If you’re looking at CNC machines, or machine tools in general, heavier is better. That old drill press or mill made of a few hundred pounds of cast iron isn’t just better because it’s stood the test of time for a hundred years — greater mass equals less vibration. Thanks to modern epoxy resins, we […]
If you’re cutting metal in the workshop, you’re likely using a table-mounted cutoff saw, or perhaps a bandsaw for finer work. The power hacksaw is an unwieldy contraption that looks and feels very old fashioned in its operation. Despite the drawbacks inherent in the design, [Emiel] decided to build one that operates under drill power, […]
While it might be tempting to start soldering a circuit together once the design looks good on paper, experience tells us that it’s still good to test it out on a breadboard first to make sure everything works properly. That might be where the process ends for one-off projects, but for large production runs you’re […]
Pianos are free, in case you’re not hip to the exciting world of musical instrument salvage. Yes, the home piano, once the pinnacle of upper middle class appreciation of the arts, is no longer. The piano your great aunt bought in 1963 is just taking up space, and it’s not like the guy on Craigslist […]
Since even the cheapest phone or computer now has plenty of horsepower, there’s been a move to create instruments that can do everything, using a reasonably simple front end and crunching data back on the host device. This is one of those tasks that seems easy, but doing it well turns out to be a […]
We’ve all seen the little USB power meters that have become popular since nearly every portable device has adopted some variation of USB for charging. Placed between the power source and the device under test, they allow you to see voltage and current in real time. Perfect for determining how long you’ll be able to […]