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Step 2Frame it up!
We will make a wooden frame to support the sheet of plastic. The light is attached under the header part of the frame below. This is an open box design so we should have no problems with heat buildup.
You don't really have to get out a tape measure to do your measurements. For the header piece, just put up the 1 x 4 to the long edge of the plastic and mark the length which should be 24". Cut that piece.
Measure the 1 x 2 and mark the same way for the 2 side pieces which should be 18". Cut those pieces.
Lay the two side pieces together on one of the edges. Place a 1 x 2 perpendicular to them and mark at the end of the plastic. This will be the filler piece for the bottom part.
Take one of the 1 x 2 and trace its profile onto both top ends of the header like in the picture. Cut that out with a handsaw or a jigsaw. This will be use to join our side pieces to the header. The header piece is our "support leg" for the light tablet. The 1 x 2 are attached flat to the header to form out frame for the plastic.
Glue the side pieces to the header. You could strengthen these joints with various woodworking techniques. I have a pocket hole jig which lets me drill an angled hole into the wood for a screw to go in. The filler piece is then glued between the side pieces at the bottom. Again, I have used pocket screws to pull them together. You can experiment with tenons, dowels, a long screw or nail through the end, etc. in order to reinforce the joint.
Try to make everything square or fit to the rectangularness of the sheet of plastic.
Once all the glue is dry, round over all the edges and corners. Do this outdoors as you will have a lot of sanding dust. It is much easier to do with some sort of power sander.
While you are outside, sand one side of the plastic to make it cloudy in appearance in order to diffuse the light. The plastic came with a label saying that the unprinted side should be exposed to any UV. I kept that side as my "good" side to use as my drawing surface. I scuffed up the backside with my orbital sander. I used a medium 100 grit which did a good job. Wear a mask to avoid breathing in the plastic particles. Take a file to round off the sharp corners of the plastic.
Prime and paint the frame in any color you think is cool.
You don't really have to get out a tape measure to do your measurements. For the header piece, just put up the 1 x 4 to the long edge of the plastic and mark the length which should be 24". Cut that piece.
Measure the 1 x 2 and mark the same way for the 2 side pieces which should be 18". Cut those pieces.
Lay the two side pieces together on one of the edges. Place a 1 x 2 perpendicular to them and mark at the end of the plastic. This will be the filler piece for the bottom part.
Take one of the 1 x 2 and trace its profile onto both top ends of the header like in the picture. Cut that out with a handsaw or a jigsaw. This will be use to join our side pieces to the header. The header piece is our "support leg" for the light tablet. The 1 x 2 are attached flat to the header to form out frame for the plastic.
Glue the side pieces to the header. You could strengthen these joints with various woodworking techniques. I have a pocket hole jig which lets me drill an angled hole into the wood for a screw to go in. The filler piece is then glued between the side pieces at the bottom. Again, I have used pocket screws to pull them together. You can experiment with tenons, dowels, a long screw or nail through the end, etc. in order to reinforce the joint.
Try to make everything square or fit to the rectangularness of the sheet of plastic.
Once all the glue is dry, round over all the edges and corners. Do this outdoors as you will have a lot of sanding dust. It is much easier to do with some sort of power sander.
While you are outside, sand one side of the plastic to make it cloudy in appearance in order to diffuse the light. The plastic came with a label saying that the unprinted side should be exposed to any UV. I kept that side as my "good" side to use as my drawing surface. I scuffed up the backside with my orbital sander. I used a medium 100 grit which did a good job. Wear a mask to avoid breathing in the plastic particles. Take a file to round off the sharp corners of the plastic.
Prime and paint the frame in any color you think is cool.
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