Introduction: Coconut Headphones
For my entry into the laser-cutter competition, I decided to make a pair of coconut headphones. It took me about 2-3 hours to make, and it cost about $15 AUD.
Please comment and vote.
Step 1: Tools and Materials
The parts list:
~2m of 4 core speaker cable, $3-$4 (this was complete overkill. get thinner cable)
2 speakers, $4-$5
stereo jack, $1.95
coconut, $2
headphone thingy, free from airline.
The tools list:
soldering iron
cordless drill
drill bits
hot glue gun
dremel (not shown)
heat gun
Step 2: Cut the Coconut
I decided to make the Instructable after I cut the coconut so I can't give you any pictures. but, I will tell you how I did it.
drill hole through eye of coconut
drain coconut
put coconut in vice
with a cross-cut saw, cut not through the eyes, but the other way
get a butter knife and start prying the flesh out
eat flesh, drink juice, or make coconut milk
Step 3: Drill Hole on the Top of the Coconut Half
Get your headphone thingy and see what drill bit fits it best, then start drilling, and drilling, and drilling, then dremeling, and dremeling, and dremeling, and IT FITS!!! now make another hole for the wire.
Step 4: Now the Other One...
Repeat step 3
Step 5: Making the Headphone Thingy Comfortable
Put the headphone thingy in the two coconut halves, and try them on. if you have to push down on them to get a seal around your ear or it is just uncomfortable, do this.
As my headphone thingy was very, VERY uncomfortable (to the point of pain) with the coconuts on them, I had to make them wider. Yours may not be uncomfortable, so you are lucky and won't have to do this step. But for everyone else, here's how you do it:
Stretch your headphone thingy over something, ie a vice, under your desk etc. and start attacking it with the heat gun on max. When it is pliable enough, hold it in the position you want, and let it cool. You have to keep tension on it the whole time, other wise it will return to its former shape.
Step 6: Right Ear
First measure how much wire you need to run along the headphone thingy, and add a about 3-4 cm and a bit more.
Then split the wire so it is figure 8, and split and strip the ends (all four). Now solder the wires to the terminals on the speaker. Then glue the speaker into the coconut.
Step 7: More Wiring and Gluing in the First Headphone
First, glue in the headphone into the headphone thingy. But, nooooo, I have to be out of glue (damn Murphy's law) so, get a pencil, and put it in the back of the gun. Now we can glue.
Then split the four core into three core.
Split and strip only one of the ends for now.
Now solder two of the wires onto the other speaker. The other wire will be for the other channel.
Pull the wires from the other headphone through the hole in the top of the other coconut.
Solder the third wire to one of the wires from the other headphone, and the other onto one of the speaker terminals. This will be ground.
Now pull the three core wire through the hole in one of the eyes of the coconut, and this step is finished.
Step 8: The Jack
Now the fun part, soldering thick wire onto thin and small plates. Split and strip the three core, and pull it through the outside casing. Now remember which cable is ground, and connect it to the big strip. Then slide the plastic casing over the other two and connect them to the other strips, and slide the casing down onto the terminals. Check to make sure they are not touching each other, other wise it will not work. Now you can screw the casing onto the jack.
Sorry I don't have any pictures of the finished solder joint. You'll have to imagine, unless the TV destroyed your imagination, then you're in a bit of a pickle.
Step 9: Testing, Testing, IT WORKS!
Before you glue in the other speaker, test it. If it works, then glue the speaker in.
Step 10: Support Wire
In the first picture, you saw a support wire. I used this because even with the re-shaping of the headphone thingy, it still didn't fit nicely. This fixed that. I only needed to glue in one end because there is enough friction to keep the other one in place.
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13 Comments
12 years ago on Introduction
I like them. I was always a big fan of The Professor on Gilligan's Island.
12 years ago on Introduction
*dyslexic
13 years ago on Introduction
i like the other coco nut headphones beter i think u should thake ideas from that guuy
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
if its the same one I'm thinking of, his are a lot better than mine but I didn't have the tools or materials to make his one.
14 years ago on Introduction
why not just clack the two coconut halves together?
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
because that would be not hard.
14 years ago on Introduction
To get the coconuts smooth, let them on a aquarium with fishes like ancistrus. They will eat all the fiber outside the shell.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
but wouldn't that rot the wood?
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
I don't know why but the wood will not rot. I have coconuts on my aquarium for years now.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
that's strange, but cool. I'll have to put the one a screwed up in my tank.
Reply 14 years ago on Introduction
if you want to let the coconuts in your tank, you can had javamoss. It's not necessary to boil it to remove tannins. You can do a search in google with the keywords "aquarium coconuts" or ask me if you want more details.
14 years ago on Introduction
leon finally you did something you said your going to
14 years ago on Introduction
I would suggest adding some foam over the speakers to keep them hidden, and also some around the edge of the coconut, to make it more comfortable, Great Idea though, Castaway Tech Much?