We’d like to welcome listeners to today’s Science Friday show. We’re a small company that blogs about cool DIY projects and sells hobby electronic kits. You can find our archive of Halloween projects here, and our store is here.
Update: the Larson Scanner kit mentioned on the show is here, and the Snap-O-Lantern kit is here.
Awesome: These German Safety Goggles made of shiny steel and safety glass are being imported to North America by Lee Valley Tools.
Even More Awesome: A quick lens swap turns them into incredibly cool costume 3D goggles. Continue reading Simple 3D Safety Goggle Mod
Matthew Borgatti recently put up an excellent post about the process of creating a hat box stamp for Pork Pie Hatters:
A professional looking tool made from a few simple digital fabrication techniques and some easy hand finishing. I really love when a process can be this straightforward and precise and take the hand crafting out of the equation. Laser cutting allows me to put the time and labor and love in the conception step and not on the execution.
He walks through the details of the aesthetics, design, fabrication and finishing.
Maker Camp is a virtual DIY camp for teens created by the folks at Make Magazine and Google. It’s free and open to all on Google+. I am excited to be participating in Maker Camp this week as the guest camp counselor on Thursday, July 26.
The activity I’ll be leading will be Electric Origami. Schedule, materials lists and how to join the camp are all on the Maker Camp site and Make’s Google+ page.
I’m looking forward to hanging out with the campers! I’ll be posting the direct link to the broadcast and hangout as soon as it is posted on Thursday.
Update: Introductory information has now been posted for the Make G+ hangout, which begins at 12 noon, PST.
Update 2: The stream is up, link is here! And, there’s a youtube stream, too!
Summer is here, and with it, the advancing aqueous arms race! Squirt cannons, water balloon launchers, and myriad other technologies for soaking your fellow citizens.
One of the classic squirt mechanisms is the “water weenie,” where the water is stored under pressure in a length of elastic tubing, and the force to eject the water is provided by the restoring force of that tubing. Often the elastic tubing is a simple length of latex “surgical” tubing, or in the case of the classic Wham-O Water Wiennie, a literal rubber balloon. While people have almost certainly been squirting each other with these things since (we’re guessing about ten minutes after) the invention of the water balloon, the technology has more recently been reinvented as the “constant pressure system” used in modern high-end water guns.
Here is our take on the water weenie: How to make your own high-performance, arbitrary-capacity squirt machine, starting with basic hardware. Our 10′ version shown above— which you can lift if you’re strong! —throws water up to 25 feet and can empty over ten gallons of water onto your target in one continuous shot. And of course, you can make it bigger if you want to.
Last part we unboxed the Heathkit, looked at all the components, and started to build some of it. Now it’s time to finish off the build with the three main plates. This part is cool as you are able to see the creation come together before your eyes. We even created our own replacement part!
We also saw some cool vintage Heathkits at the Electronics Flea Market, and will show some pictures of those. Read on for more!
Ever wondered where some of the kit projects get their inspiration to strive for clear instructions, excellent documentation, and an overall fantastic DIY experience?
Heathkits were electronics kits popular in the late 1940s and 1950s. We have a mint AC Voltmeter kit that we will be building up over the next few days! We plan to document the experience and share it with all of you! Read on for more delightful photos and descriptions!
Continue reading The Heathkit Build – Part 1 – Unboxing & Components
A hack-box to go, filled with interconnects, LEDs, and love. Because, what better way to say I love you, than with the gift of electronics? Continue reading Five minute project: Heart-Shaped Hack Box
A mermaid’s purse is the iconic protective egg case of certain oviparous (egg laying) sharks and skates.
Here’s another version, made of crepes, perfect for protecting your eggs at breakfast time. Continue reading A Mermaid’s Purse, for Breakfast
