and has lasted over four years now. Now I can set it in the laser, pull up the file, change the text and engrave the flashlight in 2 or 3 minutes without trying to remember how I did it last time.

Michael

Carla Lange
01-08-2006, 8:28 PM
Thank you for sharing that information.
I don't need to make a jig for a flashlight, but now I can figure out the process to make jigs. I'm not a very creative person, and sometimes it's better to read how other people accomplish those tasks. Then I read, and reread the information, and eventually it soaks in. I still haven't made a jig yet, but I will.

Carla
"a slow learner";)

Harry Radaza
01-09-2006, 9:57 AM
this is dumb, but how do i view the zip file above?

Michael McDuffie
01-09-2006, 8:56 PM
this is dumb, but how do i view the zip file above?

Right click the link and select either "save target as" or "save link as".
Save it to your hard drive someplace you can find it again. I'Ve got so much junk on my drive I loose things sometimes.;)

If you have WinXP, you can double click the saved zip file and it will open in another folder. Double click the CDR to view it. If you don't have XP, you'll need an unzipping program such as Winzip.

Michael

Shaddy Dedmore
01-09-2006, 9:33 PM
Also, some browsers behave weird with this. So you might have to rename after you right click from something like 'attachment.php' to 'filename.cdr'

Shaddy