It’s Machining Month
In a follow-up to September’s Metal Working theme, for November, we’ll be delving deeper into machining tools: lathes, cutters, drill presses, metal CNC machines/laser cutters.
Workshop
The latest DIY ideas, techniques and tools for the industrial arts from metal and woodworking to CNC machining and 3D printing.
Robotic Fish Uses only One Servo
At the Center for Biorobotics in Estonia, Eszter Ozsvald built a mechanical fish named A.riel that can model the movements of actual fish surprisingly well, and using only one servo inside a carefully made silicon-based mold. It took many iterations before the final product, but found that in the end she could develop the same vortex patterns as actual fish. Her site has extensive documentation on the build process and is definitely worth a look for the mold-making processes alone.
Book Review: Textiles: The Whole Story
I recently picked up a wonderful book published by Thames & Hudson, Textiles: The Whole Story by Beverly Gordon. It covers the history of textiles, both as functional pieces, as an art form and it shows the portrayal of textiles in art. Then the book moves on to show how textiles are now being used, […]
Gary Schott’s Whimsical Mechanized Objects
Metalsmith and artist Gary Schott talks about the whimsical mechanized objects he creates in this beautiful video by Walley Films. It follows Gary as he makes Eskimo Kiss, a cranked device which shows motions of love and affection mechanically. He says, “I quite enjoy that the work itself is very time consuming and yet all of it is just to make this device do this almost ridiculous, intimate action.”
Knives Handmade in Brooklyn
Joel Bukiewicz of Cut Brooklyn talks about the value of handmade, and how that extends to his line of kitchen knives that he builds in his studio in Brooklyn, New York. Joel was a writer by trade who, after taking a three month sabbatical, found the desire to make things instead. He worked with wood, made jewelry, and eventually ended up making hunting knives.
Zachary Rukstela Talks Kinetic Steamworks
Zachary Rukstela of Kinetic Steamworks considers himself the steward of the pieces of vintage steam technology he owns. He operates a steam powered vehicle at Maker Faire Bay Area 2011, and explains his background in steam, from growing up on a farm, to working on a WWII era steam powered destroyer.
How-To: Personalized Hangers
These personalized hangers from Lait Fraise Mag may look elegant and complex, but they’re actually quite simple to put together, and make lovely home decorations and displays. Once you’ve tried out a few and have have gotten your cursive writing skills nicely dusted off, I bet the same name writing method would work for adding […]