Stuff Andy Makes – DIY, make, tinker, play

Desktop Warp Core – The Early Years

Jul 21

AndyMiscellaneous 12V, avr, desk toy, electronics, fiberglass, lathe, LEDs, microcontroller, MOSFETs, Next Generation, Star Trek, transistors, warp core, woodworking No Comments

Well, we’ve moved into a new and larger space at the office and we sit at these massive wood and steel desks as teams. Our team decided we needed more “flare” at our desk, so, of course, a big-ass warp core was the first thing that popped into our heads. How hard could that be?

The rings of the warp core will be clear-ish fiberglass. The original master, over which we’ll make a fiberglass mold for all eight rings, is made of a giant laminated wood block we need to turn on a big lathe.

Laminating 2x6 pieces of pine for the ring master mold

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LED Mood Lamp

Jan 10

AndyMiscellaneous arduino, atmega168, avr, gift, lamp, led, pcb, woodworking 2 Comments

EDITOR’S NOTE: I’ve attached PDF files of the pentagon PCB and the motherboard PCB. If I had time to label them and make them pretty, I would, but this was never designed for mass production or consumption. Use at your own risk and frustration.

For those with a short attention span, I give you a photo of the completed project (my biggest to date):

Completed LED Mood Lamp

If you’re interested in the story of this things, continue reading…

This idea came about randomly as a gift idea for my wife. I’ve built useless machines, clocks, etc. for other people (and myself), but hadn’t built anything for my wife. I’m not sure what she’s going to do with this thing, but it’s the thought that counts.

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My Very Own Useless Machine Ever!!! (Finally!)

Aug 10

AndyElectronics, Projects, Woodworking/Shop brass, engraving, finishing, gift, servo, useless machine, woodworking No Comments

I finally finished my own UME Mark II for my own desk for me! Woohoo! My flavor of useless machines ever has a “presidential” look, as some have put it.

Latest UME Mk II (Useless Machine Ever)

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DIY Workshop Stereo Boombox Kinda Thing

Apr 29

AndyElectronics, Projects, Woodworking/Shop 12V, car, diy, garage, pc power, speakers, stereo, woodworking No Comments

Workshop car stereo boombox

I had a couple of car stereo speakers sitting in the cabinet in the garage and some other miscellaneous parts relating to those. All I ever used for music in the garage was an old AM/FM radio that worked well, but it didn’t allow for using my little portable XM satellite receiver or my iPod or iPhone. So, I ran out and bought a low-end Pioneer 2200 car stereo and a 600-watt computer power supply and BOOM! Semi-instant garage stereo system with XM and iPod capabilities.

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Adjustable Workbench Cigar Holder

Apr 29

AndyProjects, Woodworking/Shop cigars, holder, magnets, woodworking No Comments

I usually put my burning cigars across the top of a ceramic mug on my workbench when I’m in the garage. The great thing about ceramic is that it’s pretty much fireproof. What fun is that? The real problem, though, is that the cigars got short enough toward the end of smoking that they wouldn’t fit across the mouth of the mug. So, I built an adjustable holder that IS flammable:

Adjustable cigar holder complete with rare earth magnets

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