Author Archive
Jake’s Hollywood Adventure and Etching an iPod

OK, I was reckless. I went ahead and etched my iPod without doing extensive tests on electrolytic etching of stainless steel. But you see, I had a deadline – a flight to Los Angeles to be on television and I wanted the iPod done for the show. I began
Steampunk Flat-Panel LCD Mod

The Steampunk Keyboard looked terribly anachronistic sitting in front of my Dell 1907FP flat panel monitor and while I hesitated to tear open a $300 monitor that was still under warrantee, art must be served. Inside I found that the whole thing was encased in steel sheet. I
Gas Mask Sawdust Respirator

Update: Sometimes when I'm working in the shop I just need to wear a respirator for a short period. For instance if I just need to walk into the paint area to shoot a second coat on a small part or make a quick cut on the table saw
How to Make a Large Flash Diffuser

Making nice photographs when all you have for lighting is a bunch of tungsten shop lamps can be a real challenge. It is particularly hard to photograph polished brass under these conditions. So this weekend I set out to build a flash diffuser to improve the quality of the photography
Telegraph Clacks out RSS Feeds

When I was a boy my father brought home from work a telegraph sounder replica kit. He was the director of the library for a local college and the sounder kit was one of several museum quality reproductions of 19th Century technology the library had acquired. The lovely brass
Gallery of Found Objects

On Saturday when I go to the dump I carry with me a long steel hook which allows me to fish interesting things out of the metal re-cycling dumpster. I’ll also stop and look through intersting piles left curbside for collection on trash day. Some find this practice unseemly, but
Philatelic Keyboards – More Model M Goodness

Andy sent me a couple of shots of his beautiful stamp decorated keyboards. He write that he's made about 10 of these beauties. Each of his keyboards are made with the stamps of a single nation and often commemorate a royal coronation or celebrate a particular sport. Andy's friends
How to Make a Cheap Lightbox

For many of my recent projects I have found myself in need of a lightbox so I took a couple of hours from working on my latest project to put together this one. I used a piece of glass from the old Xerox machine that I bought for ten dollars
Thoughts on a DIY Electro-Chemical CNC Machine Tool

There is a class of machine tool know as CNC, or Computer Numerically Controlled. These are computer controlled tools capable of cutting complex shapes with a high degree of accuracy and repeatability. They generally cost tens of thousand of dollars and weigh over a ton. They’re often available used
Thoughts on Building a Steam Car

December 1, 2006 I want to build a steam car or perhaps a steam motorcycle. Why? you ask. Oh, just for fun, I reply. The first step in a big project is research. I ordered the Essential Steam Power Library from International Correspondence Schools, circa 1906. Lindsay Books