hobbies

Scratch-built R/C seaplane

Here’s a video of a scratch-built “foamy” R/C model of a seaplane that can actually take off and land on water. “Foamies” is the name given to the class of model planes built out of the insulation foam that can be found at home/hardware stores. ModelAero also sells a kit version of this build. Polaris […]

The Walnut Creek model railroad

The Walnut Creek model railroad

Now this is a train layout, 1,800 sqaure feet of it. It’s the pride and joy of the Walnut Creek Model Railroad Society, Walnut Creek, CA, who’ve been at it since 1975. I like how the piece on Wired.com opens: Before SimCity — even before Dungeons and Dragons — back when “computer” was a job […]

My Vac-U-Formative years

My Vac-U-Formative years

When these images showed up on Gizmodo, Oh Gizmo! and then started making the email rounds, long-dormant neural pathways lit up like a 60s Christmas tree, the kind with bulbs so big and hot they could roast chestnuts. It was under such a radiant Christmas tree that I found that exact same Mattel Vac-U-Form kit […]