When we posted our first piece about fidget spinners in November of last year, we had no idea that they were going to become such a massive cultural phenomenon. That post is closing in on half-a-million page views and there seems to be no end of interest in these simple little gadgets with no real utility. It is perhaps a telling statement of our age that a device for dissipating excessive amounts of nervous energy is the Pet Rock or Slinky of the moment.
There are dozens (and dozens) of fidget spinner products and even dozens more DIY spinner projects to be found online. The great thing about spinners is that they are little more than a bearing and some weights around it to keep the bearing spinning. You can say what you want about the foolishness of this all-ages shut-up toy, but their simplicity and the desire for makers of them to outdo each other has led to a dizzying variety of designs, some quite clever.
I ran into this video on Facebook, and even with my current fidget spinner fatigue, I still found them kind of inspiring and fun.
Bike Chain Spinner
This one uses 22 links of a bike chain, a zip tie, a nut and a bolt, and a standard bearing to create a very distinct-looking spinner.
LED Bikelight Spinner
For this design, they used 6 LED bike lights (with their dome covers removed), hot-glued to the outer edge of the bearing. It doesn’t get any easier than this and you end up with a cool light-up, flashing spinner than looks amazing in the dark.
Lego Fidget Spinner
Everything gets Lego’d eventually, so it’s no wonder there’s a Lego fidget spinner. The unique thing about this one is that it doesn’t use a traditional metal bearing, but makes a spinner hub entirely out of standard Lego pieces.
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