nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Context 🤦‍♂️

I have a modest collection (~100) of vinyl records. The ones I couldn't bring myself to sell/give away when I sold my decks before Uni. They are safely stored on a shelf in the (MDC) garage. This mini-project is not for me. It's for a friend ... ⬇️ But if this project is successful, I will make a couple of boxes for myself too. 💭 They will be good (secure) long-term storage for my disks and will allow me to safely transport them back from UK -> PT.

Thousands Of Records to Store/Transport

A DJ friend who has several thousand vinyl records, stores/transports them to gigs in cardboard (free) fruit boxes in the back of their van ... Not only is this risky, considering the average price of a record is $20 (some his records are collectable/vintage and are worth $100's per disk!!), it also looks bad for a Pro DJ to be carting around tatty cardboard boxes.

`$1k/box`!! 💸

If we estimate that each box has 50 records in it, and the average price of each record is a conservative $20; that's a grand ($1000) per box!! 💰

Did I mention that he has around 80 of these fruit boxes? 📦 (he has lost count of them and has no system for organising them either ...!) and it takes up most of a 4 car garage at his family home...? 🙄

Take a moment to pause and consider that this person has a lifetime worth of collecting music, easily more than $50k of vinyl records stored in cardboard boxes ... 🤯 It borders on "hoarding" ... except that records are a fairly "liquid" (easily saleable) and appreciating asset (if well looked after ...!)

The records are not well stored in these fruit boxes and could easily be damaged.

I'd wager that there are at least 1k (amateur) DJs with decent record collections who are in a similar situation. Perhaps not this bad ...

Fruit Boxes with Vinyl Don't Stack Well ...

The fruit boxes are stackable with fruit in them, but the density of vinyl is much higher than bananas, so when he offloads them from his van they are mostly spread across the garage floor which takes up a ridiculous surface area.

Todo

[x] Research available vinyl storage boxes!
[x] Figure out the dimensions required
[x] Design a system!
- [x] Target Material: 10mm plywood
- [x] Sturdy
- [x] Lightweight
- [x] Handles
- [x] Stackable when stored on level ground (not for transporting!)
- [x] Optional: Integrated lid for minimising dust
[x] Create a prototype in LightBurn
[x] Cut on Laser

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Google Search: vinyl record carry case wood https://www.google.com/search?q=vinyl+record+carry+case+wood&tbm=isch

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

https://www.etsy.com/market/wood_record_box

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1039809833/record-storage-crate-vinyl-record

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

First Draft of a storage box for 7" Singles (the smallest type of vinyl record) in LightBurn:

Making the first few prototypes for the 7" SPs as it doesn't waste as much material (plywood) if I make design mistakes. See: https://vinyl-waller.fr/blogs/blog-disque-vinyl/formats-de-vinyles-guide-pratique-pour-comprendre-les-formats-vinyles?ls=en for more detail on record sizes.

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

It's too late to be operating the laser tonight. But we can fire it up and laser-cut the prototype tomorrow. 🤞

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Turned the layout through 90* so it's "landscape":

If it's unclear how these pieces go together, don't worry, it will be clear once they are assembled.

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Put the design to laser cut this evening: 8756F484-01A3-439E-A0A3-8F9FC6A704EF

supervised the machine during the cut. But next time could just leave it running as I know how it will turn out. 👌🏻

Assembled and glued the pieces:

785F0E9E-6B33-449B-9E33-38658BF6F30B

integrated lid/hinge mechanism works well:

8938A512-E58B-4CD1-8FA0-272D0B5AE250

the lid disappears into the back: 24F6A23A-CAEE-4E0A-B943-EAE3D68D1416

Handles are ergonomic/comfortable: 3A9DBBFA-120C-49BF-AB00-C6D715496795

Overall I think it’s decent for a first prototype. It can easily store ~50 x 7” Singles. The design is sturdy and practical. Will get feedback from my DJ friend tomorrow. ⏳

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Oh, yeah in case you’re wondering, his name is “Miguel Antunes” (like “Michael” in Portuguese). I couldn’t help myself, had to emphasise the fact that his name has the word “Tunes” in it!

he doesn’t emphasise it at all. This is his logo:

96AA18B6-641E-4A85-B05C-BAFB23461742

I was tempted to try and import his branding and try to make it work in laser … but really just wanted to focus on building the prototype for this iteration.

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Here’s an interesting infographic;

D8FC46F0-93E8-418F-8006-01E3EC020363

via: https://vinylrestart.com/vinyl-records-revival-data-and-infographic/

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Basically vinyl sales are growing gangbusters! For instance @iteles’s cousin Luis @LuchoTurtle is in his mid 20’s and listens to his favourite tunes on Vinyl. Same with our friend @th0mas, early 20’s, buys vinyl. It’s not just “old” people buying them out of nostalgia… 😜

LuchoTurtle commented 2 years ago

This is amazing, holy mother of god 🤩🤩. Curious if there are plans for 12'' LPs 👀

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Yo @LuchoTurtle, definitely! Will be making a 12” version very soon. Still have to iron out some kinks in the design before scaling up. ⚡️ this was just the “first draft” I made to have something physical to work off. I’ve already spotted several areas for improvement/enhancement. Need to work on bottom of the box for making them stackable.

But definitely; 12” is where the vast majority of Vinyl is. 👌🏻

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

https://www.hhv.de/shop/en/storage/p:Q0G2fb

https://www.hhv.de/shop/en/item/musicbox-designs-lp-storage-box-65-natural-oak-580131

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Miguel (DJ friend) confirmed that the box fits 50 x 7” SP records:

7986AD95-45F2-446B-B501-F0E1090B7C81

he liked the prototype. I know what to do next:

make the lid shorter so it folds away better and 2. try and create the “front cover” index holder (I didn’t have the energy to design on Saturday night when I was designing the V1)
add the “tracks” the base to make them stackable.
Change the handles so they are rectangular

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

V2 layout:

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

3 instances of the design fit perfectly on a 1200 x 600 sheet of plywood:

My plan is to laser cut them tomorrow during my lunch break. And assemble two of them in the evening.

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

The design has a number of improvements:

improves the strength of the hinges by doubling the material around them.
adds a front-cover that folds down and tucks
simplifies handles (holes) with consistent proportions
lid "locks" in place with the front-cover
adds "tracks" to the base so the boxes stack well.
uses less material than the previous design
should require less time to assemble and be easier to use.

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

v3 design:

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

The v3 (7" single) design turned out very well. (photos to follow)

v4 design: (12" disks)

RafaJPSantos commented 2 years ago

Luis wasn't joking around, these are great! I'd love to get one for my LP collection ⛷️

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

Yo @RafaJPSantos! I haven't even uploaded the V4 pictures. Thanks for the reminder. 😉

Note this is "unfinished" plywood ... Our friend (DJ Miguel Antunes) wants them to be painted matte black with fluorescent yellow accents so they "pop" under UV light in the club. 🕺 😎

The idea of the fold-down front is that it has the list of the LPs in the box in the order they are stored so that it's easy to find an album/track quickly. 🔍

You're very welcome to come and cut+assemble your own cases if you want to. 📦 @LuchoTurtle knows where we live. just come with him some time. 👌 You can learn how to use LightBurn in 5 mins and personalise the cases. 🖥️ And if you don't already know how to use a laser-cutter, you can learn that too; it's easy! pew-pew! ⚡

The laser-cutting takes around 30 mins because of the logo etching etc. ⏳ But assembly takes 5 mins and we have any color of paint or varnish you like in our workshop. 🎨 Aparece! 😉

nelsonic commented 2 years ago

First 3 prototypes side-by-side: F90B101A-400C-49DF-9647-800EF5E97514