HackSpace_-_October_2019

FEATURE

and long leads that connected to the positive

and ground rails of the combined Nano-

amplifier board.

All that was left was to supply the

combined parts with 9 volts to see if it all

worked. I soldered a 9-volt battery connector

and a limit switch to the board, and plugged

a battery in.

Now, I’m not the most skilled person

when it comes to soldering, but in this case,

I did everything right, and I had functioning

synthesizer guts sitting on my workbench.

FABRICATION

With the most tedious part – the electronics

• out of the way, it was time to really have
  some fun.
  Since I wanted the raccoon skull to be
  visible to the user, but protected from
  damage, I fabricated an acrylic panel to

fit inside the cigar box. This was one

of the simpler parts of the build, just

requiring me to design the panel with CAD

software and then cut it on a laser cutter.

I gave it mounting holes for two of the

potentiometers, and some cut-outs to allow

sound from the synthesizer to project out at

the user.

The panel was mounted inside the box by

way of stand-offs I fabricated from a piece of

scrap cherry I had in my workshop. After

cutting/sanding the stand-offs, I gave them a

coating of tung oil to condition the wood, and

then rubbed them with mahogany gel stain

to give them a similar colour as the

mahogany box. The stand-offs were daubed

with wood glue, and clamped into the

corners of the box until the glue had set.

As much as I hated to modify the cigar box

because of its advanced age, I wasn’t going

How I Made: Rackety Raccoon Synthesizer

Right

The electronics fitted snugly

in the side of the box

Below

The finished instrument

With the most tedious part – the electronics

• out of the way, it was time to really

have some fun