It is one thing to make an artistic steampunk display. But [CapeGeek] added an Arduino to make the display come alive. The display has plenty of tubes and wires. The pressure gauge dominates the display, but there are lots of other interesting bits. Check it out in the video below.
From the creator:
The back-story is a fictional factory that cycles through a multistage process. It starts up with lights and sounds starting in a small tube in one corner, the needle on a big gauge starts rising, then a larger tube at the top lights up in different colors. Finally, the tall, glass reactor vessel lights up to start cooking some process. All this time, as the sequence progresses, it is accompanied by factory motor sounds and bubbling processes. Finally, a loud glass break noise hints that the process has come to a catastrophic end! Then the sequence starts reversing, with lights sequentially shutting down, the needle jumps around randomly, then decreases, finally, all lights are off, indicating the factory shutting down.
We especially liked the distillation column. We doubt we would exactly duplicate this project, but there are plenty of things to borrow for your own creations here.
We always enjoy steampunk computers. But we also like the ones that have unusual components like the distillation column or a chain.
Meh.
The choreography needs some work, but the idea and build are pretty good.
I am so tired of every under performing modern technology thats slapped together being called Steampunk if it had a gauge and some copper pipe. Use to be called plumbing.
Ironically, I find that I both love and loath “Steampunk.”
Steam punk is not simply about (the damned) gears, it’s a design aesthetic that includes choice of materials, features, and architectural lines rooted in a Victorian-era engineering world-view. When properly conceived and executed, it can be a beautiful and playfully speculative art form.. Jake Van Slatt’s original steampunk keyboard mod, comes to mind. There have been others.
Essential to this aesthetic is that instrumentation, controls, and mechanical details must be consistent with some plausible (even if only imagined) principle of operation.
Reginald Pikedevant states this far better than I can:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFCuE5rHbPA
As to this specific project, anyone who gets off the couch to solder, drill, or otherwise make something from pieces and parts should be applauded for their creativity and effort.
Alternatively; stick some LEDs on it and call it cyberpunk :D
But for me, even a most general and inclusive way to evaluate these sorts of retro creations will have to take into account the constraints that were involved. If someone made an axe that’s no better than what you find in the store nowadays, but they made it out of bronze age materials or even just from materials they produced themselves, that could be impressive. On the other hand, if someone makes a not particularly good axe out of a sledgehammer, they’re only constrained by what’s commonly available in modern times, but their result is worse than the default under that constraint which is a modern axe from the same store.
To be fair, I know most people value things with more emphasis on their appearance. Else the market for antiques would not be dominated by things that cannot function but fetch high prices as decorations, even with zero sentimental value involved. My taste also doesn’t include putting things on that have a purpose that they don’t even attempt to pretend to serve, e.g. the gears that can’t turn and very obviously wouldn’t do anything if they did, but obviously there’s a lot of people who don’t agree.
This is just the alignment tool for the syphon/ballcock which defeated the editor in chief.
All my tubes and wires! And antiquated notions…
I was going for that but one of the editors apparently cut my part about careful notes.
gaaah – sorry Al! I admit I completely missed the reference. I was blinded by lack of sleep :)
Oh yeah, blame Miss Sakamoto =)) (And yeah, I missed “careful notes, doh!)
Speaking more generally of this kind of stuff, the aesthetic appeal is usually ruined for me by incongruous aspects that don’t make mechanical sense. Like a random gear glued onto a hat. What, does your brain have a power take-off? :D
I like it, but the pressure gauge doesn’t sell it’s part of the mechanism.
It looks far too mechanical, and It sounds like it’s attached to a servo. Its movement is too precise.
Uh… ok. Systems that deal with steam have vents so your theoretical “Steam” has a place to go. I don’t see much one could borrow aside from having blinking lights and copper pipe (which is horrible when used for steam). 100 psi steam in that system would be a bad time.
Could use a smoke generator or fog generator.
Here’s our one we made for Hendricks Gin a few years ago!
https://youtu.be/ivFdJahh9nw