Year: 2011

3-in-1 All-Terrain Robot

Iโ€™ve been building OWI robot kits since the mid-1980s. Some have been good, a few not worth the box they came in. Every once in a while, OWI does a kit thatโ€™s great โ€” their 3-in-1 All Terrain Robot (ATR) is one of these. This entertaining kit, suitable for kids 12 and up, lets you […]

RoadTech H3 Toolkit

Most hobbyists neglect to get the good basic pieces you need to work on everyday machinery like counterfeit printing presses, getaway cars, and the trap doors on elevator ceilings. Instead, they get the $20 all-in-one checkout-line kit featuring tools made from an alloy of sawdust, soda cans, and rat droppings. RoadTech H3 tools absolutely donโ€™t […]

Red Blinky POV

This kit is amazingly cool and easy to use. POV (persistence of vision) displays show words or patterns that seem to float in mid-air; if youโ€™ve ever seen one, you know what a great effect it is. A line of LEDs flashes the Y component of what youโ€™re displaying, and you provide the X by […]

The Phlatformer

The Phlatformer is a hobby vacuum- forming machine that quick-melts 10″ square plastic sheets into form-hugging shapes. Originally built for R/C modelers to make identical, lightweight body parts, it has many uses; for example, I plan to form custom holders to display my raygun collection. The kitโ€™s parts and thoughtful extras never skimp on quality, […]