| Project by Matt | posted 814 days ago | 1019 views | 7 times favorited | 10 comments |  |
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A friend of mine uses small memo notepads to track his to-do list. And when I saw Jerry's awesome clipboard , I was inspired and thought it would make a great gift. So I decided to give it a try.
The clipboards are made of maple and walnut, laminated and then book matched on the bandsaw. Final dimensions are roughly 10” tall, 5 3/4” wide and 1/4” thick.
The toughest part of the whole project was locating a decent clip and figuring out how to mount it. I ordered the Rockler clip but ended up not being too happy with the quality. Searching the internet for other clips was fruitless, so I visited a few office supply stores before finding some cheap hardboard clipboards that had decent clips. I removed the nicer clips from the cheap clipboards and used those. Interestingly, the Rockler clip was $5.19 while the entire hardboard clipboard (with clip) at OfficeMax was $1.79. Go figure!
To mount the clips I tested many methods but ultimately found that embedding a small 4mm set screw in a hole with a little epoxy worked best. (Ideally I might have settled on a threaded insert but most available were too deep and I didn’t want to have it show through the backside of the clipboard). The set screw in epoxy is surprisingly strong and should hold well over time.
-- Matt, Austin, TX
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10 comments so far
ellen35
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2441 posts in 1601 days
#1 posted 814 days ago
I like them! Very cool and you were ingenious in finding the clips!
Thanks for the ideas.
-- Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
4thumbs
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153 posts in 1315 days
#2 posted 814 days ago
Fine idea, and nicely done! Good to see you note Jerry’s inspiration for this project also! Thanks for the post.
-- 4thumbs in MO
rmac
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172 posts in 1229 days
#3 posted 814 days ago
Thanks for the tips about finding and mounting the clips. I have been pondering these same problems myself.
—Russ
-- My table saw laughs at hot dogs. http://thesorteddetails.blogspot.com/
cut3times
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115 posts in 1175 days
#4 posted 814 days ago
Good job Merf! I am glad I could give you ideas. I agree the Rockler clips are a nice design that takes little real-estate, but I wish they where thicker brass.
Jerry
-- And Still Too Short - "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." John Lennon
ArtistryinWood
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82 posts in 1856 days
#5 posted 814 days ago
Nice job Matt, have you seen these clips http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=58745&cat=1,250,43298 a bit $$$ but a nice clip.
Andrew
-- It seem's to me i could live my life, a lot better than i think i am. Andrew, Midland, Ont.
Matt
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6 posts in 861 days
#6 posted 814 days ago
Hi Andrew. Thanks, some nice features on that clip and it looks sturdy too.
-- Matt, Austin, TX
Poisson
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37 posts in 1192 days
#7 posted 814 days ago
That is what I am going to make one for my brother-in-law. I bought the clip from LeeValley.com. It looks pretty good. I havn’t yet installed it, though.
-- Byung Soo Kim, Seoul, S.Korea
BritBoxmaker
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4008 posts in 1205 days
#8 posted 813 days ago
Nice, Matt. I like a good clipboard.
-- Martyn -- Boxologist, Pattern Juggler and Candyman of the visually challenging. http://www.theartofboxes.com
BarbS
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2181 posts in 2254 days
#9 posted 813 days ago
Those are nice; great for note-taking. I’m sure they’ll be well received as gifts. Good job!
-- http://barbsid.blogspot.com/
Jake7212
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26 posts in 827 days
#10 posted 811 days ago
Beautiful work. Id make a few myself, but i tend to throw them in rage and i wouldnt want to destroy such fine craftsmanship. Nicely done.
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