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I finished the perfboard prototype of my ammunition counter a few days ago and took a bunch of pictures and made a video since then. Click the images for big. I originally wanted to have only one board but these Radio Shack perfboards were too small, so I went with a stacked design.   Both boards and display connected.  The airsoft gun test base.  wow   The other side.  It looks cool at least.   Here's a crappy video I made. So it looks like everything is working as it should. This thing is easily fast enough to handle a gas blowback airsoft pistol (which admittedly has a pretty slow cycling rate), but I still haven't calculated exactly how fast it can count. I also found that the displays are nearly unreadable while outdoors, and had to add that sunshade attachment when I made the video. I might try to get some brighter displays later. The future? This is probably where this project ends for now. I can't really make it any smaller unless I get some custom PCBs made and maybe switch to smaller chip packages. I also have an idea about how to handle loaded chambers that requires just 2 additional parts; I might do that later too.
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Mar 26, 2011 00:53
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That's some really neat and tidy wiring you did there.  Me? I made a lowbrow gag beer spout for a party. Actually I thought it had some tiny amount of artistic merit. Does drinking from this beer spout turn you off? Why should it? It's still the same beer! Why should it matter that the spout looks like a  ? Would you skip the glass and drink beer "poured" straight from the spout into your mouth?Joke was on me, though. No one cared! Edit: Me dumb. I should have linked this as NSFW but attached the image instead and can't edit it out. I've asked a mod to help my dumb rear end and remove my attached image. When it disappears, here is the NSFW link for fake LINKadminnote: removed attached poto
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Mar 26, 2011 03:15
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That sure is a lot of head (heh)
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Mar 26, 2011 03:28
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My wife and I made a Walnut and Copper Wind chime with some scraps from another project. I think it turned out good and looks much nicer than the one we saw in a store for 79.99$. 
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Mar 27, 2011 02:28
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DethMarine21 posted:awesome stuff I'm curious - could you reduce the required circuitry considerably with a microcontroller? Are you just not interested in going that route, or is there some other reason that you've implemented this in the way you have. I'm not an electrical engineer, and I have a tendency to try and do everything in software when I work on electrical projects.
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Mar 30, 2011 05:15
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DethMarine21 posted:The future? This should include looking into finding a circuit board company to build you a simple board with these components shrunk and you presenting it to some companies for mass production (or selling them on a private website for the same). You know as well as I do that gun owners buy a ridiculous amount of stuff for their firearms and this is right in that "something awesome I want to have" zone.
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Mar 30, 2011 13:38
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MarshallX posted:The copper is going to look amazing after some time outside. Nice work.
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Mar 30, 2011 15:38
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c0ldfuse posted:This should include looking into finding a circuit board company to build you a simple board with these components shrunk and you presenting it to some companies for mass production (or selling them on a private website for the same).
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Mar 30, 2011 15:51
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leo_r posted:I'm curious - could you reduce the required circuitry considerably with a microcontroller? Are you just not interested in going that route, or is there some other reason that you've implemented this in the way you have. Well a single microcontroller would definitely be smaller than 5 or 6 separate chips. This prototype stage of the project was mostly just to assemble the cheapest and simplest possible circuit to see if there are any glaring issues with the design (like how I found that most 7-segment displays are almost unreadable in direct sunlight). It's also been a really long time since I did any sort of programming, so I would have to brush up on that too (also I hate it). The move to a microcontroller or some other method would most likely be during the "make this thing as small as possible" phase, which would also involve getting custom PCBs made, which leads me to: c0ldfuse posted:This should include looking into finding a circuit board company to build you a simple board with these components shrunk I did some cursory searching around and found that a prototype run of ~3 custom boards runs ~75$. Getting this done will also require that I learn how to use some sort of PCB design software. So this project probably won't be progressing too far until these issues are out of the way.
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Mar 30, 2011 17:11
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DethMarine21 posted:I did some cursory searching around and found that a prototype run of ~3 custom boards runs ~75$. Getting this done will also require that I learn how to use some sort of PCB design software. So this project probably won't be progressing too far until these issues are out of the way. If you can keep your board size small, batchpcb.com takes a little while, but is the cheapest I've found. They're run by sparkfun and make all their boards. $2.50/sq. in. + $10 set up fee (per order) for 2 layers with solder mask and silk screen. Eagle PCB is free for small boards as well. You can find tutorials about how to get started and design boards on sparkfun as well.
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Mar 30, 2011 19:18
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Been hand staining the wood to put down on my Dad's floor. We've got about 25ish planks done already, going to start laying one half of the floor tomorrow. We're going to raise one half of the floor by 2 inches to match up with the other, and move the step up further down the kitchen into the hall (i'll post pictures tomorrow). Little tough because the floor isn't level as it's an old farmhouse, the tiles underneath are all wonky and off and we've got to screw down joists to raise the floor on one side, which don't match up with the other half of the kitchen. It's a bit of a mess really. I'll post the pictures of it in general, from start to finish. CONTENT EDIT : So today, we cut down all the wood for the supports over the tiles. We've stained some more wood, and we've planned the support areas and are getting ready to glue and nail it all down tomorrow. Here are some pictures  My dad cutting some of the supports  More support cutting  A shot of some of the floor boards we're going to put down  The kitchen so far (all hand built)  Planning the supports  More floorboard shots  And more  Finishing some supports for the day  Hopefully will get some of the boards down tomorrow and we'll have half a floor! Benf199105 fucked around with this message at 17:29 on Apr 7, 2011 |
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Apr 6, 2011 19:35
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  I made some shelves over the weekend, inspired by http://manhattan-nest.com/2010/10/20/pipe-ply/ , which is based off the shelving they have at the Ace Hotel. It isn't done quite yet (need to stain one or two of the edges on the planks, one or two pieces of the plumbing need to get hit with black paint), but I probably won't take any more "done" photos. Pretty happy with how it turned out, it's given me some confidence to try some more stuff. Next I'd like to try to make a floating wall to mount a TV (something like this http://www.unplggd.com/unplggd/diy-project/jasons-diy-dwr-muro-and-shared-av-living-space-unplggd-blogger-tryouts-140801) edit: It looks a little uneven but blame that on my poor camera skills
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Apr 17, 2011 23:41
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School and such kept me distracted over the last year or so and I kinda let the model railroad thread die, but here is a link to what I have been working on since then. Come check it out and feel free to leave comments! http://wycowesternrwy.blogspot.com
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May 2, 2011 00:18
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My friend and I have been making gravity bikes for the past 2-3 years now. This is our latest relatively finished project: So far, it has handled Maryhill Loops Road quite well and has hit about 60+ on a few hills in PDX. I am currently going through all of our media and if anyone is interested, I can post our build and some action shots.
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May 4, 2011 08:53
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ant mouth posted:I am currently going through all of our media and if anyone is interested, I can post our build and some action shots. Why even ask when you know the answer is yes?
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May 4, 2011 16:31
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ant mouth posted:My friend and I have been making gravity bikes for the past 2-3 years now. This is our latest relatively finished project: That looks awesome, and maybe its just me but it also looks unbelievably uncomfortable to ride.
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May 4, 2011 19:01
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This project evolved from two previous bikes ( Wasp and Freedom). We learned from Wasp, our mini-g, that being low to the ground with a tight tuck can make up for weight. From Freedom we learned that when your weight is too high, it makes cornering at speed really precarious. So our goals were to bring our body and ballasts as close to the ground as possible while maintaining a compact tuck. The best way to do this was to stretch the wheel-base and have the top tube go straight from the head tube to the rear axle. Enter our first prototype. We mocked this up and imported the picture into Illustrator in order to start playing with our basic frame design.  From there we hacked up Freedom the G-Bike and kept a portion or the rear triangle so we wouldn’t have to weld our own break tabs and the head tube for the races and bearings. We then built our incredibly high tech jig so we could line up our axles and start getting measurements.  We were able to get the measurements we needed and cut all our metal to length. We tacked it all together and our frame was born!   We tig welded everything in place and then had to make the bike heavier. Weight on a gravity bike is its engine. And depending on where you put that weight, it changes the handling of the bike. We wanted the weight as low as possible so the next step was to fill the bottom tube with lead. Forge time! We took our lead pellets, tossed them in our crucible, and then put it into the forge.  From there we poured the molten lead into our frame.  Because we both wanted more weight and are concerned with aesthetics, we welded two steel hemispheres together, ground the weld down, and made a bomb. The only thing it needed was to be filled with lead. After we were through, it ended up weighing 25lbs.  While the frame and the bomb cooled, we started work on the handle bars. We cut some tube to size and welded on dual shaft collars to their ends. This way were able to adjust the bars and find the most comfortable position that allows us to have the best tuck before we make a solid set of bars.  Once the frame and bomb were cooled we welded them together and took it all to the paint booth and tossed on a few coats.  We made a seat pan out of scrap wood, a seat out of scrap y-20 foam, and covered them with a scrap piece of vinyl. In fact, most everything we build is from scrap. The only thing purchased for this project were the top and bottom tubes, a new front tire, break cable / housing, and a brake lever.   After that, we put everything together and took it to Maryhill Loops Rd, in Washington for its inaugural ride. Here’s a few pics of people enjoying this bike and our other rides:    And me on the Wasp  If you have any questions or ideas as to ways to go faster or handling, shoot em my way! bEatmstrJ posted:That looks awesome, and maybe its just me but it also looks unbelievably uncomfortable to ride. It isn't bad at all. Most of your weight, if not all is on your knees which sit on 2.5" of high density foam. The rest resides on your chest on the dual top tubes when your in a full tuck which do a good job of displacing force. ant mouth fucked around with this message at 19:09 on May 4, 2011 |
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May 4, 2011 19:05
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That looks loving insane. drat.
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May 4, 2011 19:20
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ant mouth posted:If you have any questions or ideas as to ways to go faster or handling, shoot em my way! My dad built recumbent bikes via trial and error similar to how you guys are building gravity bikes. Some student used one of his bike designs to test his rotational stability software (or something equally fancy-sounding). The bike had two stability peaks, the first around 32mph that looked like a standard deviation curve, and then a second peak at 62mph (it was a short wheelbase bike, something like 36" from hub to hub on 20" wheels). I'm not sure if this was an error in his software or if this is common, but I'd be curious what your average speeds were and see if you couldn't tailor the bike for better stability in your ideal speed range. Also is there any correlation between gravity bikes and soap box derby cars? There's a rebel league of gravity cars out in SF from what I've heard.
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May 4, 2011 19:22
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Hadlock posted:
Getting our average speed is tough. As for instrumentation we've currently gone through a few speedometers due to crashing and haven't bought a new one. It is also difficult because it depends on the course were running. The higher the grade and fewer turns means we can hit speeds of 90+. Courses like Maryhill with 17 banked turns we're probably between 35-60 mph. I would love to know what variables your father modified based on the input he got. We actually build both. We're fortunate to live in Portland, OR where we have zoobomb ( https://www.zoobomb.net ) and the portland adult soapbox derby ( https://www.soapboxracer.com ). The picture of the three-wheeled downhill thingy is our soapbox car. We're entered in the event again this year and will be modifying it heavily. We'll definitely document that process as well.
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May 4, 2011 19:45
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I honestly have no idea what criteria they used. I think the student was just sharing the results with my dad. That data (and the equations used) are locked away on a decade old hard drive in a garage somewhere, and I was 16 at the time when he told me about it. If I had to guess, they were based on wheelbase length, center of gravity, gross weight and wheel diameter... but you probably already knew that  Have you done any tests in the Cascades? I grew up near Tacoma and my dad would spend hours pouring over contour maps (this was in the early 90's, before things like google maps existed) trying to find the longest, steepest continuous downhill highway stretches in the state. I remember a couple of 6-14 mile 4-6% grade roads where we'd hit 47mph (speedo verified) on 10 speeds road bikes. From what I've briefly read, it sounds like Maryhill Loops Rd is quite a bit safer than the damp state highways we were riding on, particularly at the speeds you're hitting.
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May 4, 2011 20:12
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Hadlock posted:I honestly have no idea what criteria they used. I think the student was just sharing the results with my dad. That data (and the equations used) are locked away on a decade old hard drive in a garage somewhere, and I was 16 at the time when he told me about it. If I had to guess, they were based on wheelbase length, center of gravity, gross weight and wheel diameter... but you probably already knew that We've done a few outlaw races in Southern Washington but never made our way up to Tacoma. We might have a chance to head that way though due to potentially working on a collaboration on a bike between us and a guy from one of the longboarding companies up there. Here's a video of my friend / building partner on the red bike posted above bombing Mt. Hood. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-DdSdi2LOs
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May 4, 2011 20:35
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ant mouth posted:We've done a few outlaw races in Southern Washington but never made our way up to Tacoma. We might have a chance to head that way though due to potentially working on a collaboration on a bike between us and a guy from one of the longboarding companies up there. Glad to see he is in full leathers unlike a bunch of other dummies in that video. Really cool project, wish we had hills like this in Ontario.
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May 5, 2011 02:51
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My latest weekend home improvement project - I covered up my tired backyard patio slab with paver blocks: And then I found these cool low voltage paver lights that I just installed a couple days ago: 
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May 9, 2011 21:04
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ant mouth posted:
I'd like to see the seat because it sure as hell looks like it could be a ball-crusher if it doesn't include a place for "the boys". You might also want to tell the rider to tuck in his laces instead of leaving them flopping around in the breeze.
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May 9, 2011 21:13
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JohnnySmitch posted:My latest weekend home improvement project - I covered up my tired backyard patio slab with paver blocks: Night-shot?
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May 9, 2011 22:31
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^I still need to take a decent one - I tried taking a few last night, but it already got all-the-way dark and all you could see at all in the photos were the lights. I need to snap one just before the sun sets (or get a better camera).
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May 9, 2011 23:14
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JohnnySmitch posted:My latest weekend home improvement project - I covered up my tired backyard patio slab with paver blocks: Huge improvement!
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May 9, 2011 23:54
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Neutrino posted:I'd like to see the seat because it sure as hell looks like it could be a ball-crusher if it doesn't include a place for "the boys". You might also want to tell the rider to tuck in his laces instead of leaving them flopping around in the breeze. Given the body position, 'the boys' are in no immediate danger. Your legs hold you up well above it. We intentionally keep that area clear so we can lean off the frame easier in turns and have children one day. And yes, those laces make me cringe as well.   
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May 10, 2011 21:34
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PS If you haven't seen the Weylandt crash video, you should watch it and remember to wear a fullface.
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May 10, 2011 22:23
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A helmet has prevented my death twice (once on a motorcycle and once on a gbike) and kept me from severe brain damage numerous times. I always wear them.* *Except in a picture where I am completely stationary.
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May 10, 2011 22:44
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ant mouth posted:This is awesome. I had no idea this was a thing, but I'm not surprised. Just surprised I didn't know about it. I'm glad you wear leathers, but the sneakers are pretty laffo compared to the rest of the gear. The only place I got road rash when I crashed my scooter was on my foot when my sneaker came off. Do you have any info on a scene like this in Seattle? There has to be one. I'd love to spectate.
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May 12, 2011 01:37
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I built an Aeolian floor harp.  Here's how it sounds: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2sytq1Eb4Q This is an upright, freestanding Aeolian Harp that I made a few years ago. The base is beveled, unfinished pine. It's sitting in the front doorway, and the door is closed so that it wedges onto the base. Wind accelerates through the narrow opening, passing over the strings, causing them to oscillate along their longitudinal axis. There are 16 strings, made of shark-weight fishing line that the nice man at the bait store let me take from his line recycle bin. Each string will generate several harmonic notes simultaneously. The strings are all tuned to one note: A flat. That's the base tone of the body of the harp, which is made from a length of four inch ABS plastic. There are a few sound holes scattered around the body. The tuning mechanisms are just eye-screws and nuts passing through an eyelet. The little bridges resting under each end of the strings is hardwood (maple, I think) and held in place with a dab of white glue. They are very easy to snap free and move, should I desire to. The harp will play anywhere where there is sufficient wind passing across it. Aeolian harps cannot be played by human hands. ant mouth posted:Here's a video of my friend / building partner on the red bike posted above bombing Mt. Hood. That was exhilarating! My head kept leaning into the turns :3 What about speed limits and stuff? Are you exempt because you're part of an event?
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May 13, 2011 09:14
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^^^ That is super cool.  Let's swing to the opposite side of the effort spectrum to this: my drink stand. I have my chair set up in just the right spot to watch a movie if I feel like it, or play a video game. But the narrow spacing next to the wall is a problem: where do I put my drink? At first I just placed it on the TV stand, but leaning so far forward (or god forbid, getting up) to get my drink is just unacceptable. Going lefty isn't an option. I toyed with several ideas, all unsuitable for either space,  , or cost reasons. Finally I made the perfect stand out of stuff I had on hand. The base is a mis-matched candle holder which is the PERFECT height and stability for drink-holding. The cupped top was wide enough, but the metal's not a particularly good surface. So I traced then cut out a circle from an old mousepad. Flipped it upside down so that the foam rubber grippy part was facing up, and glued it down with E6000 glue.  It's the best drink holder ever. 
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May 13, 2011 15:27
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Sun Dog posted:I built an Aeolian floor harp.
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May 13, 2011 16:00
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Sun Dog posted:
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May 13, 2011 16:28
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landis posted:Is it possible (or even worthwhile) to tune the strings to other notes? Certainly it is. Octaves work well together. I haven't tried other notes, but I'd try fifths next, if I wanted to experiment. All my strings are the same gauge, though. There might be discordance, though, but that can sound cool, too. The first one I built was a horizontal window model, with no ability to be tuned, and it sounded like the distant scream of lost spirits. Here's a picture of it, the bottom one. The top one was a longstring harp experiment, but I never could get it to sound.
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May 13, 2011 19:26
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Sun Dog posted:There might be discordance, though, but that can sound cool, too. Ha ha, this reminds me of something my instructor told us in a lab. We were programming microcontrollers to output some basic analog waveforms. He held up a speaker with a couple raw wires hanging from it. "If your waveform looks completely messed up, hook the speaker up because it probably sounds pretty cool." 
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May 13, 2011 19:38
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Gay Nudist Dad posted:Do you have any info on a scene like this in Seattle? There has to be one. I'd love to spectate. Portland will be as close as you get to GBike riders. We are an incredibly small group. If you ever make it down this way, you're welcome to give any of our creations a try (I have an extra set of leathers ). Generally, we ride every Sunday at Zoobomb when it isn't completely dumping on us. Other than that, we put on a few outlaw races throughout the year around the area. If your ever in the area, check out the zb forums or S.I.N Cycles Blog and see if there are any special events happening. I know we'll be setting something up in June for Pedalpalooza.
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May 13, 2011 19:43
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Well... I now want to build a whole slew of aeolian harps. Wouldn't it be something to make a bunch of wooden ones and put them in a forest or park somewhere where it would possibly creep people out? Yeah.
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May 13, 2011 23:05
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