In transit!

Last night I got an e-mail from the folks at DIY Road Cases: my order had been picked up by UPS and I have a tracking number!  This morning when I checked, it says it is slated to be delivered tomorrow!  Woohoo!

The pieces I ordered from them are as follows:

• 3/8" Double-angle aluminum extrusion
• 3/8" Hybrid Tongue and Groove extrusion
• 300 rivets
• 200 washers
• 2 nylon lid stays

Double-angle extrusion

The double-angle extrusion, seen here, is what joins the panels of laminated plywood together at the corners.  The boards slide into the channels on the inside of the extrusion, and then are bolted together using pop-style rivets.  While they sell single angle extrusions that don't have the fancy channels for half the price, I went with the double-angle extrusions because they provide more strength for the case, and don't require me to mitre the edges of my panels to assemble the box.  It will cut down on the amount of time spent actually assembling the case itself.  No wood glue is needed to secure everything; just the rivets, which are drilled through both layers of the aluminum and the plywood.

Tongue and groove extrusion

This piece sits along the edge of the lid and the top of the case walls that will join with the lid.  It's unique in that it mates with itself; instead of needing to order two separate pieces that are a dedicated tongue and a dedicated groove, I can cut this one extrusion, flip one piece around 180°and they will sit perfectly together.

Unfortunately it was drizzling again last night, and I couldn't spend any time marking/cutting the plywood.  Since the floor of my garage is cracked and pitched (and therefore NOT level), all of my woodworking will need to be done out on the driveway, which is level.  Rain and power tools don't really seem to go well together, so I held off working on stuff.  Also, it was movie night, and my wife made a kickass awesome delicious dinner.

I did however go back out and re-measure my car trunk, and it turns out I actually have 1'6" of clearance.  This is important, because originally I was planning on buying 2" casters for my case, and while they would be sufficient to carry the combined weight of the case and the contents, when I went to Home Depot and saw some 2" casters firsthand, they seemed a bit small.  Part of the point of putting my case on wheels is that I can easily lift one end of the case up into my trunk, and to make it even easier, I think larger casters would work better.  Even when I add an extra 1/4" to the 1" height of my case (to account for any protruding from the extensions), and a 3/4" caster board bolted on, I still have four inches of clearance to safely play with as far as the case fitting in the space it needs to. 

(technically, I'd have 5", but I'm trying to keep at least an inch or more clearance between the top of the case, and the speakers in my trunk)

While the 3" casters are actually 3.75" in total height, I still have more than enough wiggle room to slap those on and make it still work.  The only drawback to using larger casters: they cost more.

I'm going back and forth as to what I ultimately will do.  While saving money is good, I'm already saving a ton by not having the majority of my hardware be shipped to me, and I'm still under budget on this project.  We'll see.  I have about a week to decide before I place my order for pickup on Monday April 1st.

I might possibly do a few cuts tonight, weather permitting of course.  It's supposed to be sunny and gorgeous this afternoon and evening, so if that's the case, I may take an hour or so after work to at least cut the 8x4 panel into two smaller, more manageable pieces.  The sooner I do this, the sooner I can begin sanding the surface of the smaller panels so that they will accept the ABS laminate better, and begin marking out the spots I'll need to cut out for the latches and handles.