waving american flag - instructables

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Waving American Flag

by Fishers Shop

I've seen a lot of folks making different kinds of flags,and they're cool don't get me wrong, but I was lookingfor something a bit out of the ordinary. I wanted myflag to have the appearance that it was waving in thewind. For this project, I used the ArborTech turboplane attachment that goes on an angle grinder, butit's not absolutely necessary if you don't happen toown one. In fact, there's quite a few different methodsthat you could employ to achieve a similar effect so

just because you don't have the same tools that Imight be using, don't write off this project assomething you can't do. I strongly recommendwatching the embedded video so you can get a goodidea of what each step entails. There's only so much Ican convey through still images and a video withvoice over can paint a much better picturesometimes. Without further ado, let's get started!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L10h_c4LKvI&t=1s

Waving American Flag:

http://www.instructables.com

http://www.instructables.com/id/Waving-American-Flag/

http://www.instructables.com/member/Fishers Shop/

Step 1: Materials & Tools

Materials:

For materials, it's pretty straight forward.

1. You'll need a computer and printer so you can print off the templates2. Clear packing tape3. A piece of thin stock for the flag stripe template (3'4 1/4" long, 2" high, approx 1/4" thick)4. Craft Spray Adhesive5. Five straight 8' long 2x4s6. Wood glue7. Painter's tape8. High-temp HVAC foil tape9. Black spray paint

10. Masking material (i.e. Newspaper, butcher paper, plastic drop cloth etc.)11. Some type of wood finish (i.e. SPAR Urethane, Polyurethane, Lacquer, etc.)12. D-rings for hanging finished product

IMPORTANT: By using the templates and 5 8'-long 2x4s, your offcuts can be used to make a SECOND flag!

Tools:

1. Scissors, tape, and razor blades (or exacto knife) to cut out and piece together the templates2. Tape measure3. Bandsaw (Steps with bandsaw could be done with a jigsaw or even a hand-held coping saw)4. Spindle sander (Steps with spindle sander could be done by hand sanding)5. Planer (Steps with planer could be done with tablesaw)6. Jointer (Steps with jointer could be done with tablesaw)7. Tablesaw8. Miter saw (Steps with miter saw could be done with handsaw)9. Pipe/Bar clamps

10. Angle grinder with wood carving attachment (i.e. ArborTech's Turboplane)11. Flap disk sanding attachment12. Sand paper13. Propane torch14. Rotary tool with wood carving bit (Steps with rotary tool could be done with hand carving tools)15. Brush for applying finish


Step 2: Design & Templates

To create the waving appearance, I had the idea touse a curved template with 13 offsets (one for eachstripe in the flag). Then I could trace the curvy lineonto each stripe board but start each one at adifferent offset mark on the template. Once all theboards are cut out and laid together, it creates adiagonal wave pattern.

Fisher's Shop Waving American Flag Curvy StripeTemplate

1. Download the PDF template above and print it outon your computer

2. Cut it out, piece together the sections, and secureit with tape

For a later section, you'll need to trace the union starsonto the flag. There are a variety of options you haveto do this but the quickest and easiest, in my opinion,is to just download the template below and cut outeach of the stars with an exacto knife or utility knife.

Fisher's Shop Waving American Flag Union Template

3. Download the PDF template above and print it outon your computer

4. Cut it out, piece together the sections, and secureit with tape

5. Put a layer of packing tape across the front andback of the template to thicken it up

6. Cut out all the stars very precisely with an exactoknife or Utility knife


https://drive.google.com/open?id=1r9TcqVThideBvX20j-6jueL4s878uvt9

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1PktuA7OLFZvjWKTAc1UrNb81wkXyY2zr

Step 3: Building the Curvy Stripe Template

7. Once the template is cut out, prepare a thin pieceof stock to adhere it onto. This piece should beexactly 3'4 1/4" long and around 2" high. If you don'thave a piece of stock this size, you could get awaywith just using cardboard.

8. Next, use some craft adhesive to affix the templatedown onto the stock. If your stock wasn't cut tolength, you can do it at this time now that the

template clearly identifies how long it needs to be.

9. With the template glued onto the board, you cannow cut it out over at the bandsaw. If you don't have abandsaw, you can use a jigsaw or even a hand-heldcoping saw for this step.

10. After cutting out the template, you can smooth outthe curves by using a spindle sander or by hand

sanding.

11. The last step is to transfer the offset marks fromthe template onto the wood. I did this by scoring eachmark with a utility knife and then darkening each cutmark with a pencil once the paper template wasremoved.

12. To remove the paper template easily, use a heatgun or hair dryer to loosen the adhesive and just peeloff the paper. To be honest, it's not even all thatimportant that the paper be removed.


Step 4: Dimensioning the Stripes

13. Step 13 is to cut 13 stripes. :) Start off by cuttingthe stripes to 2' 7.5" each. This is 1/4" longer thantheir final length will be but will allow for some slopduring the gluing stage. This also allows you to easilyget 3 stripes for every 8' 2x4 that you cut. Whencutting up 5 2x4s you'll end up with a total of 15stripes so you'll have 2 extras in case one of theothers has some imperfections you don't like.

14. The next step is to get each of the stripes to theirfinal thickness of 1 1/4". I did this using my planer, butyou could just as easily accomplish this on the tablesaw. If you can't raise the blade high enough to do it

in one pass, just raise it slightly over half the height ofthe board and make two passes, flipping it end forend between cuts.

15. In the video, I use my jointer to take off therounded edges of the 2x4s and then reference thatsquare edge against my tablesaw fence and rip eachstripe to it's final height of 2 1/2". If you don't have ajointer, you could just use your tablesaw and make 2cuts per stripe (1 to trim off the rounded edges on oneside, 1 to trim it to final height while referencing thesquare edge against your fence).


Step 5: Marking and Cutting the Stripes

16. With your stripe template, line up the first edgeagainst the edge of one of your stripe boards. Makesure the bottoms are flush and then trace the line forthe entire length of the board. For your next stripe,line up the template again but reference the first offsetinstead of the edge. Do this for each stripe board youhave while each time referencing the next offset markon the template. BE SURE to number each board asyour mark them paying careful attention to alsonumber the offcuts as they will be used to make asecond flag.

17. Once each stripe board has been marked with itscurvy line, proceed to cut each one out over at thebandsaw. If you don't have a bandsaw, you can dothis with a jigsaw. If you don't have a jigsaw, then it'spossible (however exhausting to even imagine) to doit by hand with a coping saw. Do your best to stay onthe line when cutting, however it's not the end of theworld if you veer off a bit since this project has a lot offorgiveness (most of the imperfections will be groundoff during the later steps).


Step 6: The Glue Up

18. With all the stripes cut out, place them in yourpipe/bar clamps in the proper order and prepare forthe glue up. I used just standard Titebond wood gluebut my flag is hanging on the wall in my office. Ifyours will be outside, be sure to use water resistant orwaterproof wood glue (i.e. Titebond 2 and 3).

19. Glue up each stripe and clamp to dry paying veryspecial attention to keeping things square. It's alsovery difficult to use caulling boards because of thewavy top of the flag so be sure to do your best to

make things flush on the bottom.

20. Once it's dry, remove from the clamps and scrapeoff any glue squeeze out on the bottom of the flag.You can ignore the sides and top of the flag since thatwill all get ground off in the next step. If you have acard scraper, that might work well for removing thebits of dried glue. Otherwise, you can use a heavy gritsandpaper to smooth things out.


Step 7: Shaping and Sanding the Flag

21. To shape the flag, I used the TurboPlane fromArborTech. This is a small metal disc with somecutting notches that attaches onto your angle grinder.This made for very fast carving and shaping!However, if you don't have the TurboPlane, there aremany other wood carving attachments that you canget for your angle grinder that would have identical tosimilar effects. Find one that works for you and thengrind off the edges of each of the waves to smooththings out.

22. Once the power carving was completed, I

changed angle grinder attachments to a flap discsander wheel. These are cheap little discs that can beused to smooth out the rough surface that the powercarving left behind.

23. The last bit of sanding is done by hand and thatjust involves some elbow grease and someprogressive grit sandpaper. I started with 80 grit andcleaned up the imperfections left by the angle grinder.Then I moved up through the grits and finally stoppedonce I reached 220.


Step 8: Trimming to Final Dimensions

24. With everything sanded, we can now trim the flagto it's final dimensions. The height and thickness ofthe flag is obviously already at its final dimensions sowe only need to concern ourselves with the width.First start by using your tablesaw to trim off an veryfine edge on one of the sides to flush things up.

25. Next, mark the final width at 2' 7 1/4" and trim theother side. By originally cutting each stripe board at 2'

7 1/2" inches, this gave you 1/4" inch of "slop" so youshould be able to flush up both sides. In the eventthat things were more than 1/4" out of square duringglue up, don't sweat it. Just trim the edges flushbecause nobody will notice if you're off 1/8th inch orso. But be warned... if I come over to visit, I'mbringing my tape measure. :)

Step 9: Taping the Stripes

26. This is one of the most time consuming parts ofthe project so be warned! In the video I explain why Ichose to go the route of using painter's tape followedby HVAC foil tape. If you can think of a simpler easiermethod, then by all means go for it! Start by usingpainter's tape to tape off each of the "white" stripes(there are 6 of them) as well as the union (approx 123/8" wide by 7 stripes tall).

27. Then use the less-flamable HVAC foil tape tocover the painter's tape as best you can. The tape Ihad was too wide so I had to cut each piece in halfand then tape along the top edge and then againalong the bottom edge of each of the white stripes.

IMPORTANT: Don't forget to tape off the sides of theflag as well!


Step 10: Burning the Stripes, Untaping, & Spot Sanding

28. For this I used a small hand-held propane torch. Ifyou have one of the large weed-flaming torches, thenI'd advise against using it for this. You'll want theprecision of a smaller flame for sure.

29. When burning the stripes it's important to keepthe torch moving! You should only be going for adiscolored look, don't blacken it! Also, if you dwell toolong in an area, the foil tape will disfigure and you'llhave issues with burn-through. Just hold the torchabout 6" away, use a steady side-to-side motion, andlet the grain of those stripes just pop out at you. Don'tbe too worried about getting a consistent darknessacross the stripes because a little variation is good.This is one of those things where it's best to stop

early because by attempting to achieve perfectionyou will actually make it worse.

30. Make sure you burn the side end-grain as well asthe top and bottom edges of the flag. When you'redone, you should have 7 burned stripes whichrepresent the red stripes.

31. Once you're happy with how things look, goahead and remove the tape from the flag. Inevitably,there will be some spots here and there of burn-through or where the adhesive was scorched onto thewood. Go through each of the white stripes and cleanoff these areas with some 220 grit sandpaper.


Step 11: Masking & Painting the Union

32. Next step is to mask off where the union will go.This should be pretty apparent based on where youhad it taped off during the burn process, so run somepainter's tape vertically down the outside of that line.Then again horizontally across the bottom of theunion (on the 8th stripe). At this point you should beable to easily fasten some butcher paper ornewspaper to mask off the rest of the flag so itdoesn't accidentally get painted.

IMPORTANT: Make sure your masking goes over theedges as well since you'll want to paint the top edgeand the side of the flag too!

33. For paint I just chose some regular old blackspray paint from a rattle can. You can use whateveryou are comfortable with but I do suggest somethingthat has a tendency to NOT bleed. Also, you'll want todo just a single coat. I've made 3 of these flags so farand I found that when I do more than 1 coat of painton the union, it makes for a more difficult time whencarving out the stars. Don't worry about achieving aperfect glossy paint surface either, because it all getscovered with finish in the next step. You just want adark enough color to contrast against the burnedstripes. Leave things to dry overnight, it's best not towork with tacky paint.


Step 12: Drawing and Carving the Stars

34. Remember that union template you spent all thattime making in the earlier steps? Well now is the timeto put it to use! One thing that you'll notice is that theunion isn't perfectly square. This is because thingsare slightly out of whack since the surface isn't flat.All this means is that you'll have to fudge things just abit to make it work. Start by lining up the templatewith the corner of the union and tracing on the starswith a sharp pencil. Each time you finish a verticalrow, make very small adjustments to the template tosteer it towards the direction it needs to be in onceyou reach the other side.

IMPORTANT: Make sure your template is right-sideup! Stars should have 2 points on the bottom and 1point on the top. You don't want to accidentally make

your flag with upside-down stars!!

35. The next step is actually kinda fun! Hopefully youwere a master at the board game Operation whenyou were a kid because this takes a steady hand. Iused a cheap rotary tool with a cylindrical woodcutting bit to do this carving. If you don't have a rotarytool (they're pretty cheap) you can use other woodcarving tools, such as a 90-degree V-cut knife. Ifound it helpful if you could rotate the flag so that youcould get a good angles during carving. It's alsoimportant that you're able to brace the palm of yourhand against something so you have the support tomake accurate cuts. This is where you really start tosee things take shape and it gets exciting!

Step 13: Applying Finish and D-rings

36. Even though my flag is an in-door piece of wallart, I still chose to use SPAR urethane for a couplereasons. I like how fast it dries and how glossy thefinal appearance is. Sure, there's other finishes thathave those properties but this is what I had on handso I went with it. Use whatever your favorite finish is,however I advise you to use something that willprotect it against the elements if you plan to put theflag outdoors. Also, it's a good idea to put a couplecoats on the back side of the flag as well (especially ifputting it outside) to protect against moisture. All inall, I put on about 4-5 coats of SPAR urethane. Aftereach coat dried, I lightly sanded with 220 andremoved the dust before applying the next coat. At

the end of it, the flag had a glass-like finish.

37. The flag doesn't really weigh all that much, but Istill chose to mount the D-rings 16" apart so that Iwouldn't have to use wall anchors when hanging andinstead I could benefit from the support of hanging itfrom studs. To do this, find the center of your flag(approx 15 5/8") and measure out 8" from either sideof that. Standard 2x4 pine shouldn't split, but at thispoint you'll probably want to pre-drill just to make sureit doesn't. Pop in a couple D-rings and you're good togo!


Step 14: Enjoy Your Awesome Waving American Flag!

Congratulations! You've done it!

38. Now that you've finished it and show it off, mostlikely you'll be berated with requests with make more(I know from experience). After thoroughly explainingto them all the time and effort that goes into makingeach one and the healthy price tag that you'reattaching, you can make a second flag using theoffcuts from this project. Since you numbered themway back when you were cutting the stripes, you canglue them up into a second panel and start the

carving process.

Thanks for reaching through this instructable! If youhaven't already, I recommend watching theembedded video at the beginning (even if you're notgoing to make the project) because the video isactually pretty entertaining and funny. Be sure tofollow me here, share this with your friends, as wellas subscribe to me on YouTube for future projects.Until next time, take care!


Looks awesome, I wonder if I can do my country's flag? Probably need to paint rather than burn, doyou think that would look as good?

If you paint, you'll be missing out on the grain patterns in the wood. I'd suggest using colored stainso you get the best of both worlds.

As a veteran I salute you!

KJ

Well thank you, sir. And thank you for your service!

Extremely unique and wavy flag! Looks like fun too! I like your ingenuity and very clear and conciseinstruction! Thanks Mr. Fisher!

Thanks, chuck!

Wow! Worth the effort to make one! Patent the design before we see them with a Made WithCheap Labor Label!

Given the thickness of the project, maybe a French Cleat to hang it? Just rout out a DADO(?)along the back and finish off the top with the dovetail bit used to create the hanger/cleat.

By the way, that little green Planer Accessory Material Catcher is cool. I didn't see that optionwhen I bought my DeWalt 735!

A couple of edits: "Do your best to stay on the line when cutting," Stay on the Waste Side of theline, No?

"(there's 6 of them)" or (there're 6 of them) or, better yet (there are 6)

Really good job and video. Arbortech owes you! Next time, when to give the model number of aproduct Add "SF" or "FS" to the model number/description "TurboPlane Model FS-9 fromArborTech." That way, when the customers call, chat or write because they "can't find it on the website," the vendor will know whence the orders are coming from.

Haha, sneaky strategy. Glad you liked it, Charles. Thanks for the comment! :)


Regarding your edit suggestions - There isn't a "waste side" of the line since you'll be using bothsides. So I recommend staying right ON the line when cutting. And you're right about "there's".haha Thanks

That's some sweet power carving!!

Thanks, Paul. It's no leg lamp, but it'll do. :)

Great project and a great video! Could each stripe have been an individual piece of 2x4, whichcould be burned before glue-up?

kayakdiver is right. I tried that method on the very first flag I did but no matter how hard I tried, Icouldn't get them perfectly lined up again during the glue up. I figured I'd rather just spend the timetaping so that I could have it perfectly smooth.

I think if he had (perhaps pinned and then) only clamped the pieces together for the carving andsanding process, he could have taken it back apart for the burning process, keeping in mind thathe might have still ended up with some slightly uneven edges after putting it back together due tomaterial loss or shrinkage in burning.

Perhaps a better idea is to use a darker, and even reddish, wood for the red stripes and skip theburning altogether, although I think the burned wood looks very "cool".

Great Work. NOW, I have another project on my "TO DO LIST". UNBELIEVABLE WORK. Yougave me some great ideas. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

My pleasure! You're very welcome

That's really nice.

Thanks!

Awesome job! I'll steal your technique to do my own waving Canadian flag :)

Thanks! I'd love to see your finished product. Share it here when you're finished. :)

Merica! Very cool and nice video walk through!

Thanks! :)

very cool

Thanks!

really cool!

Thanks! :)

Wow, this is fantastic! Really great techniques too - I picked up several tricks, which is awesome.Thank you so much :)

My pleasure! Thanks for the kind words!


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