Upcycle Progress: Brutalist Pencil Holder

Pencil holder by Иван Прищепа – https://www.pinterest.com/016bkwm1r24nzs3/

Hey all, as a quick reminder I am making a desk piece out of square metal tubing in a brutalist aesthetic. Since my last post I have done a little more brainstorming and incorporated some ideas from previous comments. I have now ordered 2 feet of 5/8″ x 5/8″ hot rolled steel tubing with a wall thickness of 0.065″ and it it set to deliver by some time next week. One of the new design choices is to go for a full fillet weld along all seams in place ion tack welds. This will increase the strength of the piece and I think will add to the brutalist aesthetic.

As for the manufacturing process I met with a member of the IDEA Forge staff about the welding and cutting facilities and confirmed there were no issues with my plan. I also got a spare piece of tubing to get a feel of the size and general dimensions I will be working with. The plan is still to clean up the tubes once they arrive and polish/grind any blemishes. I also bought quite a bit more steel than I think I will need for some welding practice as I have not welded for a year.

The design is still going to mimic the engineering center but with a few extra areas to hold desk items. I am thinking of a spot for my calculator and calipers at the moment. I will start with some sketches in my design notebook and then later translate them into models in SOLIDWORKS. I like the idea of using SOLIDWORKS because I can find the exact dimensions and spacial positioning of the piece. Another benefit of using a CAD software is the creation of engineering drawings which will be very helpful in the machine shop.