Nice write-up and a nice outcome, but speaking as a reasonably successful home/amateur woodworker, this is very over-thought and over-engineered. I say this not to criticise the creator as I appreciate that they are new to this, but to help others considering such pursuits.

Some constructive feedback:

* There is no need for the extruded aluminium frame - some cheap wood would have sufficed as a frame

* The CNC'd hanging brackets are totally unnecessary - a couple of holes, one either side, with a keyhole hanger over each would have sufficed

* The balancing and 3d-printed endcaps is unnecessary assuming you've got reasonably well-placed hangers

* The fancy ESP32 board could have been replaced by a commodity ESP8266. (You could get rid of the ESP altogther and just buy pre-wired LED strips, but then you lose the opportunity to program nice lighting effects.)

As a result, the bill of materials is multiples of what is could have been. I estimate that you could replicate this in a single weekend for ~80-85 EUR (15 EUR countertop, 10 EUR wooden frame, 5-10 EUR plexiglass, 40 EUR LEDs + PSU, 5 EUR ESP8266, 1 EUR for two keyhole hangers) assuming you have a few screws and some wood glue available, plus whatever the cost of the markerspace is. Everything could be sourced from your local DIY store, plus an order from Aliexpress for the electrical components.

No disrespect but this is pure vibe engineering. Aluminum T-slot? CNC machined parts? CPU? Unnecessary design leading to being way overbuilt with lots of material and energy wasted. My advice would be to take a wood working class where they let you build a simple project of your choosing. Your wall lamp would be a perfect project, plastic accents included. You'll learn a real skill.

Glad you got it done!

I'm very confused at the aluminum frame - it would have been far easier to just buy a $5 (?) piece of pine (or equivalent softwood) to make the back frame. The pine can also be customized with a handsaw. I guess I would have rather spent more money on the visible part (walnut planks instead of a used countertop?) than the invisible part.

I think you could decrease the costs a lot. I don't see the value in using aluminium extrusions to stand it off from the wall. You could use softwood for that, and glue, and negate the need for expensive custom connectors.

Temperature safety test was a nice touch; looks incredible.

I'd have put the effort into replacing the "Raufaser" tapestry with a plastered wall, but that's personal preferences. ;-)

I love European woodworking equipment. It's so much better than what we can get in the US.

This is awesome and I love it! Congratulations, and welcome to realizing that once you can make things, you can make exactly what you want, regardless of whether it's practical or economical (as you discovered). If you have a partner, good on them for not joining the pool for 2034 or stabbing you with the aluminum partway through the project.

A couple notes:

The customary solution for hanging something on a wall such that you can hang and un-hang it is a French cleat [0]. They're best for flat-ish stuff, but they work pretty well for shallow cabinets as well. You have a cavity in the framework that you can hide it in, along with the electronics.

I don't have a huge beef with using aluminium for the frame, though I'd have used aluminum personally. I agree with others that wood would have been cheaper, but I'd be generally worried about the electronics in the cavity not getting enough airflow to stay cool. The brick wall should sink some heat, and the aluminum should help move heat better than wood would. Honestly, I see the aluminum as a pretty expedient solution to prototyping this. You don't need to save every penny if you're only making one of something.

Wood movement is a thing. I'd edge glue the two pieces of beech, and then follow the traditional solution of mounting to the frame with one fixed point and one floating point. Using a wood frame wouldn't have gotten you out of this: in practical terms, wood is constant in length, but has noticeable changes in width. Attaching pieces with the width running across the length is called cross-grain construction, and is best avoided. A common solution is table buttons[1].

For affixing router templates, double-sided tape works well. You want the stuff with the thickness and texture of duct/duck tape, sometimes sold as carpet tape. Don't use the thin stuff from the office supply. DON'T REUSE THE TAPE. It never sticks as well the second time, and a router can do a lot of damage in a hurry if the template moves. You can also just use a single sheet of paper glued between the template and the workpiece. This is called a paper joint[2], and it's commonly used for split spindle turnings and bowl turning.

Anyhow, the design is great, and it brings a lot more to the space than either of the commercial options. Keep on building, and please keep posting!

Thanks also for listing parts/suppliers/etc.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_cleat

[1] https://www.popularwoodworking.com/editors-blog/attaching-a-...

[2] https://www.wwgoa.com/video/bowl-turning-paper-joints-000224...

I cant help but wonder, are these kind of posts on the HN front page because all the programmers are nervous about their jobs and looking to switch to maker/woodworking jobs? It scratches some of the same itches, for sure...

Nice Work! Take note of the usage of aluminium extrusions, if you're not familiar with them, take a look, they are very handy and not expensive. I've built a 10 inch mini rack with them, really handy.

extrusions also let you re-tap and move standoffs later, glue doesn't. worth the premium imo

That's a nice lamp!