Author Archives: robertwilkie

Make an opensource pellet cutter for filament

Posted on January 13, 2017 by robertwilkie

I like this build, the author basically feeds leftover filament, or string from bottle, into the build and its shreds the material into pellets that could then be reconverted into filament.  Me….I am thinking of an easier solution/build. http://www.instructables.com/id/3D-Printed-Open-Source-Multi-Material-CutterPellet/

Posted in CNC/3D-printing, Misc-Life, Tools | Comments Off on Make an opensource pellet cutter for filament

Add a Needle cutter to your CNC

Posted on January 13, 2017 by robertwilkie

Basically this is a CNC sewing machine.  The author added a motor that drops a rod up and down (the needle) really fast to cut foamboard.  Its a good idea thought you won’t get as nice of a cut as … Continue reading →

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Another Foam Cutter, but this one has to one of the easier builds

Posted on January 13, 2017 by robertwilkie

All out of PVC pipe.  Oh and cheap too.  Not so sure I would do a battery operated cutter though… http://www.instructables.com/id/Hot-Wire-Foam-Cutter-Portable-Rechargable/

Posted in Cheap, Misc-Life, Tools | Comments Off on Another Foam Cutter, but this one has to one of the easier builds

Build your own cheap 12v battery charger

Posted on January 3, 2017 by robertwilkie

So you got one of those 12V batteries, and no charger.  Well either you can by one, or for a few bucks and an old laptop power supply, build your own. http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-12v-Battery-Charge/

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Nice design that alternates the LED lights to show different numbers

Posted on January 2, 2017 by robertwilkie

Pretty clever design.  The overlay of the numbers also gives it a nice ghost image effect.  Me…too much work (I’ll just get a pixel tube). Light Pipes and LEDs Team Up for a Modern Take on the Nixie Tube

Posted in Misc-Life | 5 Comments

Make a $5 POV sign

Posted on January 2, 2017 by robertwilkie

Now if he had used an ESP so it could be programmed wirelessly too…. Either way this is a pretty nifty build. http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/make-pov-led-air-writer/

Posted in Arduino, Cheap | Comments Off on Make a $5 POV sign

PoisonTap

Posted on December 30, 2016 by robertwilkie

Interesting use of a RPi Zero. The $5 PoisonTap quickly, completely hijacks even a locked computer’s internet

Posted in RaspberryPi, Security | Comments Off on PoisonTap

Cute little CNC you can print out

Posted on December 29, 2016 by robertwilkie

Most of the parts are small enough to do on a small 3D Printer, add some motors, controller, and dremel and you are good to go. https://github.com/carlosgs/Cyclone-PCB-Factory/wiki

Posted in Arduino, Cheap, CNC/3D-printing | 1 Comment

How to swap out to a new harddrive in Windows

Posted on December 28, 2016 by robertwilkie

This beats the re-installing everything and then copying the missing files over.  Basically you are doing a disk clone using a tool called EaseUS Todo Backup. It looks easy enough.  Haven’t tried it myself (yet…got a drive I need to upgrade … Continue reading →

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Simple tutorial on using RetroPi for Raspberry Pi

Posted on December 28, 2016 by robertwilkie

Got an extra RPi and an old monitor with a controller.  Make a retro game controller out of it. http://www.technobuffalo.com/2016/12/14/how-to-make-raspberry-pi-retro-gaming-machine/

Posted in Cheap, Misc-Life, RaspberryPi | Comments Off on Simple tutorial on using RetroPi for Raspberry Pi