Hi Hats Galore

 A camera rental house in Los Angeles asked I if could fill an order for 60 hi hats. I've built them before and have been wanting to make some custom movie themed versions, so I accepted the challenge. And a challenge it was! I basically turned myself into a factory worker for two weeks in my unairconditioned, garage workshop during a heatwave of temps over 100 degrees. The Hi Hats were made of a variety of 3/4" plywood 18"x18" with a 4.5" hole in the center and slots for handles. The corners were cut off at 45 degrees and all the edges were rounded off with a roundover bit. Finish was two coats of water based, polyurethane for hardwood floors. 

---

First the plywood was cut into 18" squares on the table saw. Tolerances were 1/16th of an inch because the blanks had to fit into jigs later.

---

Next the blanks were secured below a 1/2" MDF template made on my friends Shapeoko CNC machine and the holes and handles were cut using a flush trim bit. The extra handles with the "X"s were the result of an accident when the bearing came loose on the router bit and dug into the template. Lesson learned: Always check those little allen screws holding your bearing in place. Fortunately my friend was able recut the handles on the template. I found in necessary to firm up the MDF template with some polyurethane and paint so the bearing wouldn't dig into the edge of the MDF. Fortunately my friend  was able to help speed up the process by cutting out some of the holes and handles on his Shapeoko while I did my hand routing.

---

Next the corners were cut at 45 degrees using a jig I built on my miter gauge on the table saw.

The edges were routed using a roundover bit. The blue tape holds my improvised dust collection system fo my small router which is connected to my shopvac.

After routing the edges, I had to fill any voids in the plywood. I would usually use glue and quickly sand over the hole so the sawdust mixes with the glue and hides the repair. Here is where buying quality wood pays off.  On the right you can see the edges of two different types of plywood. The bottom is regular big box store plywood and the top is baltic birch. The baltic birch is expensive, but it's very clean, consistent and stronger than regular plywood.

​

---

The final step was to apply two coats of Minwax, water based, fast drying polyurethane for hardwood floors. It allows you to redcoat after two hours. I did a light sanding after the first coat to reduce the raised wood grain.​ Over all it was a satisfying project and I learned the value of buying quality wood and how to streamline repetitive tasks.