Gerrit points out this simple yet quite helpful tool he made for keeping squirrelly surface mount parts in place for soldering – This simple tool will change your life. I was lucky to learn how to solder surface mount from a master. He had crafted a tool very similar to this for himself and used […]
My post last week about shadowgraphy and Schlieren photography generated a lot of enthusiastic responses and not a few requests for a more detailed tutorial. Among the comments was one by Ian Smith, who has a great page here describing his own Schlieren photography set-up. (While you’re there, take a moment to appreciate the fact […]
Instructables user mountainmanna has noticed that used mini-blinds are perfect for re-purposing as plant markers. They’re lightweight, rustproof, designed to hold up to continued sun exposure, and have a nice treated surface that takes ink or pencil very well. Her tutorial shows you how to cut them up for use.
A month or so ago at the dump, I helped Michael harvest the optical sensor out of a skiing machine just as closing time descended upon us. As we got hustled away from the picking pile, he mentioned that he needed it to make a speed governor for a wood cutting and splitting machine. A […]
If lemonie’s Lego microtome is too involved for you, here’s a way simpler design for a simple hand microtome made from a wooden spool, a bolt, a nut, a washer, and a bit of dowel rod, plus the essential razor blade.
In engineering, fabricating, and all-around making, it is very useful to know basic drawing styles. This will help you get your ideas out of your head and onto that napkin, or into your notebook so that you can bring them into the world. Architects, planners, designers, engineers, and others use drawing to help communicate their […]
XenonJohn recreates a portable audio player from an alternate timeline – This is an admittedly mad project to see what might have happened if Sony had invented the Walkman earlier than they did – and made it so it took 8 track tape cartridges (which came before cassette tapes were invented). In other words, can […]
