just thought i'd share a little project i been working on..
consists of a set of scratch built selfs (i did'nt build) which was originally made to hold plates.
i decided to make it into a pistol cabinet since i dont yet have a safe and needed a way to lock them up.
1/4 inch plexiglass door, i used 6 led tap lights from the dollar store, instead of batteries i wired them to a 5volt DC transformer.
2 alarms (the kind you put on your windows with magnet sensors) are also in the cabinet, not sure exactly how loud they are, normally they use 1.5v x3 button cells, i've got the two wired up to 4 AAA's.. so they're getting 6 instead of 4.5 volt.. and are pretty damn loud.
the lock im not sure what kind you'd call it.. it's the kind you'll find on vending machines and such.. indeed my brother in law works for a sign and vending machine shop so i got the plexi and lock free.
the whole project was a piece together, the most expensive thing was buying polyurethane to coat and protect the wood 8 bucks, followed by the lights 6 bucks, alarms 2 bucks, batteries 1 dollar, the wire was a mixture but mostly 4 conductor telephone wire.
the door is riveted onto the full length hinge, not sure exact name im not a craftsmen really, and the hinge is fastened with half inch wood screws x12
i put spent .22lr cases over the rivets, the rivets was quite ugly, this does'nt exactly look great but it looks much better.
i put 4 aluminum L-brackets to strengthen where it's mounted on the wall.
A electrical lock from a old computer is whats used to enable/disable the alarms.. they're set off by a pressure switch.. again salvaged from a old computer.
the lights will always come on when the door is open (assuming there is power), again by way of pressure switch, however they can be turned on even with the door shut by a hidden switch which can't be seen under the cabinet.. it's a push button switch from a old radio.
the handle for opening and closing the door is a spent 45acp case.. i drilled out the case and removed the primer so i could slip a small bolt down in it.
it's a hornady 45 +p steel case.
UPDATE: -= Light Change =-
well bad news, those damn dollar store LED lights started burning out on me.. im not really sure why, i guess they was just cheap Chinese sweat shop quality lights, from the dollar store.. would would have thunk it?
anyway had 1 go out, then another then another.. last night i watched one flicker for a few mins then go out, 3 leds in each light.. the only one that did'nt have any burn out was the top shelf.
anyhow today my brother in law got me some nice LED's from his work which makes signs and repairs vending machines and stuff.
i wish he would have gotten them for me to start with could have saved me 6 bucks plus the hassle.
anyway the ones i replaced them with was very good quality Sloan LED's (701269-WT-MB)
these run on 12v though, they're pretty bright at 9v but i scrounged around found a old 12v DC transformer from a wireless telephone i think is long gone.
these are pretty handy they have adhesive backs but also can be mounted by screw, and come in a strip you just cut as many as you need off..
anyway i took a few pictures of the cabinet with the new lights, i pray i have no more problems, i wanted LEDS from the get go so i would'nt have to worry about them burning out (in my life time) and for their energy efficiency.. so you can only imagine how pissed i was when those dollar store LED taplights started dropping like flies.
i also took a few shots of the lock, i know there was some concern over it, again it's not a safe, it will not stop someone who really wants in it, but they wont break into it with their bare hands thats for sure.
here you can see the old & new lights
heres the lock below, notice the aluminum "L" bracket strengthening and supporting the wood, it distributes the force to a wider area if someone was to try and pull it open, it's also attached by 3 1/2 inch wood screws.
