DorkbotPDX Video
After watching this great video of DorkbotPDX, how could you not want to attend a Dorkbot? [Thanks, Paul!]
Hacks
iShred: iPad Embedded Snowboard
Every Third Thursday the employees of Signal Snowboards get together to get creative with board design and materials, and generally hack on gear at the factory. Recently they laboriously toiled over one of the more creative snowboard designs I’ve seen: the iShred.
Using Springs as Heating Elements
Longtime MAKE pal Raphaël Assénat wanted to recycle his stash of anti-static bags for component shipping, and built an improvised heat-sealer to do it. It’s just a step-down transformer, some current-limiting resistors, a momentary switch, and a resistance wire made by uncoiling a compression spring.
Synth in a Book, With Bonus Devil Pig
Gwydion ap Dafydd of Konkreet Labs shoehorned a MeeBlip synthesizer into a copy of that Mary Hahn’s venerable classic Praktisches Kochbuch. Much as I hate to see Mary Hahn’s work used as a means to an end, there’s no denying the cool factor of the hog-butchering diagram with the glowing eye. [Thanks, Gwydion!]
My First Epic Hack: The Lawnmower of Theseus
Much to my mother’s chagrin, my Dad always held the philosophy of “Use it until you wear it out.” It made some of our stuff look shabby, but it stretched dollars and made for good learning experiences. One day the engine on our trusty Snapper lawnmower seized up. At this point I was around 12 years old, and past the point of just handing tools to Dad while he worked on something (though being the tool gopher is an important mill to be pulled through in and of itself), but now diving into the heady space of troubleshooting. Minor problems consisted of re-sewing the grass bag’s opening so its elastic cuff would fit snugly over the chute, or having to coax the engine back to life come springtime.
The Art of Hacking: An Art Exhibit
Running through November 26th at the Netherlands Media Art Institute. The above work is “Identity Bureau, Synthetic off-the-shelf (OTS) British natural person” which plays to a loophole in British law that allows a person to have multiple legal identities. ‘The Art of Hacking‘ focuses on the artistic side of hacking. The artists in this exhibition […]
Crank Your Panavise in Turbo Mode
We’ve previously covered a popular mod to the Panavise Jr., which makes it easier to quickly open and close the tool. Even the people at Panavise liked the idea so much that they started manufacturing it. Chris from The New Hobbyist has taken this mod to “a whole ‘nother” level with his 3D printed drill bit which allows him to use the speed of his drill to open an close the vise. Getting the design right on his so-called “Panavise Jr. Speed Winder” took six revisions, but his persistence paid off and now Chris is sharing his design with us slow-winding folks. Thank you, sir!
