Awards for a New Beginning

Students

Jason Kong
Economics 2021

Jake Mayer
Economics 2021

Sam Clayman
History 2021

Project Description

Because both Jake and Sam are on the varsity golf team and Jason is closely associated with our team, it became an interest of ours to create something that could be directly contributing to the team. Our program has just recently finished constructing a performance center at the golf course by the grad college and we thought a great way to add to this new building was to create something to help furnish the new facility. Because of this interest, we decided to construct an achievement board to display the accomplishments and awards of several members of the team. In this way, we would be able to commemorate the past accolades and history of the Princeton golf program. In order to accomplish this goal and interest, we constructed a board made of 3 cherry wood planks molded together. We then inscribed “Princeton Golf” into the wooden board using the CNC machines, X-carve and Carvey. We then stained the board to give it a warmer natural appearance. In order to further this project, we have decided to add a carving of the crest to the board. We are all fascinated with the dimensions and appearance of the crest and because of this interest, we thought it would be logical to attempt a design and engraving of this iconic symbol. All in all, our proposed project combines both our association with the golf team with our interest in the design of one of this school’s most well-known icon to create an achievement board that combines image with function.

Technical Background

Wood is an incredibly versatile building material. It can be used in wood carving or even creating smaller wooden items like tables, stools, and chairs. It can also be used to build large scale structures. There are two types of wood: hardwoods that come from trees whose leaves fall each autumn (i.e. oak, mahogany, birch, etc.) and softwoods that come from coniferous trees (i.e. cedar, spruce, pine, etc.) The main physical properties of wood are color, density, texture, cracking, and warping. The color can be influenced by a number of factors including moisture and thermal conductivity of the wood. Density involves more of the number of pores within the wood. Texture, creaking, and warping are influenced by the heat that is applied to the wood through the seasons and how much the wood has expanded or shrunk. An example of softwood would be cedar, which is red in color, is relatively soft, has a straight grain, and is one of the most aromatic. An example of hardwood would be oak, which is very strong, resistant to moisture and very durable. Moreover, its high tannin content protects it from insects and fungi. The grain has a gorgeous flake-like grain. Most wood used for construction is sourced from cold countries like Canada and Russia to keep the growth rings tight for strength and stability. A type of wood that was lighter in color would make it easier to stain. A dense wood would increase the longevity of the wood projects. A softer texture would make it easier for sanding. A dearth of cracking and warping would make it easier to combine several pieces of wood together. The lack of blemishes in the wood would make it more straightforward to use dyes and resin. Another important quality of the wood is the softness which can help with carving and cutting with ease, but there is a tradeoff that exists between softness and ease of manipulation and hardness and durability.

Canton, E. (2017, February). Designing Buildings Wiki Share your construction industry knowledge www.designingbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved March 15, 2019, from https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Physical_Properties_of_Wood

Oxford Wood Recycling. (2013). Choosing Types of Wood. Retrieved May 7, 2019, from https://www.oxfordwoodrecycling.org.uk/choosing-types-of-wood/

Design Drawings

Fabrication Process

The technical difficulty arising from our dream dimensions of the board lay in the fact that lumber shops do not sell wood planks wider than about a foot. Since we wanted an approximately three-foot wide board, we had to use wood glue and a clamp to clamp together 3 wooden planks and let them dry for 48 hours. After this drying period, the board is fairly stable, but not entirely smooth because the excess wood glue necessarily gets pressed out when clamped. Sufficient sanding is required to smooth the wood glue and rough parts of the wood. A belt sander and hand-sanding were necessary to complete this part of the process. This process is twofold. First, a thick grain is used to smooth out the very large blemishes in the wood and the thick excess wood glue. At this point, the surface becomes flat but is not soft and smooth. A finer grain is used to go over the board to create a nice texture primed for the wood stain. Wood stain can be applied using a soft-bristled brush. Once the wood is stained with two coats, the difference in color between the wood and the wood glue disappears and you are left with a wide enough board for the vision of XPGolf. After this, the X-Carve CNC machine is used to mill the text, “PRINCETON GOLF.” The letters and dimensions of the text were programmed using the Easel software. Again using the Easel software, the Princeton University shield was designed from scratch and then carved out using the Carvey CNC machine. To round the edges with a design, a router with a specific bit was used along all four sides of the front of the board. Tests were done on scrap pieces of wood before to ensure that the orientation of the bit was correct before using it on the board itself. Next, a dark brown wood resin was used to fill in the milled out the text of “PRINCETON GOLF.” The resin was poured into each of the letters individually until it overflowed slightly to ensure that the entirety of the letter would be filled. After the resin was poured, the board was left to dry for at least 48 hours. After the resin had dried, a belt sander was used again to go over the letters to remove the excess. Later, with masking tape, a dark wood stain, and a smaller precision brush, the Princeton shield was stained to accent the design. Numerous trials of using different shades of stain were completed before a dark enough stain was chosen. This piece was left to dry again overnight. Next, given that the board had been sanded again due to the resin-filled letters, the board needed to undergo two layers of stain again to restore the surfaces uniform shade. Special care was made in staining the sides because of the new texture of the newly-routed edges. The board was then left to dry for 48 hours again. Then, the Princeton shield was glued onto the stained board with wood glue. Special care was made using rulers and other measurement tools to make sure that the shield was oriented in the center of the board right under the letters. Lastly, the Carvey was used to mill out a nameplate with a sample name from a metal sheet. This was glued onto the board and allowed to dry.

Students

Project Description

Technical Background

Design Drawings

Fabrication Process

Final Result