bpark1000

Some people add "J-lube" to the mix.

If you want your creation to last, do the following: first, don't scrounge a mirror. Mirrors age and the coating falls off. Instead, buy new mirror tiles. They are inexpensive, and are easier to handle and cut (aged glass is harder to cut). Get one of the more expensive diamond point glass cutters. They work so well that the glass typically starts cracking before you can finish the cross-cuts! (Put masking tape on the back along the edges if this happens). Third, use silicone RTV (the type that smells of vinegar) instead of hot glue, which becomes brittle as it ages). Cut the tiniest amount from the tip, apply small bead to the object (that you can apply mirrors to in 5 minutes) and then put on mirrors. For hanging items, use lightweight material for the core (polystyrene pa...

If you want your creation to last, do the following: first, don't scrounge a mirror. Mirrors age and the coating falls off. Instead, buy new mirror tiles. They are inexpensive, and are easier to handle and cut (aged glass is harder to cut). Get one of the more expensive diamond point glass cutters. They work so well that the glass typically starts cracking before you can finish the cross-cuts! (Put masking tape on the back along the edges if this happens). Third, use silicone RTV (the type that smells of vinegar) instead of hot glue, which becomes brittle as it ages). Cut the tiniest amount from the tip, apply small bead to the object (that you can apply mirrors to in 5 minutes) and then put on mirrors. For hanging items, use lightweight material for the core (polystyrene packing rigid foam, you can hot-wire to shape). Silicone metal rod through shape for hanging first (let set overnight before proceeding). To pick up mirrors, make a vacuum pick-up tool (vacuum cleaner running real slow on dimmer control, tape 1/4" tube to hose end.) put the mirrors in a shallow box, shake so they are in single layer. Use vacuum pick-up tool to grab mirrors that are face-up and apply to your shape (that has bead of silicone applied). After face-up mirrors are gone, shake box again to get more.

You are adding heat to the charcoal only around the central tube. You need to insulate the outside surface of the tank to prevent heat loss. You could also speed the process by lighting up the lower pieces of charcoal wood, loading up the rest, and feeding some air into the charcoal chamber while you are firing up the rocket stove. Then cut off the air to the charcoal chamber and finish. Another technique is to load up the charcoal chamber, and light up the top layer just before you put on and seal the lid. Feed air into the bottom of the charcoal chamber. As the fire burns down inside, the upper layers are protected from oxygen by the burning layers below. As soon as you see fire at the bottom, you cut off all air and allow to cool. The bottom layer will not be fully convert...

You are adding heat to the charcoal only around the central tube. You need to insulate the outside surface of the tank to prevent heat loss. You could also speed the process by lighting up the lower pieces of charcoal wood, loading up the rest, and feeding some air into the charcoal chamber while you are firing up the rocket stove. Then cut off the air to the charcoal chamber and finish. Another technique is to load up the charcoal chamber, and light up the top layer just before you put on and seal the lid. Feed air into the bottom of the charcoal chamber. As the fire burns down inside, the upper layers are protected from oxygen by the burning layers below. As soon as you see fire at the bottom, you cut off all air and allow to cool. The bottom layer will not be fully converted, so use this for the next run.

Always drill thru-holes before cutting the isolation. Doing so in the opposite order will result in smaller pads being ripped off the board as the center hole is drilled. Add a follower foot and spring coupling to the Z-axis. This will give consistent depth of cut from the TOP surface of the board (the board stock varies in thickness!) Avoid grinding away all that copper where large spaces exist between traces. Use that copper as a ground plane, unless voltages between traces are high.

Be careful when drilling brass! Drills tend to grab on break-through. Hold the brass with a pliers in case this happens. (You can modify the drill bit's cutting edges to prevent this.) On the wood piece, chamfer the inside edges of the slot where the blade enters. This makes inserting a new blade easier.

One photo shows the metal to be a beautiful blue. As-forged is scaly black (as shown in your photos). Did you use heat treatment to get blue? Did you etch the metal between the forging and the blue treatment?

For a watch, you may want to try the "Paneplex" display. It is a planer 7-segment neon display. This display is much thinner then a Nixie. You will need only 8 drivers for segments and decimal point. You will need decimal to 7 segment decoding.

Please be careful. Some of the "chrome" finishes on shopping carts have cadmium in the plating. This and zinc produce toxic fumes. Also, the zinc on the galvanized steel will release fumes. Fire it initially very hot, keeping everyone away until the cadmium and zinc burns off. Do not use to cook food until it is thoroughly "seasoned" (metal blackened from repeated heatings). The same cautions apply to the use of old refrigerator shelves.

Do not use abrasive paper to clean toilet. You will leave scratches which will attract more dirt. Use hydrochloric acid, and if you don't have that, you can make some by putting in vinegar and a little salt. First lower water level in bowl by stomping gently with plunger, and then trickle acid onto stain. Just a little brushing with toilet brush will be enough.

I ordered from that exact Ebay source you cited in the Instructible. Regarding cutting, the panel is heat-sealed, with extra plastic at the edges. When you cut, you break that seal at the cut edge, and start delamination (like when you cut into a heat-sealed badge. Not only does the panel delaminate, but moisture leaks into the cut edge. The electroluminous layer is very sensitive to moisture. It is not uncommon for electrical breakdown to start at the cut edge, as the insulating layer inside is very thin, and it extends beyond the electrode area at the edges. You will see small flashes and black spots at the edge, which will grow across the display like a cancer until the display shorts. (I had this happen to an uncut old display). You can do things like try to apply hot glue t...

I ordered from that exact Ebay source you cited in the Instructible. Regarding cutting, the panel is heat-sealed, with extra plastic at the edges. When you cut, you break that seal at the cut edge, and start delamination (like when you cut into a heat-sealed badge. Not only does the panel delaminate, but moisture leaks into the cut edge. The electroluminous layer is very sensitive to moisture. It is not uncommon for electrical breakdown to start at the cut edge, as the insulating layer inside is very thin, and it extends beyond the electrode area at the edges. You will see small flashes and black spots at the edge, which will grow across the display like a cancer until the display shorts. (I had this happen to an uncut old display). You can do things like try to apply hot glue to the edge, or over-laminate with another layer of plastic. Do not flex the panel parallel to the cut edge!

I ordered some of these panels for a Halloween decoration. Every single one arrived damaged because they threw the inverter and the panel into a pouch for shipping. The panel was creased and had numerous dark spots. Panels took over 2 months to arrive! Did you have the same problem? My recommendation is to not cut the panels. They will fail early. Get one large enough, and cover it with black cloth.

You mentioned hanging the fabric was tedious. Would sewing iron pellets in pockets of the fabric and magnets on the frame help?

Your equations for real power, and reactive power only apply if the load is linear (pure sine wave for the current). Phase angle does not exist for complex waveform (such as the one you show). Do the calculations work according to the equations listed, or are they averaging instantaneous voltage times instantaneous current (which gives correct answer for any waveshape)? What is the sample rate of the system (what is the highest frequency that can be processed)?

When you do the last triple-fold, flip the flake over between the folds. This reduces the thickness of paper that must be folded over (the last 2 folds, will look like a "Z" rather then a "U". The fold will have only 8 thicknesses rather then 12.) This is especially helpful when the paper stock is thick, or the snowflake small.) Prior to the last folds, crease the paper firmly. The Z-fold also reduces paper bulge of the inside layers and pull-back of the outside layers because the effects of the 2 folds tend to cancel.Diagram shows exploded cross-section view of paper stack, as viewed from the outside edge of the folded snowflake.

You can make another decoration related to the snowflake. Fold as described (except on 3rd fold, do just single fold to make 1/8th of a circle), then take compass and strike arcs on one side of the triangle (pivot at pointed end, draw arcs 1/8 inch in increasing radius from almost zero to the outside). Cut along outermost arc all the way along. Cut all the other arcs, alternately, from one side to ALMOST the other side (stop 1/8" short). Cut off a little of the point (this will form a hole at the center).Carefully unfold and flatten. Place a weight on the center. Slowly lift the outside loops and the paper will expand into a cylinder. The loops can be supported by crossed sticks. Place a Christmas ornament ball in the center with the hook protruding down through the central...

You can make another decoration related to the snowflake. Fold as described (except on 3rd fold, do just single fold to make 1/8th of a circle), then take compass and strike arcs on one side of the triangle (pivot at pointed end, draw arcs 1/8 inch in increasing radius from almost zero to the outside). Cut along outermost arc all the way along. Cut all the other arcs, alternately, from one side to ALMOST the other side (stop 1/8" short). Cut off a little of the point (this will form a hole at the center).Carefully unfold and flatten. Place a weight on the center. Slowly lift the outside loops and the paper will expand into a cylinder. The loops can be supported by crossed sticks. Place a Christmas ornament ball in the center with the hook protruding down through the central hole. Put weight on the hook to stretch cylinder. The whole thing can be hung on a motor and slowly rotated while a light shines from below.The number of loops on the outside equals half the number of layers . For the snowflake fold scheme given (1/12 of a circle, 12 layers), there will be 6 loops. The one I made in the photos is folded 3 times, making 1/8th circle, 8 layers or 4 loops.1st photo shows after folding with arcs drawn. 2nd one shows after cutting, 3rd one shows after unfolding flat, and the last one shows it expanded into a cylinder.

Actually, in my opinion you would not need an equatorial table (that would totally nullify the elegance of the Dobsonian mount). You should be able to do this with 2 clock drives on the 2 axis. Depending upon where you are looking, the speeds would be different, but would not change significantly over any reasonable observation time. Power is not a problem, as the power requirement is about 1 watt if you use stepper motor and reduction gearing/screw drive (simpler to implement), which can be provided by a set of 4 D-cells.For simplicity in design, I would add curved plate between elevation axis bearing surfaces, and flat one between azimuth bearing surfaces. (Only effect on 'scope is to raise it an inch). Each of these plates would have your formica/teflon cladding to mate with exi...

Actually, in my opinion you would not need an equatorial table (that would totally nullify the elegance of the Dobsonian mount). You should be able to do this with 2 clock drives on the 2 axis. Depending upon where you are looking, the speeds would be different, but would not change significantly over any reasonable observation time. Power is not a problem, as the power requirement is about 1 watt if you use stepper motor and reduction gearing/screw drive (simpler to implement), which can be provided by a set of 4 D-cells.For simplicity in design, I would add curved plate between elevation axis bearing surfaces, and flat one between azimuth bearing surfaces. (Only effect on 'scope is to raise it an inch). Each of these plates would have your formica/teflon cladding to mate with existing bearing surfaces. A stepper motor.gearbox/screw drive would couple between the extra plate and the surface below. The drive would need to only move maybe 2 inches at most which would allow holding for many minutes. Drive to the motor would be from a small microcontroller, and would have rapid and variable slow speeds. Because the coupling to the 'scope is by friction, there is no need for any special clutches. Point the 'scope at a bright star near where you want to observe, and determine direction of drive on each axis. Use fast drive to set screw drive at opposite extents. Point finder on star, and adjust alt/az motors to hold star on center. Then observe!

...but unless you happen to live at the pole or the equator, the table is tilted so steeply that gravity and friction no longer do their job holding the bearings together and eliminating lash, as the center of mass of the telescope is no longer centered above and bearing directly down on their surfaces. Now the bearings need to be totally enclosed "on both sides" and provisions made for taking up play, and bearing high overturning torques that change direction with every movement of the 'scope. Mount can't be Dobsonian, it must be either fork-type or German type. The bearings must not only be large in diameter, they must be of a thickness comparable to the diameter to get stiffness, making them large and heavy "3-D" structures, and there are 2 of them! Then even ...

...but unless you happen to live at the pole or the equator, the table is tilted so steeply that gravity and friction no longer do their job holding the bearings together and eliminating lash, as the center of mass of the telescope is no longer centered above and bearing directly down on their surfaces. Now the bearings need to be totally enclosed "on both sides" and provisions made for taking up play, and bearing high overturning torques that change direction with every movement of the 'scope. Mount can't be Dobsonian, it must be either fork-type or German type. The bearings must not only be large in diameter, they must be of a thickness comparable to the diameter to get stiffness, making them large and heavy "3-D" structures, and there are 2 of them! Then even more weight needs adding "to the other end" to balance the mess.All the "calculation" stuff can be eliminated by manually adjusting the 2 tracking rates to hold the star. Manual speed adjustment also allows "catching up" or "falling behind" to align image, and totally mitigates clock drive gear backlash problems. (It also has the effect of "aligning the equatorial axis" by turning 2 knobs. This takes less time then aligning an equatorial mount. (Equatorial mounts are only practical for a permanent setup for this reason). Been There Done That! I attempted to photograph Saturn. Exposure required 8 minutes with ASA400 film. I did setup about 8 times on separate nights with 8" cassegrain 'scope, and only 1 of them came out. I made variable frequency drive for clock motor because of the gear lash problem. After I had Saturn in image and closed the clutch, it took 5 minutes for the gear lash to be taken up! By then, Saturn was long gone in 30 seconds! Simple solution was to crank up frequency and wait for clock-drive to catch up, and hope that my alignment was good enough that I didn't miss on the cross-axis. (Now days with digital camera, could combine multiples of shorter exposures and get results with poorer alignment).I was photographing Saturn with the image directly on the camera's film plane; there were no optics other then the primary and secondary mirrors of the telescope. Saturn's diameter on the film was only about 1/10th the frame.(By the way, the star to use for aligning finder is the 2nd one from the handle end of the dipper. It is a "double-double", so you won't mistake it for another star! You can see the first double to point the finder. In both the finder and the 'scope, you will see the double-double.)

Normally any big scope needs a clock drive "to be able to do anything". How do you clock drive a Dobsonian? What magnification do you typically use? (My experience is that at any really large magnification, a given view is gone in less then 30 seconds!) Do you observe in "rich field" mode?

I failed to mention how to get the image on the tape. First print on plain paper sheet. Then cut a piece of tape more then long enough to cover the print. Place the tape on the paper, adhesive side up, and use a strip of masking tape across the entire leading edge ONLY (as it goes through the printer). Use the straight-through slot (for both the pre-print and the final print), and re-feed the paper with tape through.Companies sell (expensive) coated paper mainly for use for circuit board fabrication. You can also use this.This technique can also be used to transfer patterns onto metal for subsequent cutting by conventional shop practices. Warm the metal first.

When you place the print face-down on the wood, when it's finished, you are viewing it THROUGH the paper it was printed on. So it would be in mirror image. To compensate, you pre-mirror the print (view the print through the paper with a bright light behind).

If you print on "lickum tape" (water-activated packing tape) the paper removal is a piece of cake, because the adhesive is between the printer toner and the paper. The acetone requires longer to penetrate. You can apply the acetone to the wood first, then quickly place the print. Do not slide sideways. Pre-place the print dry for practice first.

Neon signs emit UV radiation, which degrades all plastics near them. If mounts are degraded, so will be the back plate. Replace it! I would not rely on glue to hold the clips; I would bolt them on to the back plate. If the glue fails, the sign gets broken!If sections of the neon tube are painted black, now is the time to renew that while the sign is disassembled.Also note that the supply makes high voltage and is dangerous! Be sure that the insulation is not also degraded by the UV, and disconnect power when working on the sign.

You could get more storage by adjusting your front-end regulator (add more diodes in the string) to get closer to the 2.5V rating of the super cap, and putting any of the widely-available low voltage low dropout regulator chips between the super cap and the clock. Some of these regulators draw less then a handful of nanoamps.

For Halloween I use webs stretched on frames like your project. Bot instead of string I use small 3/32" bungee cord from mcmaster-carr (https://www.mcmaster.com/bungee-cords). White has stripes, and "looks like bungee cord", so I used yellow. Run the radial lines (double over ends, tie overhand knot in doubled part to form loop at end). Tie 10% short, then hook over your screws. For the circumferential lines, lay lines in place, and secure with white UV-treated small zip-ties at the intersections. Web will stay tight, even if it is crashed into!My web in photo has string circumferentials. If I had it to do again, I would make it all bungee cord. To get circumferentials tight, build web on frame 20% too small, set radials just tight, put circumferentials on just b...

For Halloween I use webs stretched on frames like your project. Bot instead of string I use small 3/32" bungee cord from mcmaster-carr (https://www.mcmaster.com/bungee-cords). White has stripes, and "looks like bungee cord", so I used yellow. Run the radial lines (double over ends, tie overhand knot in doubled part to form loop at end). Tie 10% short, then hook over your screws. For the circumferential lines, lay lines in place, and secure with white UV-treated small zip-ties at the intersections. Web will stay tight, even if it is crashed into!My web in photo has string circumferentials. If I had it to do again, I would make it all bungee cord. To get circumferentials tight, build web on frame 20% too small, set radials just tight, put circumferentials on just barely tight, and secure crossings with small zip ties (zip tie gun is helpful in getting ties tight). When web is stretched onto full-size frame, circumferentials will become tight.If you don't have undersize frame, put redials on, stretched. Put circumferentials on, but inside where you ultimately want them, loosely zip-tied at intersections. Slide each intersection outward to tension circumferentials, then tighten zip-tie.

You may have been lucky. You need the ability to adjust both sides to have enough freedom to align everything in both up-down and left-right directions. If a 90 degree turn would have been required, you would have had to adjust the other side to correct the left-right error caused by the 1st adjustment.

You need getter to improve vacuum. Put a pinch of red phosphorous on filament it will transform to white phosphorous and combine with residual gases. You can also put 2nd lamp in manifold and seal off the pair. Burn 2nd lamp to failure, then seal off the tube to the 1st lamp. 1st lamp will last longer.

If epoxy sets too slow warm everything up (120F should be enough). You could preheat whole block in oven at low, or use heat gun to preheat areas before applying epoxy. Also, divide mixed epoxy into 2 batches. Brush one on to penetrate and form bond. Have other one heated and allow to thicken some, then pour on.

The corrosion products are usually alkaline, not acid. To dissolve the corrosion, you need acid, not alkali (baking soda is alkaline). The best acid to use is hydrochloric acid, available as a pool pH adjustment chemical and brick/concrete cleaner. If you use that, you need only a thimble-full diluted in a few ounces of water. You can also use vinegar with a little salt added. After you dissolve away the corrosion, first rinse well, then use the baking soda solution to neutralize the acid. (Do not mix soda with acid. That just destroys the acid and makes fizz. You want to let the acid do its job first.)For equipment with integral battery compartments, hold the item with compartment facing down, and apply chemicals/rinse from below with cotton swabs to minimize chance of getting ...

The corrosion products are usually alkaline, not acid. To dissolve the corrosion, you need acid, not alkali (baking soda is alkaline). The best acid to use is hydrochloric acid, available as a pool pH adjustment chemical and brick/concrete cleaner. If you use that, you need only a thimble-full diluted in a few ounces of water. You can also use vinegar with a little salt added. After you dissolve away the corrosion, first rinse well, then use the baking soda solution to neutralize the acid. (Do not mix soda with acid. That just destroys the acid and makes fizz. You want to let the acid do its job first.)For equipment with integral battery compartments, hold the item with compartment facing down, and apply chemicals/rinse from below with cotton swabs to minimize chance of getting chemicals in the electronics. Dry everything completely before closing up the equipment, preferably overnight. Preferably, remove batteries when not using equipment. When equipment has batteries in it and it is not being used, store with battery compartment facing downward. Modern mercury-free batteries burst and leak, often before you even have a chance to use them!

The secret of hydrochloric acid is that most metal chlorides are soluble, and as the metal carbonates are attacked and converted to chlorides, the waste washes away, allowing attack on the next layer. Most metal citrates are not soluble in water, so block subsequent attack, forcing you to soak and repeatedly brush. The most diluted hydrochloric acid does its job quickly, so you can supervise the cleaning, and minimize the time you need to expose the electronics to chemicals and water. You do want to get the acid away immediately after the corrosion is cleaned!

After you lay/tape the string in place over the first half of the print, put tiny dabs of super glue where the string crosses each piece, to hold the string in place during the 2nd half of the print.

I saw a fountain like this, except it had a faucet filling a bucket. The faucet was supported by a Plexiglass tube going into the output. This tube also fed water to the faucet. The water then turns around in the faucet and exits through an annulus (between the tube and the output) and flows down over the tube, concealing the tube. Here is link to such product:express.google.com/product/5755245856369612148_5440090000355501072_3933755?mall=WashingtonDC&directCheckout=1&utm_source=google_shopping&utm_medium=product_ads&utm_campaign=gsxYou could use this same scheme for your teapot/teacup fountain. The teapot seems to be floating with no means of support.

Except in a double boiler, you usually can't boil the stuff in the inner pan (you only heat it UP TO boiling), because the water in the outer one will not allow exceeding the boiling point. To distill, you must EXCEED the boiling point by at least a small amount to get heat to transfer. Adding salt to the outer container will give you this boost. You can also distill under vacuum to lower the boiling point, again, to allow heat transfer.

How do you get the water in the hot jar to boil when it is itself surrounded by water? If you add salt to the water in the pan, its boiling point will be raised permitting faster distillation.

You should solder bypass 0.1 microfarad capacitors across GND/VCC at least every couple of LEDs. Signal is high frequency, and may get corrupted due to noise on VCC bus.

Your vinegar/steel wool wood stain will attack stainless steel, making it mottled and pitted if it sits for a time. Don't put that on a stainless steel sink! The stain will not immediately get dark in the wood; it needs hours for that to happen. (The relatively colorless ferrous iron needs exposure to the air to convert to ferric (brown) form. It reacts with the tannic acid in the wood to make ferric tannate (dark brown).You can dabble a little of the stain on the labels to give then a "rusty" appearance.Put tonic water in the clear bottle. It will fluoresce under UV light. You can get UV LEDs to illuminate from All Electronics.

If the clamp is slipping, you need to look at the pins that bear on the beam first. These get worn every time the clamp is slid or tightened. (The force is concentrated in 1 spot on each pin, whereas the wear on the beam is distributed, unless you always clamp the same thickness stock at the same screw setting.) When they wear, the sliding member becomes more inclined, giving less normal force. I would inspect those first. Look for flats on the side that faces the beam. Replace or rotate them to a fresh side of they are worn.Another strategy is to let the clamp rust on purpose (if the beam and pins are not plated).

That approach will not make the motor movement any more discontinuous than your other method. Figure how many steps are needed for a minute (gear ratios and number of steps in motor per turn will go into that calculation). Divide the processor clock (16 MHz?) by a factor that the number of steps factors into. Each interrupt will advance the stepper one step, and this will be at a uniform rate. (I don't believe in using complex libraries to do simple things. Nothing is simpler then dividing a clock down, and dividing that by 4 to drive the stepper. If the load is light, you can use wave drive and save power, else you can use "full step drive".)

Rather than gamble with the delay in the C code, why not set up a periodic interrupt using timer off the clock crystal (say 16 per second, or whatever is convenient) and run a piece of code that increments the stepper drive? This way, while the code produces time jitter, this is on the microsecond scale and does not accumulate. You will have much better control of the speed.

Are you sure you have the platinum/tin silicones in the right order? The reason I ask is that tin cure silicones usually are "just looking for an excuse to not cure". They are notorious for this. On the other hand, platinum-cure tend to be immune to having their cure interfered with foreign substances. I have never seen the reverse case, as you report.

Be careful! Is the glass lid of the pot rated to withstand the vacuum force? It could implode! (If the pot is 10" in diameter, the force on the lid with high vacuum is about 1000 lbs! Even with -40Kpascals-vacuum, it is still 400lbs.)What I would do is to draw vacuum, but also have a small leak that slowly admits air to the chamber. The moving air at low pressure will carry away the moisture better than still air. Without air circulation, the boiling point of water must be exceeded to get water transport out. With your -40kilopascals, that's only a 40% reduction in pressure. Boiling point of water is not even reduced 10C (so you would need to get hotter than 90C to drive off water). By bleeding air, any water that evaporates from the filament will be swept away. Better is...

Be careful! Is the glass lid of the pot rated to withstand the vacuum force? It could implode! (If the pot is 10" in diameter, the force on the lid with high vacuum is about 1000 lbs! Even with -40Kpascals-vacuum, it is still 400lbs.)What I would do is to draw vacuum, but also have a small leak that slowly admits air to the chamber. The moving air at low pressure will carry away the moisture better than still air. Without air circulation, the boiling point of water must be exceeded to get water transport out. With your -40kilopascals, that's only a 40% reduction in pressure. Boiling point of water is not even reduced 10C (so you would need to get hotter than 90C to drive off water). By bleeding air, any water that evaporates from the filament will be swept away. Better is to set this up so the bleed air comes from an area with dehumidifier running. At 120F, vapor pressure of water is only 0.12 atmospheres, so you would need -90kilopascals without circulation.

When making clear castings, you want to have a thickness of resin surrounding the embedded objects on all sides, to permit finishing and prevent moisture intrusion.Mix the resin in 2 batches. Do 1st pour as usual, then unmold, flip over, and do 2nd pour on back using mold a little larger in diameter (a pipe fitting piece could be cut for this.) First pour should be allowed to just soft-set. (2nd pour adheres to 1st better, and there is less shrinkage stress). It is best to anneal by baking at 120 degrees F for 3-4 hours a few days after it is set. This hardens the epoxy, making finishing go better, and relieves the internal stress which could lead to cracking later.Slit both molds in 1 place on side and seal with hot glue on outside. This makes unmolding easier. Do not allow epox...

When making clear castings, you want to have a thickness of resin surrounding the embedded objects on all sides, to permit finishing and prevent moisture intrusion.Mix the resin in 2 batches. Do 1st pour as usual, then unmold, flip over, and do 2nd pour on back using mold a little larger in diameter (a pipe fitting piece could be cut for this.) First pour should be allowed to just soft-set. (2nd pour adheres to 1st better, and there is less shrinkage stress). It is best to anneal by baking at 120 degrees F for 3-4 hours a few days after it is set. This hardens the epoxy, making finishing go better, and relieves the internal stress which could lead to cracking later.Slit both molds in 1 place on side and seal with hot glue on outside. This makes unmolding easier. Do not allow epoxy to contact hot glue (do all gluing on outside of mold. There may be a chemical reaction that inhibits epoxy setting.) You were wise to use epoxy, rather then polyester. The plasticizers in vinyl cable will inhibit setting of polyesters. Epoxies are much more immune to chemicals they come in contact with.

There was comment about allowing torch gasses to flow through chamber. Why not have back brick just sitting there, with small gaps for flue gasses to escape?Do bricks in oven need to be cemented together? What if they were just set together?

Rather than casting the cord directly into the concrete, I would cast a hose in instead. That way, if repairs are needed, a new wire can be slipped in. The wire will tend to fatigue at the point where it exits the concrete.

I would try displaying this piece with a corner facing downward, rather then edge downward. Or it could be hung by a corner as a ceiling fixture.

After finishing the cutting and degreasing, sand the sharp edges with #400 silicon-carbide wet-or-dry paper and water. Just a light sanding at 45 degrees over the edges will take off the sharp edge. Clean and dry.For strength the silicone needs to be applied between the mating surfaces. Apply bead to mating edge then assemble. This is cumbersome, as you can't tape beforehand. Make some cardboard jigs to aid assembly. Assembly can be done in steps allowing silicone to dry between each one. Second coat can be applied on inside as you describe after the first is set.Silicone is weak when freshly set. Allow at least overnight before handling. In dry climate, ball up wet paper towel after initial setting and put inside and cover to allow moist air to speed cure.

I would cut the molds to the desired thickness of the pavers. You can slightly overfill, then use screed board to trim to height. Every paver will match in height and won't be wedged.

One thing to watch out for when assembling wood around glass: in time, the wood can shrink and break the glass! Be sure to leave room around the glass edge. paneled doors have a lot of slop in the panels, concealed by the grooves they fit into for the same reason.I assume you put the film on the underside of the table top?

You could improve the terrain handling of this robot by using lever equalization on the wheels. (Look up "steam engine wheel equalization"). if you allowed 1/2 inch vertical movement of each wheel from its nominal position, you could climb even higher curbs, and navigate irregular terrain. Neither electrical nor software changes would be required, except to allow some flexibility in the wiring harness to the wheel motors. The trick is to make the robot equivalent to a tripod-wheeled vehicle. You could equalize the front wheel pair left-right, and the other left-side, right-side pairs front-back.

This design could be simplified by using NeoPixel LEDs. You can get as much brightness as the batteries can provide, and need not worry about I/O current capability.

That's odd. I have one and consider it superior to the $1000 Derex grinder-mounted sharpener. One thing to watch out for in any drill sharpener: the key is getting the drill bit "timed" (rotated correctly in the collet before tightening). The Drill DR is much better at this, as it has 2 paddles to index the drill. Even more important, you can get your hand on the back end of the drill to help position it against the stop plate and get it rotated against the paddles. If you have the more expensive one, you can also split the point.

First problem you need to worry about is when making tree cross-sections, that the wood will split when it dries. The wood needs to be treated with a chemical called polyethylene glycol, preferably immediately after cutting. This is sold by wood working outlets.http://www.rockler.com/polyethylene-glycol-peg-gre...If your section has dried, soak it in water until the cracks close, then treat in PEG solution. Soak time is function of wood thickness, species, temperature, and solution concentration. After treatment dry the wood, and cut to final dimensions. Wood will be a bit "waxy" but there is no reason why the high voltage process shouldn't work. Experiment on scrap pieces.

I have no video, but can explain how I did it. In this case it was tree pruning saw of the sane tooth style as Japanese saw, except blade is curved concave and teeth are coarser. I set rest on "standard" bench grinder to be perpendicular to wheel, placed blade on rest, at angle to match facet angle, and VERY LIGHTLY touch to wheel, just enough to make a noise. Then move to the next tooth.Grinding wheel must be dressed very square on edge. Otherwise, there is risk of hitting side of next tooth. I use a "tool sharpening" wheel, not a "utility" wheel (that would be used on lawnmower blades).On fine saw such as you showed, this would be more difficult. I would most likely use small handstone and some sort of jig.Some saws of this type have the facets angl...

I have no video, but can explain how I did it. In this case it was tree pruning saw of the sane tooth style as Japanese saw, except blade is curved concave and teeth are coarser. I set rest on "standard" bench grinder to be perpendicular to wheel, placed blade on rest, at angle to match facet angle, and VERY LIGHTLY touch to wheel, just enough to make a noise. Then move to the next tooth.Grinding wheel must be dressed very square on edge. Otherwise, there is risk of hitting side of next tooth. I use a "tool sharpening" wheel, not a "utility" wheel (that would be used on lawnmower blades).On fine saw such as you showed, this would be more difficult. I would most likely use small handstone and some sort of jig.Some saws of this type have the facets angled across the blade, not just along the blade. For those, set the rest not perpendicular, and sharpen every other tooth, then flip blade over and sharpen the remainder.

The secret to these saws is the small slanted facet on the tip of each tooth. The edges of this facet must be very sharp. I use a small handstone to sharpen it, or a small grinding wheel on a Dremel tool. Normally, abrasive on a cloth wheel rounds edges. How do you get the cloth wheel to sharpen the facets?

What is the white cottony-looking stuff that you wrap the LEDs and the power supply with? I would be concerned with overheating because the white stuff would act as insulation. Is it flammable? (I did not see anything like this in the parts list).

Are you driving all the LEDs wth a single serial NeoPixel line, or are you driving the 8 strands with 8 separate serial signals?

Place gear print (laser printed) face-down on clean gear blank. Wipe back of paper with small rag lightly wet with acetone. Laser toner ink will transfer onto the wood. Let dry, and peel off paper. Design can also be transferred with hot iron.

Simple way to get thread square is to drill a clearance hole in scrap piece of wood. Slide the tap through that, and while holding the scrap firmly against the item being tapped, start the tapping a few turns. Then remove tap and scrap, and continue tapping.

Added suggestions: put adjusting feet on the base. Make the top "heavy" so it won't lift, then remove weight until it just BARELY lifts off the spinning plate. Then adjust the leveling feet to keep the top from going off to the side. Once you get it levitating, it will most likely collapse back to the plate. Remove a little weight to keep it floating. This scheme allows determining the proper weight first, rather then simultaneously having to determine weight and the leveling simultaneously. The heaviest possible weight also makes leveling adjustment less sensitive.Also keep in mind that temperature affects the top. When it gets warmer, you must remove a little weight.You can build a "perpetuator" to keep the top spinning "forever". It consists of a...

Added suggestions: put adjusting feet on the base. Make the top "heavy" so it won't lift, then remove weight until it just BARELY lifts off the spinning plate. Then adjust the leveling feet to keep the top from going off to the side. Once you get it levitating, it will most likely collapse back to the plate. Remove a little weight to keep it floating. This scheme allows determining the proper weight first, rather then simultaneously having to determine weight and the leveling simultaneously. The heaviest possible weight also makes leveling adjustment less sensitive.Also keep in mind that temperature affects the top. When it gets warmer, you must remove a little weight.You can build a "perpetuator" to keep the top spinning "forever". It consists of a thin pack of iron laminations spaced about an inch under the magnet platform, with a coil driven with a pulsed waveform at several hundred Hz. A 555 timer chip set to generate a narrow pulse feeding a drive transistor, and a 15V supply will do it. This was also sold commercially, but then discontinued. You will need to re-adjust the top weight with the perpetuator underneath. This can be done with the coil unpowered.

I use a propane torch, applied carefully, for gradual bends on heavy-walled pipe, for making underground irrigation sleeves into which the flexible line is inserted . It takes about 5 minutes of carefully moving flame to do it. This allows me to selectively heat only the parts to be bent. You could integrate this heating scheme with your hot sand method to heat the pipe from both inside and outside. You could also dump out and reheat the sand multiple times.

You can reduce the cogging forces in iron-based generators. (Ironless generators have no cogging forces). Do this by curving the magnets to reduce the harmonic field, and either skewing the slots or magnets by 1 slot end-to-end, or setting the magnets "off their correct positions" for short rotors.

For machines that turn slowly, the old-fashioned slotted iron designs work best, as iron losses are low, and copper losses high. Anything that boosts coil voltage (raising flux density) helps.

Don't be afraid of axial designs/centrifugal effects! The "pull" is in the plane of the disk. This is "easy" compared to pull directly away from the surface of a rotating drum structure. A ring around the outside, outside of the working parts of the motor, made of "real" material such as machined aluminum, can bear this.

Thinner wire gets you the voltage, but does not get you the current. The power available from a generator is proportional to the square of the speed. The magic number to look for is voltage squared divided by winding resistance.

I know that, but circuit determines frequency range. What is that range?

What frequency are you running at?

Refractive index of lenses cannot be "easily changed", but the lens power may be readily selected in 1/4th diopter units. Polycarbonate is about 1.58, and water 1.33, and those are fixed. But this use-in-water effect can be compensated for by selecting a stronger lens (as measured in air). This will require about a doubling in the "in air" power. So if you need a +2 diopter lens in air, you will want to order a +4 diopter lens for use in water.For use in sea water, the lens "in air" diopter power might need increasing further.

If you "crank up" the refraction of the lenses (on land) about 2X, you can make this work without having to have an air-enclosed chamber for the lens.(Refractive index lens, ~1.6. water, 1.33)You can buy some lenses, and test in swimming pool or lake. Be sure to hold lens at proper distance from eye.You can buy lenses from superopticalsystems.com for $0.75 each, with even cylinder prescription if you need it.

The convex lens theory you refer to is called "thin lens theory". "Simple" convex lenses perform equally well whether flipped or not, but they have terrible aberrations, outside their "thin lens regime". A camera lens is a complex collection of often 8 lens elements or more, some made of glasses with differing optical properties, all in the effort to minimize aberrations. Camera lenses are not "thin lenses"! That's why camera lenses are expensive. Low F-number lenses are more challenging to design; that's why they are insanely expensive. Not turning the lens around (but effectively turning the optical path around in macro mode) undoes all that wonderful design the manufacturer went to.

Camera lenses are OPTIMIZED to focus light bundles that are nearly parallel from the "front" of the lens (because the object is "far away compared to the lens focal length and diameter"), and focus them to a plane that is almost exactly 1 focal-length away from the lens (on the "backside" of the lens) to the sensor, WITH MINIMUM ABERRATIONS.When using lens in macro mode, the conditions are approximately reversed; the object is positioned 1 focal distance away, while the sensor is relatively "far away".If the lens were not reversed, it would be used way outside its design parameters. While in theory the lens would still work, the aberrations will be hideous unless you stopped it down to a pinhole.

Cutting fluid for drilling, machining, or sawing aluminum, especially the gummier alloys.For CLEANING rusted bike chains. Spray on, ride brake some to break loose links and repel moisture, then apply oil. It is important that the oil penetrate inside the links. The WD-40 helps remove the grime and allow the oil get in. Thereafter, keep the chain well oiled.

What you have is a magnetic stirrer, used widely for stirring nasty chemicals in glass flasks. This principle is also used to couple drive to pump without needing moving seals. A variant of this is a commercial toy (patented in the 1970's) called "top secret". It is available on Amazon.www.amazon.com/Warm-Fuzzy-Toys-815895013987-Secret...Its top is the same as what you have except the magnet is much weaker. Inside the base, there is a vertical iron rod on center with 2 coils wound around it, a single transistor, and a 9-volt battery. On-off switch is not required! There are no moving parts in the base.This is patent description, which explains it well.http://www.freepatentsonline.com/3783550.htmlWhen the top is spinned, magnetic induction turns the transistor on in pulse...

What you have is a magnetic stirrer, used widely for stirring nasty chemicals in glass flasks. This principle is also used to couple drive to pump without needing moving seals. A variant of this is a commercial toy (patented in the 1970's) called "top secret". It is available on Amazon.www.amazon.com/Warm-Fuzzy-Toys-815895013987-Secret...Its top is the same as what you have except the magnet is much weaker. Inside the base, there is a vertical iron rod on center with 2 coils wound around it, a single transistor, and a 9-volt battery. On-off switch is not required! There are no moving parts in the base.This is patent description, which explains it well.http://www.freepatentsonline.com/3783550.htmlWhen the top is spinned, magnetic induction turns the transistor on in pulses, timed to keep the top spinning, like a DC brushless motor does. Unlike your system, the top must be off-center on the base to get energy. That's the purpose of the bump in the center of the base. Otherwise, the top of mechanically free to wander around on the base. The top can be started spinning in either direction. The battery can last up to 2 weeks!

If you use a significant amount of alcohol in a pie crust, and then bake it in the oven, you could accumulate explosive gasses in the oven!Any of the other uses where alcohol is at above 60% can be flammable, and should be handled as such.For other non-consumption uses (such as window cleaning or goo/paint removal), denatured alcohol is much cheaper and has no water dilution, which interferes with its solvency in some situitions.

I looked at your vacuum regulator video. It has a severe case of the "jimmies". This is because your "D" term is not enough, or noisy. (The problem with the "D" calculator is that it is a "vacuum cleaner for noise". What is the sample rate for your PID loop? How many bits is the pressure signal (or if you are you measuring the time delay directly in Arduino, what is resolution?) Another thing is that the servo/link is non-linear as you use almost all the 180 degree arc. You can linear-ize that with different linkage or "weird" valve opening shape (I would use rotary, rather then linear, valve).Another problem you probably have is stiction because the air force against the valve vane. Rotary valve or 2 opposed vanes can cancel mos...

I looked at your vacuum regulator video. It has a severe case of the "jimmies". This is because your "D" term is not enough, or noisy. (The problem with the "D" calculator is that it is a "vacuum cleaner for noise". What is the sample rate for your PID loop? How many bits is the pressure signal (or if you are you measuring the time delay directly in Arduino, what is resolution?) Another thing is that the servo/link is non-linear as you use almost all the 180 degree arc. You can linear-ize that with different linkage or "weird" valve opening shape (I would use rotary, rather then linear, valve).Another problem you probably have is stiction because the air force against the valve vane. Rotary valve or 2 opposed vanes can cancel most of this out, and make servo's job easier.Another thing: how much transport delay is the Arduino imposing? I suspect this because Arduino is notorious for "bloatware lag", when you use standard libraries. (For example, to write a port bit requires only 2 clock cycles in the hardware, but if you use port write library, it requires over 100 cycles!) I assume you are writing to PWM register to drive servo. Servos don't really have the resolution to deal with this type of task. They have deadband and jitter even "when perfectly driven". Also check CAREFULLY the voltage regulation of the power the servo gets. Best is to have a local regulator on EACH servo.You could let the servo drive a mechanism that controls the setpoint of a valve linked to the bellows. Thus the servo rule: use local feedback when possible.Is the bellows hinged on one side? If not, the bellows could be rocking, causing changed signal from sonar (unless sonar is "looking" at bellows center).

Certainly not!!! I built the puncher in 1965! It was totally manually operated. It required hours to punch a roll. The most important roll I made was a "test roll" for debugging the action. At that time, I DID have a SINGLE transistor that I scrounged from a discarded "transistor radio" in the optical sensor on a robot designed to follow a line painted on the floor. I also built a "computer" regulating trains in an S-gauge layout, consisting of about 20 relays. The system was able to regulate the motion of 5 trains at once by controlling "blocks" and 2 switches (to route faster trains around slower ones).

Regarding your comment on regulating the amount of vacuum: in player pianos they have a bellows held open with a spring, as you have. Inside the bellows is a knife valve connecting to vacuum source. As the bellows closes (vacuum increasing inside), the knife valve chokes off the vacuum, providing regulation.Sonar beware! If air temperature changes, you will get shift. (Expect change of 1 part in 30 for 20 degrees F change. How much this effects your setup is determined by ratio of change in distance due to vacuum to total distance measured. Most sonars have minimum distance which I assume is about 1 foot. How that compares to amount of movement you have I do not know.) Safest thing to do is have a fixed target also "looked at" by the sonar. You regulate the RATIO of t...

Regarding your comment on regulating the amount of vacuum: in player pianos they have a bellows held open with a spring, as you have. Inside the bellows is a knife valve connecting to vacuum source. As the bellows closes (vacuum increasing inside), the knife valve chokes off the vacuum, providing regulation.Sonar beware! If air temperature changes, you will get shift. (Expect change of 1 part in 30 for 20 degrees F change. How much this effects your setup is determined by ratio of change in distance due to vacuum to total distance measured. Most sonars have minimum distance which I assume is about 1 foot. How that compares to amount of movement you have I do not know.) Safest thing to do is have a fixed target also "looked at" by the sonar. You regulate the RATIO of the 2 times measured, rather then compare one time against a constant. Humidity also has a lesser effect.You could also have dump valve mechanically linked to bellows. This is the ultimate in simplicity!Some info about player piano standards: roll 11 1/2" wide. 88 holes, spaced 9 to the inch. How do I know this? I built a roll puncher! Player piano response speed: 10 "hits" per second on a given note.

This is an awesome project! I know as I overhauled a player piano made in the 1920's. If I were designing this, I would "steal" ideas from player piano design, and use pneumatics to activate the keys. (Each pneumatic is a bellows about 1 x 3 inches with 1/2 inch movement. You stagger them in 3 rows to get them close enough for the keys.) You eliminate the noise problem. So now the solenoids can be tiny things that open small valves. You can drive them from multi-channel driver chips. You will not blow anything up if you accidentally activate all keys at once.If you study a piano action, great lengths are gone to, to get rid of noise. Every bearing is lined with felt, and everywhere 2 things contact, there is also felt.Regarding providing suction: you need to slow vacu...

This is an awesome project! I know as I overhauled a player piano made in the 1920's. If I were designing this, I would "steal" ideas from player piano design, and use pneumatics to activate the keys. (Each pneumatic is a bellows about 1 x 3 inches with 1/2 inch movement. You stagger them in 3 rows to get them close enough for the keys.) You eliminate the noise problem. So now the solenoids can be tiny things that open small valves. You can drive them from multi-channel driver chips. You will not blow anything up if you accidentally activate all keys at once.If you study a piano action, great lengths are gone to, to get rid of noise. Every bearing is lined with felt, and everywhere 2 things contact, there is also felt.Regarding providing suction: you need to slow vacuum cleaner down. You can use variac, or put inductors in series with it, or use a DC supply. That lowers power and wear & tear on vacuum (they are not made to run continuously!) to almost nothing, and gets rid of most noise so a padded box can do the rest. You will most likely need 30-40 volts on the vacuum to get the vacuum you need. Rather then tape hose in, make another flap-valve assembly on chest and connect vacuum to that with a more permanent connection. The organ will be able to be either manually pumped, or run on power, without needing to change connections. I did this for a war veteran (who lost one leg) so he could run his Story & Clark player piano (which I overhauled).Another thing to look at is the effect of the flyback diodes in the solenoids. They slow the release. One trick is to allow the flyback voltage to be higher (but still not high enough to damage FETS). Easiest way to do this is to put resistor in series with diode. For 1A solenoid current, this current will instantaneously flow in diode circuit. So each ohm you put in, is another reverse volt is allowed. 10 ohms added would allow 11 reverse volts, halving release time, while subjecting FETs to 23 volts at the instant switching off.Another thing I would do differently is to have the solenoids (or whatever other mover used) directly actuate the reed valves. That's the way player pianos work, and for best operation the keys are locked up to eliminate their inertia.

At its melting point, zinc is volatile! It fumes into the air, then oxidizes to a fine white powder which is readily inhaled.Workers in zinc smelting factories and brass foundries were known to get "zinc shakes". Campers who grill food on old galvanized refrigerator shelves also get poisoned (unless the shelf is heated red-hot in the fire first to boil off all the zinc).If you cast brass as a business, the EPA requires zinc-scrubbers on the chimney. The model railroad community has switched to manganese bronze for this reason.If you do one or a few coins, there is no worry, but it is best to do this outside to be safe.It is wise to understand the hazards of any operation you perform.

Be sure to state to get the zinc from "zinc-carbon cell", not "alkaline cell".Yes zinc-coated roofing nails could be used. But be sure the zinc coating is hot dipped (looks rough and crystalline, as on a roofing nail, not smooth and shiny). If it is not, the zinc will be so thin that the zinc will be etched from the steel before you have enough zinc ions in solution to electroplate on the coin.When heating the coin to alloy the zinc, be sure to do this in a well-ventilated area, as zinc heated to the melting point is volatile, will fume, and is somewhat toxic.

The zinc plate you got from the cell looks like it is from the older acid-based "zinc-carbon" of Laclanche cells. In the newer "alkalline" cells, the zinc is in powder form mixed with copper in the center electrode. Where did you get the cell you stripped the zinc sheet from? Did you get it from a foreign country?

If you remove the rotor from a shaded-pole motor and turn it on with full line voltage, it will quickly overheat! You are removing the path for the magnetic flux, which forces the motor to draw excessive current.

The "fan" in the base needs to develop more pressure then normal "propeller" fans can provide. Better would be a centrifugal "blower", which moves less air but at a greater pressure, to force the air through the slot. These can be purchased inexpensively like the usual "muffin" fans.

Use it for circuit board resist. For that, green color is best (shows against the copper), diluted with thinner. For wide traces, draw it directly on. For thin traces, color in an area, let dry, and scribe where the copper is to be etched away.

Make "engine finish" on metal shop projects. Us short pencil or cut off 2" long eraser end. Chuck in drill press. Place polished metal on press table, and "drill" with eraser, leaving a little swirl mark. Do repeatedly, overlapping marks.

Some comments about the process.IC sockets and connectors are some of the most heat-sensitive parts, and tend to warp. To prevent: connect mate (or put IC in socket) while desoldering, and let cool before unmating. Make sure IC put in socked doesn't have solder on leads. Put old EPROMS in large machined-pin sockets to support them. Pull the socket out by the EPROM.Sievert makes a "hot-air" torch burner that is perfect for this. It is hotter then a hot-air gun (which is too slow), but cooler then a direct flame.The secret is to pay attention to the heat flow. Heat moves up, so start at the bottom (and put more heat there). A piece of aluminum will not heat as quickly as plastic. A component with a heat-sink will be difficult to heat. Leads connecting to a ground plane ...

Some comments about the process.IC sockets and connectors are some of the most heat-sensitive parts, and tend to warp. To prevent: connect mate (or put IC in socket) while desoldering, and let cool before unmating. Make sure IC put in socked doesn't have solder on leads. Put old EPROMS in large machined-pin sockets to support them. Pull the socket out by the EPROM.Sievert makes a "hot-air" torch burner that is perfect for this. It is hotter then a hot-air gun (which is too slow), but cooler then a direct flame.The secret is to pay attention to the heat flow. Heat moves up, so start at the bottom (and put more heat there). A piece of aluminum will not heat as quickly as plastic. A component with a heat-sink will be difficult to heat. Leads connecting to a ground plane will require more heat, leading to possible overheating of other adjacent leads. Watch out for holes or slots in the board which could allow flame through. If parts hang over the edge of the board, hold another board against the edge to prevent flame from wrapping over the edge.Board-mounted heatsinks are almost impossible to get out by heating leads. Unfasten transistor first from sink, strip transistor off board, then apply torch flame to top-side of heat sink until it is almost at solder melt temperature, then finish with heat on leads from bottom-side.If heat or other damage is evident on a component, throw it away immediately so it doesn't get mixed in with the others.Do not strike board to mass-strip parts. Solder will splatter over the parts.Use a low, long cardboard box to catch the parts. Cardboard won't melt, and is replaceable. As soon as the part lands in the box, let it cool for a moment, then sweep it toward the other end of the box. This way if solder splatters, the parts will be out of the way.Practice on boards which don't have parts you want. Test-remove components you don't want, but are similar to those you want. Skilled application of the heat, as well as "reading" the temperature, are a must, and will be developed with experience. Hidden things like inner planes will affect heat flow.For DIP ICs and thru-lead parts: if you heat and pull it out just as the solder melts, there will be a blob on each lead right at the board surface, which you will have to clean off later. Better: rock the part as you are heating until you feel it is free, wait a second or 2 for the heat to come up the leads a little, then pull out a little, push back in, then pull out. The pull and push transfers heat from the lead (in contact with flame) to the front-side. The solder blob will not form, and the leads will come out clean.Surface-mount parts that have sat around in damp environment absorb moisture. That moisture turns to steam inside the part and damages it. Bake board at 200F for several hours to drive out this moisture before stripping. Remove all large electrolytic caps and batteries of any kind before torch stripping or baking as they can explode!Solid tantalum caps can ignite, and when they do, they burn white hot!If ribbon cables are connected to board and you want connectors, leave cables connected while the part stripping is done. This supports connectors from warping (the ribbons may be scorched).

TATP is an explosive, not a rocket fuel grain. PLEASE DO NOT MAKE TATP! Your procedure omits the most important step, keeping the mix below 10 degrees C during the reaction. if you don't, you make a related compound that is spontaneously explosive!This stuff (even when properly made) is dangerous, even when ignited in the open! It is used by terrorists for bombs! Please don't make this stuff!Flash paper is made of nitrocellulose, not TATP. Nitrocellulose is energetically flammable, but not explosive unless confined.

You need to ignite the engine at the end where you inject the oxygen (could be done with electric igniter inserted all the way in). The "rocket's" success isn't verified unless you measure its thrust-time product.Be careful, the pipe could explode! You should have secondary containment.Be careful

Hydrochloric acid will dissolve the rust. Apply dropwise and keep wet for an hour.

Do you know about releasable zip ties?https://www.parts-express.com/Search.aspx?keyword=...

Do you know about releasable zip ties?https://www.parts-express.com/Search.aspx?keyword=...

Various schemes are proposed for sensing the magnetic field (reed switch, hall sensor), but the simplest one has not been mentioned: induction in a coil when the field changes. Look up this toy:www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=top+secret+toy&...The original versions of this toy have a nail with a center-tapped coil wound on it, mounted vertically under the center of the base. Also there is an NPN transistor (2N3904) and a 9 volt transistor battery. one section of the coil is in series with the transistor's collector, and that is across the battery. The other coil is across the emitter-base of the transistor. The coils are phased so when the transistor turns on, the mutual induction to the E-B coil turns the transistor on further. In the presence of the initially spinning...

Various schemes are proposed for sensing the magnetic field (reed switch, hall sensor), but the simplest one has not been mentioned: induction in a coil when the field changes. Look up this toy:www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=top+secret+toy&...The original versions of this toy have a nail with a center-tapped coil wound on it, mounted vertically under the center of the base. Also there is an NPN transistor (2N3904) and a 9 volt transistor battery. one section of the coil is in series with the transistor's collector, and that is across the battery. The other coil is across the emitter-base of the transistor. The coils are phased so when the transistor turns on, the mutual induction to the E-B coil turns the transistor on further. In the presence of the initially spinning top, brief current pulses to the coil keep the top spinning (for about 2 weeks on a 9V battery).This same circuit could be used for the spinner accelerator. The drive coil would want to have fewer turns of heavier wire, as there is more friction on the spinner versus the top. This patent on the top explains the circuit in more detail.http://www.freepatentsonline.com/3783550.pdfThe advantages of this scheme are that no on/off switch is needed (the circuit automatically shuts down when the spinner is removed), an absolute minimum of parts are needed, and these are inexpensive.

You might want to think about another design I made. One problem I had when designing this type of "ironless" motor is the flux curving back between the poles without linking any coil. The Halbach magnet helps limit this happening in the plane of the magnet, but does nothing to prevent it in the air gap. Instead of having magnet on only 1 side of the coil, have magnets on both inside and outside the coils. The flux is now 'thrown" in from both sides. Now I agree this is difficult to arrange mechanically...unless you change things a bit. What I did was to "twist everything 90 degrees" and have the flux axial, and the current radial. The rotor consists of 2 pancake arrays of magnets, embedded in 2 aluminum discs, each backed with a ring of iron, and the sta...

You might want to think about another design I made. One problem I had when designing this type of "ironless" motor is the flux curving back between the poles without linking any coil. The Halbach magnet helps limit this happening in the plane of the magnet, but does nothing to prevent it in the air gap. Instead of having magnet on only 1 side of the coil, have magnets on both inside and outside the coils. The flux is now 'thrown" in from both sides. Now I agree this is difficult to arrange mechanically...unless you change things a bit. What I did was to "twist everything 90 degrees" and have the flux axial, and the current radial. The rotor consists of 2 pancake arrays of magnets, embedded in 2 aluminum discs, each backed with a ring of iron, and the stator a slab with coils embedded inside.(I built alternator this way to make 120VAC 3 phase 80W, 90% efficiency, to be rectified into 168VDC and fed into "world-wide" power supply. Alternator ran on 1HP engine at 3000 RPM. No circuit breaker was needed as engine stalled if load got too high. Geometry was 4" diameter, 16 poles, 12 coils in 3 sets of 4 per phase star. Weight 1.1 pound. Magnets 1/2 inch square, 1/4inch thick each side, 32 total. No Halbach array.)Disadvantage of that scheme is it is difficult to arrange for crossing end-turns of the phase coils, forcing you to have only 1 phase in a given sector of the air-gap. But your most ingenious 3D printing guide slots (yours is the best design I have seen to deal with this problem!) could most likely allow crossing turns within the stator plate. On purpose, you would make a 3D print for the stator that is weak and porous, wind in the coils, and impregnate with epoxy. (My opinion to the secret of good 3D prints is the post-processing. I am wearing Mykita eyeglass frames made this way. They are strong enough to not need reinforcing wire in the temples.)

To get the print on the cardboard, place the mirrored LASER print face-down on the cardboard, and tape in place at the corners. Pour a few milliliters of acetone into a small cup (not plastic!). Dip small rag into it, just getting a spot on the rag damp, not wet, with the acetone. Gently rub the back of the print. The paper will darken (as paper does when wet), but don't soak; just barely wet until you see the paper darken a little. You will be able to see the black through the paper; keep rubbing with a dry rag until the acetone evaporates, and the paper becomes white again. Carefully peel the paper off the cardboard; you should see the print on the cardboard. If the paper sticks and threatens to split, re-wet that spot with a little acetone and separate, Cut the cardboard in t...

To get the print on the cardboard, place the mirrored LASER print face-down on the cardboard, and tape in place at the corners. Pour a few milliliters of acetone into a small cup (not plastic!). Dip small rag into it, just getting a spot on the rag damp, not wet, with the acetone. Gently rub the back of the print. The paper will darken (as paper does when wet), but don't soak; just barely wet until you see the paper darken a little. You will be able to see the black through the paper; keep rubbing with a dry rag until the acetone evaporates, and the paper becomes white again. Carefully peel the paper off the cardboard; you should see the print on the cardboard. If the paper sticks and threatens to split, re-wet that spot with a little acetone and separate, Cut the cardboard in the usual way. To finish, spray-paint the cardboard (tan if you want natural color). This will cover any ink or dirt marks.Keeping the amount of acetone small will minimize the fire hazard.

Awesome design! Here are some suggestions to improve the performance. For the rotor, you really need a metal ring on the outside. The tension in the plastic at 8000 RPM is on the 100's of pounds. plastic slowly yields to this stress, and will fail. Preferably, a steel shell should be used both to withstand the forces, and to provide a return path for the magnetic flux. Since your rotor is made in 2 parts, you can omit plastic and put the ring in place, between the 2 halves.You also need a "real" flux-return path on the inside of the windings. This path must be laminated. It could be provided by winding in steel wire, as making laminations is difficult.I noticed a "howling" sound when the motor is running. This is due to harmonic noise, and adds to the loss. ...

Awesome design! Here are some suggestions to improve the performance. For the rotor, you really need a metal ring on the outside. The tension in the plastic at 8000 RPM is on the 100's of pounds. plastic slowly yields to this stress, and will fail. Preferably, a steel shell should be used both to withstand the forces, and to provide a return path for the magnetic flux. Since your rotor is made in 2 parts, you can omit plastic and put the ring in place, between the 2 halves.You also need a "real" flux-return path on the inside of the windings. This path must be laminated. It could be provided by winding in steel wire, as making laminations is difficult.I noticed a "howling" sound when the motor is running. This is due to harmonic noise, and adds to the loss. You can reduce the harmonic noise by slightly skewing the windings. Probably about half of one of your slot-spacings would be right.Regarding the magnets: they should not show a wide variation in power! I would look for better quality magnets, such as from K&J Magnetics.

Cooling the diode is neither difficult nor expensive. You use standard hardware for mounting transistors, which routinely must be isolated from the grounded heatsink. You bolt the diode down, with insulating shoulder washers under the heads of the bolts, and use mica or kapton insulators with heatsink grease on each side.I don't understand how a "diode route" solved this problem. Please explain. Another way to solve this is to float the laser driver circuitry off ground, and convey the on/off signal to it with an opto-isolator or level-shifter.You must be careful, as shorting the laser diode's case to ground can bridge the driver, sending huge currents into the laser diode. This transforms the laser diode into a "dark-emitting laser" which emits energy that cann...

Cooling the diode is neither difficult nor expensive. You use standard hardware for mounting transistors, which routinely must be isolated from the grounded heatsink. You bolt the diode down, with insulating shoulder washers under the heads of the bolts, and use mica or kapton insulators with heatsink grease on each side.I don't understand how a "diode route" solved this problem. Please explain. Another way to solve this is to float the laser driver circuitry off ground, and convey the on/off signal to it with an opto-isolator or level-shifter.You must be careful, as shorting the laser diode's case to ground can bridge the driver, sending huge currents into the laser diode. This transforms the laser diode into a "dark-emitting laser" which emits energy that cannot be detected by any known device.

Some lasers have the diode's anode tied to the case, which is usually tied to the positive supply in the driver electronics. Either you need to insulate the case from ground (but have a scheme for heat sinking) or use an isolated supply to power that laser.