5 Minute Paper Scales

Was that cookie cut really, exactly, in half? Which one off these batteries has more charge? Which pen has more ink?

Solve these questions for good with these quick and easy to make paper scales! You will need...

Tools:
Printer. (to print out the templates) Scissors.

Materials:

Two pieces of paper.

One skewer. (wooden or metal)

Sticky tape.

Glue stick.

Ruler.

Pen or pencil.

Templates. (below)

Step 1: ​Cut the Templates.

Once you have printed out the templates you will need to cut them out, remembering ONLY to cut along the solid lines.

Step 2: ​Make the Arm.

First draw equally spaced lines on the back of the arm piece so you can place two items equal distances away from the end of the arm when weighing them ( I forgot to do this! ).

Then fold, then unfold along the dashed line on the front using the ruler as a guide. Next, coat one of the outer sections evenly in glue stick.

Now fold the whole piece to make a triangle tube and use the ruler to help press the two faces glue together better.

Step 3: ​Make the Base.

Once you have cut out the template, you will need to fold up all the sections marked 1 in the photo so that they are vertical. Next you will need to fold up the section marked 2 in the photo so that they are nearly vertical. Now you can fold up the section marked 3 in the photo. (keeping sections marked one inside sections 2) until sections 1 hit the base, (see photos if confused) and tape it all together.

Step 4: Finishing Up.

Now you can poke the skewer through the hole in the arm and place it on the base!

If your scales are out of balance you can level them by placing sticky tape on the lighter end. If you get adventurous with your weighing you might like to use stiff card or even thin cardboard to stand up to the extra weight!

Life Hack.
Stop trying to see which battery bounces higher and just weigh them! You can stick one battery in either end and whichever is heaviest has more charge left! ( this works better when the batteries are the same brand ) You can also do this with pens! Take the middle inky bit out of each pen and weigh them to see which has more ink!