4 ms·

IMO, the bezel is way way way too big for how much screen space there is. Instead of red oak, I'd suggest looking at walnut or cherry -- something with more col

IMO, the bezel is way way way too big for how much screen space there is. Instead of red oak, I'd suggest looking at walnut or cherry -- something with more color and a little less texture might help the screen to take focus. You could also look at separating the screen from the bezel with some kind of mat board or something (another commenter linked to an instructable that did this). I'm also not super clear on the the exact use case for this. Have you considered making it more of a portrait orientation, making it a single day view, and maybe adding some additional information (maybe some todos from Todoist or something?)

konschubert 6y ago
The wood is actually beech, though this particular batch I got for the prototypes had a surprising amount of texture. I am planning to use lighter colors in future. Regarding your second point: I'd love to support a multitude of layout options some day.
- cweagans 6y ago
  Huh. Alright then. Either way, I'd recommend leaning toward a less textured, richer/darker color and species of wood. If you go lighter, it's going to look a little washed out IMO. Also, in your quality control for the wood bits, make sure that those mitered corners all line up evenly across the entire joint (examples of what I'm talking about highlighted here: https://monosnap.com/file/MkTzAjJhx7v7DkL5kOKypQNFKVyrNU https://monosnap.com/file/MkTzAjJhx7v7DkL5kOKypQNFKVyrNU). People who have purchased any kind of fine woodworking will see this and see something somewhat poorly made, even if the actual electronic hardware and software parts of the product are rock solid. The presence of those gaps means that one or more of the following things are true: 1) the miters weren't cut at a perfect 45, 2) the wood wasn't dried long enough, 3) the pieces were cut too short, 4) the wood was moved from a high humidity environment to a low humidity one (causing it to dry out and shrink slightly). 1 and 3 can be solved by closer inspection/better processes for the people/machines cutting the wood. 2 and 4 are harder to remedy if it's possible at all. I'd guess it would mean a new supplier + factory doing the wood bits. Not necessarily saying that layout options would be _necessary_. Just pointing out that something more focused on showing immediately relevant information (i.e. scoped to _today_, rather than this entire week) might help to more clearly define the value of the product to a prospective buyer.
  - konschubert 6y ago
    Thank for the tips on the woodwork. I am not sure if a darker color would make the screen look brighter or darker. I had noticed those gaps in the frame as well. I agree they look poorly made :) I think they are mostly from the fact that this was cut with a hand saw, and the cut wasn't even throughout the Z axis. I am hoping that I will be able to fix this as I go from a prototyping process to a more refined production process. Another commentator brought up CNC milling the wood - what do you think of that idea?
    - mbreese 6y ago
      Not the original commenter, but > CNC milling the wood It’s a frame. It’s not a complex shape. A simple mitre saw should be enough to do this consistently. Don’t make this more complicated than it needs to be.
      - mhb 6y ago
        Guillotine cutters are also useful for making frames: https://www.rockler.com/miter-trimmer https://www.rockler.com/miter-trimmer
    - frabert 6y ago
      Re CNCing the wood: I'm not a woodworker, but given the simplicity of the cut, I'd dare say that miter sawing the planks using a guide would more than suffice.
      - myself248 6y ago
        I'm both an amateur woodworker and a professional CNC programmer, and this is right. Frames like this are made with routers to carve the profile, and miter saws to cut the corners. Personally I'd love to buy the guts and make my own frame, to personalize the gift with a nicer frame than I'd want to pay someone else to make. Give me a good dimensioned drawing or a 3D model (or both!) of the display panel and the electronics that drive it, I'll chop some scrap into a mockup of the screen, craft a custom frame around it, and then swap in the real guts when I'm done.
- nicoburns 6y ago
  You might want to consider making the screen flush with the front of the wood. As-is, the frame is going to case a shadow over the screen.
- semireg 6y ago
  Or split the difference and stain with a gray stain to create wood grain that matches the grays of the screen.

konschubert 6y ago

The wood is actually beech, though this particular batch I got for the prototypes had a surprising amount of texture. I am planning to use lighter colors in future. Regarding your second point: I'd love to support a multitude of layout options some day.

cweagans 6y ago
Huh. Alright then. Either way, I'd recommend leaning toward a less textured, richer/darker color and species of wood. If you go lighter, it's going to look a little washed out IMO. Also, in your quality control for the wood bits, make sure that those mitered corners all line up evenly across the entire joint (examples of what I'm talking about highlighted here: https://monosnap.com/file/MkTzAjJhx7v7DkL5kOKypQNFKVyrNU https://monosnap.com/file/MkTzAjJhx7v7DkL5kOKypQNFKVyrNU). People who have purchased any kind of fine woodworking will see this and see something somewhat poorly made, even if the actual electronic hardware and software parts of the product are rock solid. The presence of those gaps means that one or more of the following things are true: 1) the miters weren't cut at a perfect 45, 2) the wood wasn't dried long enough, 3) the pieces were cut too short, 4) the wood was moved from a high humidity environment to a low humidity one (causing it to dry out and shrink slightly). 1 and 3 can be solved by closer inspection/better processes for the people/machines cutting the wood. 2 and 4 are harder to remedy if it's possible at all. I'd guess it would mean a new supplier + factory doing the wood bits. Not necessarily saying that layout options would be _necessary_. Just pointing out that something more focused on showing immediately relevant information (i.e. scoped to _today_, rather than this entire week) might help to more clearly define the value of the product to a prospective buyer.
- konschubert 6y ago
  Thank for the tips on the woodwork. I am not sure if a darker color would make the screen look brighter or darker. I had noticed those gaps in the frame as well. I agree they look poorly made :) I think they are mostly from the fact that this was cut with a hand saw, and the cut wasn't even throughout the Z axis. I am hoping that I will be able to fix this as I go from a prototyping process to a more refined production process. Another commentator brought up CNC milling the wood - what do you think of that idea?
  - mbreese 6y ago
    Not the original commenter, but > CNC milling the wood It’s a frame. It’s not a complex shape. A simple mitre saw should be enough to do this consistently. Don’t make this more complicated than it needs to be.
    - mhb 6y ago
      Guillotine cutters are also useful for making frames: https://www.rockler.com/miter-trimmer https://www.rockler.com/miter-trimmer
  - frabert 6y ago
    Re CNCing the wood: I'm not a woodworker, but given the simplicity of the cut, I'd dare say that miter sawing the planks using a guide would more than suffice.
    - myself248 6y ago
      I'm both an amateur woodworker and a professional CNC programmer, and this is right. Frames like this are made with routers to carve the profile, and miter saws to cut the corners. Personally I'd love to buy the guts and make my own frame, to personalize the gift with a nicer frame than I'd want to pay someone else to make. Give me a good dimensioned drawing or a 3D model (or both!) of the display panel and the electronics that drive it, I'll chop some scrap into a mockup of the screen, craft a custom frame around it, and then swap in the real guts when I'm done.
nicoburns 6y ago
You might want to consider making the screen flush with the front of the wood. As-is, the frame is going to case a shadow over the screen.
semireg 6y ago
Or split the difference and stain with a gray stain to create wood grain that matches the grays of the screen.