First I should post some thanks to the many members that have helped me get my arms around this whole PJ thing (whether they new it or not). Fulcrum – for being so kind as to share his world class Sketchup models with me, the Twins (Pun15her and Sculptor) – for their incredible design talent, SamuraiJack and Durachko – for being the funniest damn PJers in the universe (and did I mention they know their PJ sh*t too!), Tameone – for asking the question "what if you turned that sideways?", Miklopolis for blazing the trail with the LCD I'll be using, Elken – for teaching me more 150w ceramicisms than I ever thought I'd know, Dazzla – for explaining what Elken is saying , and about a gazillion (that's a lot) of other LLers that have been willing to share their ideas and assistance throughout the forums. Great group o' folks I'd say!

So hear's what I've come up with (read stolen from others) as a potential build. There's a lot of detail that's missing from the model that I'll add over time, but it is far enough along that I figured I'd put it out there for comments, questions, feedback, and revision. BTW, the model will be updated on Google for anyone to use as they wish.











Hopefully you'll see both a Haas and Pun15her influence in the "not-a-box" design. And further you'll see Fulcrum's influence from his now "rev 2" PJ. The fresnel/LCD configuration will be in the form of a cassette component in an un-split design. I was thinking about holding the cassette in place with shelf buttons and I could easily have adjustability at ¼ inch intervals, or less, which is important as I won't have adjustability for the FS mirror other than around its tilt axis. I'll make sure to have ample adjustability on the light side as well.

I plan on using a 150w ceramic as the light source and will ultimately put a precondenser in the mix. The fresnels will be a 220/550 pair mounted 10mm apart from one another, and the LCD will be at 17" widescreen Sony MFM-HT75W PC/TV display mounted 20mm from the field fresnel. All of this will cram light through an 18 inch E.F. opaque lens.

Well that's about it for now. This won't be a build that happens quick (I'm enrolling in the Durachko school of DIY PJ procrastination ) but the beginning has finally arrived!

Back with a vengence, eh? I've been waiting for your plog to pop up...

Awesome looking design and great cad work as well. I look forward to seeing it come alive!

Many questions and no time right now, must work work work....

Congratulations on the start.

Thank you my friend! I saw you've started your 2nd masterpiece...it'll be great I'm sure!

Well in the last 27 hours, I've spent 15 hours sitting on airplanes, 6 hours sitting in airports, I've lost 2 bags full of clothes, and I only got to spend 10 minutes playing around with the precondendsor calculator! There's just no justice in this world! I would liked to have wrenched more than 10 minutes out of all that time.



I can tell I'm going to have to do my homework on the whole precon thing. I'm a bit worried that I won't be able to make the 220 collimating fresnel work. I may have to move to a 330, which I'm hoping won't change the dimensions of my PJ too much. Must surf the posts.

Well that just sounds like great fun . So sorry to hear about the travel woes. At least you can say it's behind you.

On the precon change... I checked my dimension change from first build to calculations on my second (both using the Dazz Calc) and I have the second build about 5 inches longer from LCD to Arc.

Stipulations are:
first is 220 rear with a 152mm x 355mm fl (6" x 14"fl) precon.
Second design is 330 rear with a 110mm x 220mm fl (4.3" x 8.7" fl) precon.
Also, I haven't built the second yet, so grain of salt with that.
First one works perfectly from the calculations.

Just thought It was worth sharing, for what it's worth. Every build is different in the end....

My wife even likes the pretty PJ.

The focus on the edge will not be so great with the 18" triplet and the throw is kind of short. I have almost the same setup now and I wish the throw was just a little longer.

If you leave room to lower the LCD a two inches it would leave you room to go to the pro lens if you decided to later. My box is 1" too short so I would have to add some wood.

What is the rez of the Sony LCD?

cool looking enclosure, how do you plan to keystone it with the unsplitt fresnels? in both my vertical designs which use splitt optics I had to really tilt the field fres to get the image square. also the angle of the lens as it mounts in the enclosure makes a difference, the pro lens needed around 5 degrees of tilt, the standard triplet needed about 10 degrees. this gets the image on the wall and off the floor. btw, now you know why I dont fly. too much hassle, too much waiting, too many lost bags. I would rather take my motorcycle. good luck with the PJ, looks like you are off to a good start!

At least the middle of the trip is behind me...I still have the return to look forward to.

I'll have to play with the calculator a bit. I think I have some room to play, so I'm hoping I'll be O.K. If not, it's fine...I haven't cut any wood yet!

That's a great suggestion. Thanks for the input! I may already have enough room, but it not, I'll re-size the enclosure before I start the real building. Flexibility is a great thing!

The rez on the Sony is 1280x768 native. HD looks great on it in either 720p or 1080i and it puts all the side/top bars in all the right places...no funky stretching. I hope it makes a good PJ!

And many thanks to your wife as well.

Thanks Tescorp! Yeah...flying is no fun. It's just a necessary evil in my work.

In this build I hadn't planned on having any keystone. In my setup I think I'll be able to have the enclosure elevated to have it perpendicular to the wall. If not, I'll have to scrap the cassette idea to get keystone adjustment. There's still lots to consider, which is why I put this one out there for feedback. Thanks to all and keep it coming!

Hey,MINOUS!
Great lookin box.
It will be an interesting (read complicated) build!
But she will be a beauty.
Good luck,looks like you have it mostly figured out.
Congrats,on an excellent start.
Cheers P

Thanks Pun15her! I'd like to think I have it all figured out, but I know that I don't. If mine turns out half as nice as yours, I'll be a very happy man. It's gonna be a great deal of fun putting this all together...no doubt.

Cheers!

MINOUS,

Looks GREAT! All those curves, I can't wait see how it turns out. I'm sure I'll be keeping an eye on your plog.

Cheers!

Fulcrum

Hey Fulcrum! Been keeping up on your plog and it seems you are up and about...feeling better. That's excellent. I'm actually not too worried about the woodworking once the plan is done. But I really want to get the plan right before I start making lots of saw dust. We'll see if I can succeed at that. Thanks for stopping by, and keep up the good work on your build!

Another 26 hours of travel, but I have all my luggage and I'm back home. So what does one do after nearly a week of travel in far away places? Well you turn right around and do it again! I leave for another business trip today. Let's see...that's 7 time zones on Tuesday, another 3 today, What year is it???

Hopefully more PJ stuff soon.

Wow...how time flies. All that travel did result in something good...a new job! The bad news is that the responsibilities of a new gig keep me from PJ stuff. I've been very slow to get going anyway, so I don't suppose this changes much.

I was able to look into the advice that arizonavideo gave and see how the pro lens setup would fit. In the end, it wouldn't without some minor changes to the front lens case. Here's a pic of the modification.



This lens case will allow me to go with either setup (pro or 18" opaque with the 550mm fresnel). Now I have to keep planning the precon setup. I don't think I'm going to have any problems here, but I won't break out any saws until I've figured it all out. I'll update the model on GSU when I've made more significant progress.

Later!

STATUS???? C'mon dude!!

any updates or are you as slow as i am to get your pj done??

Slower!!! I just finished up a 10 week consulting engagement and have been on the road the entire time. It's good to be home and back with the family. Maybe I'll be able to get back to PJ stuff soon...for today, dreams will have to suffice.

Wish I had that valid excuse, I've just been holed up in the shop.

Cheers to surviving a trip so long from home.

Looking forward to seeing your PJ as much as seeing mine .

Another update on how slowly my PJ is progressing.


After my last consulting gig I took serious stock of my career, life, family, and all that stuff, and I came to the conclusion that it is time for a change. Not the family...just the career. After 18 years in the software business I've lost the "juice" for it. It's just not fun anymore. So I've decided to jump out of the kettle and into the fire...so to speak.


I've gone into the restaurant business. I know, I know...sounds like the mid-life crisis where the business guy leaves his job to move to the country and open a small breakfast/lunch joint thinking it's gonna be easy livin'. I know the restaurant business is nothing less than tough...really tough. My family has been in the business for over 35 years...you think I'd know better!


But it really is a fun business if you do it right, and I get to see my wife and kids every day. And that is priceless. And it makes my avatar make so much more sense!


So what does this long rant have to do with PJs? I'll have even less time to ponder lumens, bulbs, precons, and all that other cool stuff. But I'll keep at it. That said, I'm probably going to go for a much simpler design in the end. Looking at my most recent concept, it's a bit "over the top" and I think a more refined and simple approach may be a better fit, especially from a time perspective. That 10.6 inch panel looks interesting...small, simple enclosure... standard lens...hmmm!

Good Luck with the restaurant. Some day I would like to open a cyber-cafe. Place for the college kids to unwind and socialize.

Thanks for the good wishes Freefall.

My place is actually in a college town but the student population very rarely pays us a visit...usually only when their parents are in town or at graduation time. Otherwise they have no money to spend and anyway, we're not known for having a vast selection of beer. The student body does provide a steady stream of employees though.

I was actually wanting coffee house not alcohol. Poetry and open mike for other things.

There's one like what you are talking about right around the corner from the restaurant. It's always got a lot of customers...students, professors, retired local residents...always an interesting mix of people. Cool place for sure. Hope you get to do it some day. In some ways being in business for yourself is...well...a bit scary. But it's also quite liberating. I highly recommend it.



Later!