Reuleaux Triangle Box

Here’s a little box I’ve been working on in Illustrator for a little while. It’s based on a Reuleaux triangle which is a rounded triangle of a certain shape.

The sides are bent due to kerf cutting (actually it was a 3 pass engrave with differing widths of engraved slots):

I used the Glowforge to make the center medallion as well. It’s two layers of black acrylic, with the lines that form the walls cut and glued on the bottom solid layer. Then filled in with an iridescent paint then domed with two-part epoxy resin. The middle of the lid is engraved to make a slot for this piece.

I made several others (actually the others are my test pieces and they have all sorts of problems).

I found I got the best results by using hardwood (Proofgrade basswood for this one) rather than plywood, so I could sand off the finish so it would bend easier. I didn’t have any nonPG hardwood that did not have finish, or I would have tried that.