This week on Maker Update, a mechanical tulip, the E3D print slicer, a LEGO walkie talkie
Twitch switch, 3D printing with DiResta, a triaxial clock, Laura Kampf’s swing bike,
and turning pixels to gcode.
Hey, I’m Donald Bell, and welcome to another Maker Update.
I hope you’re all being awesome and having a good week.
I’ve been doing a huge cleanup of my little garage, which isn’t fun, but it will be
nice to have some better organization in there.
I also want to remind you guys that next week will be the Adafruit edition of the show,
over on the Adafruit channel.
Be sure to check that out.
Now let’s get started with the project of the week.
Check out this mechanical LED tulip on Instructables by Jiri Praus.
The project uses brass rod, surface mount Neopixels at the center, even smaller surface
mount white LEDs across the petals, a touch sensor, a tiny servo, and an Arduino Nano
tucked into a wooden base.
Aside from being a beautiful and unique design, what really puts this project over the top
is the incredible documentation.
Jiri includes detailed photos, videos, diagrams and animations of how it all goes together.
He’s got some good tips on freeform circuits, creating movement with pushrods, soldering
brass, and using templates to create multiple, consistent pieces.
It’s an intricate and advanced project to take on, but the payoff is this delicate,
one-of-a-kind work of art.
It’s time for some news.
There’s a new 3D model slicer out called Pathio.
It’s available as a free beta for Windows, Linux, and Mac.
At first glance, it seems like it’s targeting advanced users looking for better resolution,
custom scripting options, and the ability to create gcode files where different elements
can be grouped for different print settings.
If it sounds like something you’d be into, go check it out.
More projects!
Bob Clagett from I Like to Make Stuff made this wireless hotkey controller shaped like
a LEGO walkie talkie.
The heart of the project is an Adafruit Bluefruit board acting as a Bluetooth HID keyboard.
Bob wires up three buttons to the board which he defines in the code as the hotkeys he needs
for his Twitch video stream control.
The project is also a clever use of embedded magnets to add a removable cover.
This way he can easily access the board or recharge the battery when he needs to.
Bob’s friend Jimmy DiResta has a surprising project up on his YouTube channel.
Using a 3D printed model, he shows how to cast a metal belt buckle.
He makes one out of melted brass bullet casings -- empty ones -- and the other from melted
aluminum computer parts.
On Thingiverse, Steve McGowan has this gorgeous design for a three axis, 3D printed tourbillon
clock.
The design features over 50 parts, some of which need to be attached with screws and
ball bearings that are listed in the included bill of materials.
If you’re into clocks or gears or just beautiful, challenging projects, put this one on your
todo list.
You also have to check out Laura Kampf’s video on how she made this nearly unrideable
swing bike.
By chopping out the steering section from a scrap bike, she’s able to add a hinge
to a bike frame that allows the front and back wheel to swing out of alignment.
It’s a crazy build, and it makes anyone riding it look drunk, but it’s a great video
to see all the techniques Laura uses for chopping and welding the bikes together.
I found some useful tips and tools this week.
First, the Cool Tools podcast has a great episode up with experience designer Tommy
Honton.
He’s a maker worth knowing about and he has some useful tips to share.
David Picciuto from Make Something has a great video up on getting started with screen printing,
how it works, and what you need.
It’s a fun process to understand, and fun to watch even if you don’t think it’s
something for you.
Similarly, on Applied Science, Ben Krasnow runs through his setup for high resolution
screen printing, with more emphasis on printing with epoxy paints that stick to metal, glass,
and circuit boards.
For another take on old school printing, on Hackster, Jeremy S. Cook pointed me to this
project by Matthew Rayfield that turns any 3D printer into a dot matrix printer.
The secret sauce is a web app Matthew created that turns any image file into a dithered
dot matrix gcode file you can send straight to your printer.
You’ll have to find a way to attach a pen to your print head, but even rubber bands
seem to work.
What’s especially cool is that the web app includes an option to create multicolor prints
where you can select colors from the original image to separate out, and the gcode will
include a pause statement that allows you to swap out the pen color.
So cool.
One practical little project I printed out this week is this packing tape dispenser by
AidanRose.
I’m sure there are a bunch of designs like this out there, but I liked how this one includes
a nice wide spot to hold the end of the tape and this unique cutout here that lets you
come at it with a pair of scissors.
The Ruiz brothers have a new Fusion 360 tutorial on how to take circuit board designs and animate
them to spin around using the Joints feature.
One of my favorite tips this week is this one from Mohit Bhoite, showing how straighten
and stiffen brass wire by slowly twisting it in a drill chuck.
As Mohit points out, the technique isn’t new, and he links to a video by JohnnyQ90
where he learned about it.
I tried it this week with steel wire, and it works really well.
Definitely give it a try.
Finally, on the Cool Tools channel, I’ve got video up comparing 4 different brands
of gaffer tape.
It’s an 8-minute gaffer tape geek out, but the takeaway is that there’s a distinct
difference between some brands.
Maker Faires!
This weekend we have Lille, France; Lafayette, Indiana; Saint Joseph, Missouri; and Cairo
in Egypt.
If one’s near you, be sure to go check it out.
Also, the second Plotter People meetup has been announced.
It takes place march 13th at Github headquarters in San Francisco.
I went to the first one, and it was a lot of fun.
And that does it for this week’s show.
Be sure to subscribe, leave a thumbs up, or leave a comment.
Remember that next week’s show will be the monthly one-off I do on the Adafruit channel.
And really, the best way to keeps tabs on this show is to subscribe to the Maker Update
email newsletter, which delivers all the links to your inbox automatically.
A huge thanks to my patrons on Patreon.
You’re the best.
Alright?
Thanks for watching and I’ll see you next week.