Given my obsession of CNC projects, I’m surprised that we haven’t mentioned this project before. [Dave] put together an excellent site about his CNC converted mini-lathe. (The same on that I’ve got) He built a pretty simple stepper controller to drive it. Since the lathe only needed two axis motors, he drove the steppers with some mosfets that he triggered from a parallel port. The site has been around for a while, but I thought you guys would enjoy a classic hack like this one.
Author: Will O'Brien805 Articles
HackIt: New Uses For Old CRT Monitors
[atrain] wants to know if we’ve got any thoughts on things to do with old CRT displays instead of giving them away or recycling them. We’ve seen pic programmers and oscilloscope projects, but even I’m curious to see what you guys have to say.
So, got a better idea? Let’s hear it.
D200 Hotshoe GPS Redux (el Cheapo Version)
It’s been a while since we talked about putting a GPS on top of a D200. [Rick] sent in his latest version. He used a nice 20 channel sirf III gps from spark-fun, a cheap D200 remote cable and a few parts to send the NMEA sentences down the wire. The biggest improvements include taking the $100 Nikon cable out of the mix and swiping power from the camera for the GPS board. All the info is there, but I had to seriously stare at his wiring instructions for a while despite the low parts count. I like to see actual circuit diagrams!
Binary POV Watch
I probably won’t be replacing my giant G-shock watch just yet, but this binary POV watch is pretty sweet. Sure, the POV clock is old hat by now, but it’s also a nice example of adding a Li-ionbattery to an embedded project. It uses a MAX1555 li-ion charger and throws caution to the wind and doesn’t bother with any external capacitors. Battery life is several days or several hours if the watch is put into flashlight mode.
Cheap DIY Acoustic Guitar Pickup
I stumbled on this simple, but effective and cheap diy guitar pickup in my rounds for interesting hacks. Piezo elements haven’t failed to amaze me. They’re usable for electronic drum kit, underwater microphones, running shoes and musical greeting cards.
(I’ve only found an old, out of print book on hydrophones, so if you’ve got a good reference, send it in.)
HackIt: Better Project Documentation
Today’s hackit is devoted to everyone who enjoys a good project write-up. I’m on the verge of upgrading my photo gear (Digital Rebel XTi) with some new lighting and a better lens to improve my work and found myself wondering what the community likes to see in a good how-to. What can be done to make them better for the community. Decent photography? Better parts lists? I prefer good photos and reproducible work.
So, got a better idea? Lets hear it.
Internal Bluetooth For 5th Gen IPods
[Ed] sent in his latest iPod modding effort. Previously he did this on a 4th gen, and now he’s following that up with a 5th gen version. He found an even smaller bluetooth module for the mod, but it requires replacing the hard drive with a compact flash card to make room inside the case if you want to keep the original back cover.
