back 🇳🇱

Phone vault

duration: 30 - 60 minutes

age: from 7 years

Make a phone vault and go offline.

Phone vault

tools

  • Laser cutter
  • Sandpaper
  • glue brush
  • clamps

materials

  • 3mm plywood
  • Wood glue
  • wax or candle wax

downloads

step 1 - Cut out the parts

  • Use a lasercutter to cut out the provided template.

step 2 - Sand the parts

  • Punch the parts out of the sheet and sand the edges smooth with sandpaper. Be careful with the thin pieces.
  • Once the dark layer from the laser cutting has disappeared you have sanded enough.
  • Make sure the inside of the round holes and the outside of the number discs are sanded too.

step 3 - The lid

  • Put glue on the part with the small round holes with drawn circles around them. Make sure no glue gets inside the drawn circles.
  • Put glue on the part with the small round holes with drawn circles around them. Make sure no glue gets inside the drawn circles.
  • Push the handle up from the bottom through the glued sheet. Use this to center the top sheet exactly.
  • Clamp it with clamps.

step 4 - First hinge loop

  • Glue only one loop here. The other loop will be added later.
  • Glue one of the hinge loops in place.

step 5 - The box

  • Attach the sides to the bottom. Use some glue to hold them in place.
  • Put some glue in the slots for the short sides and slide the short sides into place.

step 6 - Lock mechanism

  • Sand a beveled edge on the small wood piece that goes into the side.
  • Glue the small piece in place with the beveled edge facing down.

step 7 - Lock mechanism

  • Slide the pins together. No glue is needed for this.
  • Put some wax on one side of the discs with a flat side.
  • Slide the discs with the flat side onto the pins. The waxed side should face up.

step 8 - Assemble lock mechanism

  • The number rings have small triangular arrows. They point to the numbers you can use for your code.
  • Insert the pins from bottom to top through the lid. Align the flat side with the bottom edge of the lid.
  • Wax the bottom and side of the number rings.
  • Slide the number rings onto the pins from the top. No glue is needed. Make sure the digit of your code lines up with the arrow on the lid.

step 9 - Turn knobs

  • Put some glue on one of the pins that now stick out of the lid.
  • Slide the discs with plus-shaped holes over the pin.
  • Glue a small disc without a hole on top of the knob.
  • Repeat for the other knobs.

step 10 - Second hinge loop

  • Slide the hinge loop that is already in the lid around the hinge pin of the box.
  • Now glue the second hinge loop in place.

step 11 - Done!

  • Wait for the glue to dry and you're done!
  • Put that phone away and play a board game with your family.