A friend wanted to "borrow my lathe". No experience, so I thought I could get to know him and give some lessons.

He gave me this an example.

Now, he thinks maybe it would be easier if I just did it. Familiar?

This looks like an ornament made out of a voice print. Pretty cool.

Yet, it is so thin. 

 

How would I even begin to do this? Any tool I have seems thicker than the spaces here.

I wonder if it is even wood.

 

 

Edited November 18, 20241 yr by Bob Hodge
simplify

My first thought was- what material is it made from?!?

 

A for the tool, my guess is a VERY thing parting tool. 

 

Or maybe a 3D printer??? using the voice pattern to generate the printing path??

From out of waaay left field, how about something along the lines of a coping saw with a very thin blade? Just have to be very careful not to cut too aggressively.

 

Use your normal tools to get the general shape and then the saw to cut the individual layers.

 

I'll go back to my corner now.

Some things just aren't supposed to be done

To me it looks like a 3D printer made that.

Thinking about this, the only way I could see executing this piece, is if you built it up with layers of varying thicknesses of wood cut into circles. Then gluing them together at the center or wherever the surfaces meet. Just a rough idea.

All that being said, I'm pretty sure it's a digital model, not even 3D printed, just an AI created image.

I was just goofing around with some AI software and by text prompt I typed in this "a voice sound wave model made out of very thin transparent wooden discs" and I was able to generate this.

 

I think the man has the answer. I an not sure it could not be done with a 3D printer, but John's research makes it look impossible to make a model.

Thanks, team.  

I don't often see my limits on the lathe until too late, but this is one of them.  Maybe if it was the voice print for my long lost grandma, I would try, but not this.

Son in law says he wrote software for a 3d printer for just this app, but less resolution.  Other options:

A resin printer

I am thinking of old CDs, sized one at a time, then mounted on a rod.

Or tag board

Or thick plastic. 

 

It does give me ideas for some future Christmas ornaments based on the voice print of the grands, or maybe a choir with a bar from the Hallelujah Chorus. 

12 minutes ago, Bob Hodge said:

I am thinking of old CDs, sized one at a time, then mounted on a rod.

That's a brilliant idea! I'd like to see your results on that one.

While I am pulling out of this project, some continue to explore the concept. Wouldn't be neat to produce an ornament with the wave file of a grandchild?

As I research this, the object in the photo above is actually not a wave file of a voice. It is the representation of 30 minutes of a seismograph reading of an earthquake in Japan.  I don't know what material the first is made from. He later made a glass version for a museum in another country.  This is world class stuff, yet far beyond this

woodworker.

I am recommending CDs, one at a time, possibly with wood veneer glued to some, then mounted on a rod, maybe with a wood filigree on each end.  I have found references to this method as I google it.  

Still open is the potential of a resin printer. I don't know about them except they offer higher "resolution" and require software to convert the wave file to printer commands.  

I'm going back to made sawdust now.

Ran across this guy getting a bit delicate.  I think patience, skill and the right wood might get it done.

 

 

On 11/18/2024 at 9:36 PM, John Morris said:

Some things just aren't supposed to be done

To me it looks like a 3D printer made that.

John, I've had a 3d printer for about six months I guess so I'm still pretty much a novice. Still, from my limited experience that would be nearly impossible to print. Very difficult to print a part without something to  support the form. I think you nailed it with the AI suggestion.

3 hours ago, Steve Krumanaker said:

John, I've had a 3d printer for about six months I guess so I'm still pretty much a novice. Still, from my limited experience that would be nearly impossible to print. Very difficult to print a part without something to  support the form. I think you nailed it with the AI suggestion.

I'm pretty ignorant to the capabilities of 3D printing, the only thing I know about it is my son n law builds gun parts with it?

So I googled 3D printed sound wave models and they looked nothing like the first image, they were rough and thick looking so I threw that idea out, and then I started playing with some AI software and got what I got in my image above, and ya I'm pretty sure the original image is AI generated.

All that being said, I had a blast playing with that AI software! So this discussion introduced me to the wonderful world of creating AI graphics by text prompt, pretty danged cool.