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Make That Laser Cutter Blaze: Upgrade a K40

Make That Laser Cutter Blaze: Upgrade a K40

Digital fabrication tools can run from hundreds to many tens of thousands of dollars. For makers interested in a really useful tool at a relatively low initial cost with tremendous upgrade potential, the generic “K40” type 40W CO2 laser platform is hard to beat. Significantly more powerful than diode lasers, K40 lasers can cut wood, leather, […]

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The Hexanaut: Building The World’s Largest Rideable Hexapod Robot

The Hexanaut: Building The World’s Largest Rideable Hexapod Robot

Whether they realize it or not, fans of Star Wars, Harry Potter, and the Disney+ series Andor may already be familiar with UK creator Matt Denton’s movie magic. But in 2012, Denton’s futuristic fabrications transcended the silver screen and landed in the real world with the debut of Mantis — a six-legged, two-ton, human-piloted, steel behemoth.  Originally commissioned for commercial use, a […]

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Chrome and Lace: Rae Ripple’s Take On Rat Rods

Chrome and Lace: Rae Ripple’s Take On Rat Rods

Meet Phillis Gene, a vintage Chevrolet Deluxe that just got a one-of-a-kind redesign by Texas-based metal artist Rae Ripple. “I wanted to keep that real classy lady feel, so that’s where the lace came in,” Ripple says of her work, commissioned by a rat rod enthusiast and named after his mother. “I guess if you were going […]

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Plane Spotting (And More!): Put your spare gear to use as a feeder for community-based data exchanges

Plane Spotting (And More!): Put your spare gear to use as a feeder for community-based data exchanges

If you’ve ever used a flight-tracking app or looked up local weather on Weather Underground, you’ve likely accessed data supplied, in part, by volunteer contributors. Crowd-sourced data exchanges collect this information and share the pooled results online via interactive maps. The data ranges from radio-signal telemetry for airplanes, ships, weather balloons, or satellites, to seismic measurements, to air […]

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Model Mainframe

Model Mainframe

With how important desktop and laptop computers are to the world today, it’s hard to imagine that, not too long ago, they used to be the size of refrigerators and entire rooms. However, Nicolas Temese has found a way to keep the memory of these gigantic machines alive — by shrinking them down to a fraction of […]

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Get a Grip! Overcome Those Shaky Hands With These Useful Adaptive Devices

Get a Grip! Overcome Those Shaky Hands With These Useful Adaptive Devices

Get a better grip on your tools with these easy assistive solutions.

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