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A first with the laser cutter

A big part with this project for me is making a wooden maquette, I've always seen them, they have always fascinated me, I've never made one and it is something I would truly like to have a go at, being that we have the equipment for it at school it is an opportunity I cannot let go off. Being that I haven't ever used a laser cutter, my teacher recommended that I have a go on it, with just paper at first, and basic shapes. So that is what I did. I got on the software for it, drew out 3 of the same rectangles, 2 of the same square and 2 triangles, a large and smaller one. The plan was to make a box

Here is all the shapes lasered and removed, I then went on to tape everything together so that it would transform from 2D to 3D. When drawing the shapes on the software I did however make a tiny mistake, which didn't effect anything, but the smaller circle, top left, one of my lines is too long and goes over the edge. This serves as a good warning to really check everything over before letting the laser out because I don't know what mistakes like that could mean once I get to the making of the real model. The idea here was just to experiment, but I did want to make something related to my project, and so the box actually is a container, with a triangular slit in the roof, it was a one of many sketches on a random pieces of paper I had drawn on sometime during this project.

I know this doesn't look like anything really, but it's evidence of the project really coming together for me. It's the first thing I make from laser cutting and it really excites me for what is to come. I mean already even with a simple model like this you can see just how great modelling is, and I can't help but imagine what the final thing could look like. Already even with this container with a triangular slit, a lot is happening, the cut out interacts with light and creates new shapes that were not anticipated, those new shapes then go on to change the interior completely and adds character to what is a bare boned interior. I did already explore how light interacts with buildings in my forgotten spaces project, but here it just feels more special, I'm not the one holding the light source and moving it about to get what I want, the effects here feel more natural and true to the model. What this little exercise also taught me is that it's going to require a lot of planning. Modelling my ideas in Sketchup has become a lot easier, but now I'll need to do that, and then work backwards to lay out a plan on what needs to be cut, and a plan on how those cut pieces need to be assembled. I'll essentially be making a Lego set, I'll design it and make the instruction, and then build it. I did always ask myself how they go about making those instructions for these Lego sets, whether they record themselves as they build it, or build it then work backwards and figure the most efficient way to build it again. I'll see for myself.






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