Wood & Aluminum YouTube Play Button for 1000 Subs!!!

Hi Instructables Community,

here is my thanks to 1000 Subscribers on my YouTube Channel!!! Since a lot of my subscribers came from visiting my Instructables projects I would like to thank you all for your support, feedback and motivating comments!

You might have heard before that YouTube gives channels that reach 100K, 1M & 10 Million subscribers Silver, Gold and "Diamond" play buttons as a symbol for their achievement. Now obviously they won't do this this for a channel with as little as 1000 subscribers so I decided to do it myself to celebrate this milestone.

Now we are on our way to the next milestone: 10K! I hope that you will like the projects that I've planned for next few months and please feel free to contact me if you have suggestions or ideas!

If you can't see the video you can use this link to get to the YouTube video!

I would also like to thank:

the team at Instructables for providing such an inspirational platform for makers - https://www.instructables.com/

Giaco Whatever for his support and advise - https://www.instructables.com/

Jimmy Diresta for the inspiration and willingness to cooperate on Instructables - https://www.instructables.com/

Cheers Alex

Step 1: Materials

For this project I used some staghorn wood and 1,5mm aluminum. I think those two materials contrast each other in a very nice way and should look nice together.

I also downloaded a picture of the YouTube play button logo and sized in MS PowerPoint to a size that was suitable for the wood I had. In addition to the logo I also copied and cropped the little play triangle thingy as a template for the aluminum sheet.

Step 2: Cut Out

This first step is pretty simple! Grab a pair of scissors and start to cut out the two templates.

Step 3: Measurements

I was quite flexible with the measurements and used the template to give me marks for my wood piece. With a straight edge I traced a line along which I would later cut.

Step 4: Sawing

I used my mini table saw for this cross cut although you could use pretty much any saw you have available.

Step 5: Gluing

Spray adhesive was my choice for gluing the templates on to the wood & metal. I chose this type of glue since the templates can be peeled of later with relative ease.

Step 6: Cutting Metal

For this step I again turned on my mini table saw with a metal cutting blade. Alternatively you could use a jewelers saw or hacksaw for this task.

Step 7: Rough Cut Profiling the Wood

For this step I used a scroll saw and roughly cut out the shape of the play button. Its best to stay close to the outline of what you are cutting out and getting to more detail in following steps.

Step 8: Rough Profiling

A belt sander with a 120 grit was used to roughly shape the play button. This was mainly the outside shape to remove saw marks and give it the general shape.

Step 9: Removing the Template

Before removing the template I used a marking knife to transfer/scribe the shape of the triangle to the wood. Thanks to the spray adhesive I've used it was fairly simple to peel the template off.

Step 10: Fine Shaping

Now came a more delicate task which was once again completed with the help of my belt sander. I shaped the rounded contours and bevels of the play button as well as sanding the aluminum triangle to its final size.

Step 11: Carving

This step was probably the most time consuming. I used various carving tools to create a recess that was large and deep enough for the aluminum triangle. Since this was only the second time ever that I tried this technique the result wasn't as clean as I wished but still good enough. In the end the triangle fit perfectly and was flush with the surface of the wood.

Step 12: Sanding

Well what can I say? Sanding is always the same boring part of a project. I went from 200 up to 600 grit sandpapers with the wood and to 800 for the aluminum which resulted in a nice matte effect.

Step 13: Gluing

I used a two part epoxy to glue the aluminum triangle in place.

Step 14: Preparing for Wall Hanging

With a 8mm drill I prepared a shallow pilot hole which was the extended at the bottom with a "custom drill bit". I used a screw of the same type that would be used to fix it to the wall and cut two notches into its head with my dremel/cut-off wheel. Next I used this bit in my drill to extend the diameter of the hole but only at the bottom. This way the screw can slide into a small slot and will remain in that place.

Step 15: Painting

As a last step I gave the play button 3 coats of clear high gloss spray paint. I decided against using wax since the grain of the staghorn would pop from the spray paint alone and I wanted a protective coating for the aluminum against corrosion.

Step 16: Finding the Right Spot

I had that nice space on my office wall which was perfect to mount this little reminder of passing the 1K milestone. There are also other reminders and memorabilia on the same wall and I though this play button would be a nice addition.

Step 17: Giveaway

You can win a Leuchtturm1917 softcover notebook along with some quality sketch pencils, a few of my channel sticker and a 3-Month Instructables Pro Account.

All you have to do is to subscribe to my YouTube channel and leave me a comment at this video and include "I'd like one!" & your Instructables username. You have until the 15th June 2016 1800 GMT to participate after which I will announce the winner on my YouTube channel VLOG. (Only entries from the EU, Norway, Switzerland, USA & Canada are eligible to get the full package mailed (please understand that I pay for this myself), residents of other countries may only receive the Pro-Account).