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Written by Simon Arthur

Parent Category: Big Blue Saw Blog

Created: 28 September 2017

Brogue Motorcycles modifies motorcycles and builds custom bikes from scratch. But they wanted to reach a wider audience for their mechanical art, so they designed and created a product they could sell to customers: a lighting kit for the Suzuku TU250 motorcycle. Mike Schartz of Brogue tells me that this bike is a great choice for modifications due to its low cost and a large base of after-market accessories.

Brogue Motorcycles does their cutting, grinding, welding, soldering, bending, fiberglass, upholstery and powder coating in house. They were also able to use their experience in aviation and sheet metal repair to bring this product to market. They used custom waterjet cut parts from Big Blue Saw to speed up the creation process at a reasonable price. 

Brogue Motorcycles chose a combination of aluminum and stainless steel materials based on their weldability, formability, and strength. The waterjet cut parts were designed in AutoCAD.

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Written by Simon Arthur

Parent Category: Big Blue Saw Blog

Created: 27 September 2017

I’ve been playing and collecting small tube amps for almost 20 years, from modern ones to decades old eBay finds.  While there are a lot of great amp makers out there, I felt like even the boutique amps on the market were lacking the sound quality I was getting with vintage equipment.  Also, I felt like someone needed to build an amp that wasn’t a rectangular metal box inside of a rectangular wooden box.

He went on to describe the design technique, as well as how he processed and assembled the parts from Big Blue Saw  to make a completed amplifier.

I started with a sketch, then a cardboard version, and once that was all done it was time to start making them out of aluminum.  After cutting and drilling 6 by hand, I realized I would need to have the panels waterjet cut if I was going to make them in any kind of quantity.

These are the body panels of the chassis. Before the sides can be taken to the brake for bending, I use a bead roller to give each side two 1/8th inch beads.  

These are the face panels, which I use a 3/4th inch round wheel to add two large wells to.  The two heights correspond to the height of the EF86 input tube and EL84 output tube.  Then I add a 1/4 in bend on all sides to give it a bevel. Now they're ready for welding.

This is a welded and partially polished transformer cover, which will cover the power and output transformers, along with the filter capacitor.  Since the aluminum I source still needs to be welded, formed, shaped, sanded, and polished, it's nice to be able to have various types to choose from on the Big Blue Saw site.  

I wanted to do something special for the first run, so I took the extra step of taping of the tube wells and a few other sections, and polished them to a shine.  To tone everything down and not make it look like a car part, as well as to insulate and protect the chassis, I then had them anodized.  The anodize over polished aluminum is a cool effect, and I won't be repeating it since the next batch will be hydro-dipped.

 

 

The final step in the metal work is bending the custom grille I designed for the front panel.  These are tricky since the brakes can't do 30 degree bends that close together.  I decided to go with a thinner aluminum I could bend by hand and with seamers, and with Simon's help settled on long slats at the bend lines that would allow me to easily work the material.

 

Here is the final product, sitting on top of a beautiful speaker cabinet that was built for me by my woodworker to my specification.  These will be available together or separately from the amplifiers.

 

The parts you see were waterjet cut by Big Blue Saw from 0.05 inch and 0.025 inch thick aluminum 5052, based on the Night Owl designs.

 I scoured online for a company to [waterjet cut the panels], and that’s when I came across Big Blue Saw.  The ability to get quotes on their website, proof the image, then have it in your hands a short time later were absolutely integral in the realization of this amp. Julie and Simon were not only helpful, this literally could not have happened without them.

The first batch of 40 amps will be going on sale in October, and we’ll be making both guitar and hi-fi amplifiers.  Although the sound is wonderful (it’s a class A tube amp), what really sets this product apart is it’s design and craftsmanship, and that’s something that everyone should be able to enjoy, even if they can’t play the guitar.

Find out more more about these amplifiers on the Night Owl Industries website or follow nightowl.industries on Instagram.

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Written by Super User

Parent Category: Big Blue Saw Blog

Created: 21 September 2017

Big Blue Saw helps makers turn their designs into real parts. And beginning Monday, September 25, makers can save on custom aluminum parts.

The sale starts Monday, September 25, and runs through Wednesday, September 27. During the sale, orders placed online for waterjet cut aluminum 6061 in 0.375 inch thickness (that's ³⁄₈ inch or about 9.5 mm) will automatically receive a quantity discount.

Let's take a look at how you can save during the sale.

Here is a 10x5 inch baseplate as seen on our examples page.

The split clamp from examples page, waterjet cut from 0.375" thick 6061 alloy aluminum.

Remember, to save on waterjet cut aluminum, place your order online Monday, September 25, through Wednesday, September 27.

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Written by Simon Arthur

Parent Category: Big Blue Saw Blog

Created: 15 September 2017

Shaun Gosselin shared with some photos of his race car built with parts from Big Blue Saw. The car was built for the Supermodified Division to race at Oswego Speedway in New York.

The tail wing ribs were made of 3/8 inch thick aluminum 6061 and waterjet cut by Big Blue Saw from Shaun's design.

All three designs shown below were used because the rules limit the overall size of the wing so it takes a few different sized elements to get correct shape.