Tiny Pneumatic Tool Made From A Single(-ish) Bolt

April 16, 2022 by 17 Comments

We’ve noticed a couple of things about the “Widget from a Single Bolt” genre of metalworking videos. The first thing is that almost all of them need to use a freakishly large bolt, and many of them also rely on other materials to complete the build. And secondly, these builds all pretty much depend on a lathe to transform the bolt into the intended widget.

While this single-bolt pneumatic graving tool build is guilty on that first count, it somehow manages to avoid needing a lathe. Not that [AMbros Custom] wouldn’t have greatly benefited from a lathe to make this somewhat specialized and unusual tool a reality. A graving tool or graver is used during metal engraving, the art of making controlled cuts into flat metal surfaces to render complicated designs. A powered graver like this can make engraving faster and more precise than a traditional manual graver, which is typically powered by light taps with a special hammer.

The lathe-less build [AMbros] undertook was quite ambitious given the number of moving parts and the tight tolerances needed for a pneumatic tool. The real hero here is the hand drill pressed into service as an impromptu lathe; teamed with various tools from files to emery cloth to even a Dremel and an angle grinder, it did a respectable job turning down the various parts. The entire build is shown in the video below, and it’s worth a watch just to see what ingenuity can accomplish when coupled with sheer persistence.

Hats off to [AMbros] for sticking with what was admittedly a problematic build, and here’s hoping a lathe is in his future. With that, he may be able to pull off other impressive “single-bolt” builds, like this combination padlock. Or throw another bolt or two in and pull off this cryptex-like safe.

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triggered spark gap

Spark Plug And Plumbing Parts Bring Nitrogen Laser Under Control

March 16, 2022 by 16 Comments

When it comes to high-speed, high-voltage switching, there are a wealth of components to choose from — MOSFETS, thyristors, IGBTs, and even vacuum tubes like thyratrons. But who needs all that expensive silicon (or glass) when all you need to build a high-voltage switch is some plumbing fixtures and a lathe?

At least that’s the approach that budget-minded laser experimenter [Les Wright] took with his latest triggered spark gap build. We’ve been watching his work for a while now, especially his transversely excited atmospheric (TEA) lasers. These are conceptually simple lasers that seem easy to build, at least compared to other lasers. But they do require a rapid pulse of high voltage across their long parallel electrodes to lase, and controlling the pulse is where this triggered spark gap shines.

The spark gap is made from brass plumbing fittings on either end of a short PVC coupler. [Les] used his lathe to put a thread into one of the caps to accept a spark plug, the center electrode of which pokes through a small hole in the metal cathode. To trigger the spark gap, [Les] built a trigger generator that outputs about 15,000 volts, which arcs from the spark plug electrode to the spark gap cathode in the low-pressure nitrogen environment. Little spark leads to big spark, big spark discharges a capacitor across the laser electrodes, and you’ve got a controlled single-shot laser. Check it out in the video below.

Honestly, the more we see of [Les]’ videos, the more we want to play with lasers and high voltage. From DIY doorknob caps to blasting Bayer arrays off cheap CCD cameras, there’s always something fun — and slightly dangerous — going on in [Les]’s lab.

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Tech In Plain Sight: Tough As Nails

March 15, 2022 by 17 Comments

When you think of machines you see around you every day, you probably think about your car, computer, or household appliances. However, the world is full of simple machines. One simple machine in particular, the inclined plane, shows up a lot. For example, think of the humble nail. If you are a woodworker or even a homeowner you probably have bags of them. They certainly are all around you if you are indoors and maybe even if you are outdoors right now. Nails have been the fastener of choice for a very long time and they are a form of a wedge which is a type of inclined plane.

What else can you say about nails? Turns out, there is a lot to know. Like other fasteners, there are nails for very specific purposes. There are even nails with two heads and — no kidding — nails with two points. Exactly what kind of nail you need depends on what you are doing and what’s important to you.

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Very Fancy Nail Is Actually A Secret Jewlery Stash

March 10, 2022 by 10 Comments

Typically, nails are purpose-built things made to hold bits of wood together, with their entire design focused on that purpose. However, [W&M Levsha] went in much the other direction, crafting one very fancy expensive nail in what we can only explain as a masterful demonstration of their skills.

The build starts with a piece of brass tube, which is engraved with a delicate pattern on an automated lathe. After clean up, the spiralling lines are attractive on the polished brass.A plug is then made for the end of the tube, which gets filed into a point to resemble a nail, hiding the seam between the plug and the tube.

The tube is then threaded to accept a nail head that screws into the top, allowing the “nail” to act as a fancy little stash, which [W&M Levsha] shows off by placing a bracelet inside. The project is finished by crafting a stunning wooden box to hold the fancy nail.

We’ve seen [W&M Levsha]’s handywork before; the cap-gun cigarette lighter was a similarly impressive feat of machining and craftsmanship. Video after the break.

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Human Power, Past And Future

March 1, 2022 by 54 Comments

We will assume you’ve seen The Matrix — it was from 1999, after all. The surprise, at the end, was that humans were being used as human batteries to power a civilization of intelligent machines. But aside from just putting out some heat, the idea does have some precedent. After all, humans powered machines like mills, sewing machines, and pumps for centuries before there were good alternatives.

History

Galley ship
Reconstruction of a squadron of ancient Greek galley ships.

Early machines used hand cranks, treadwheels, treadles, and even pedal power to harness energy from humans. Consider, for example, an ancient galley ship with many oarsmen providing an engine. This wasn’t a great use of human power. An oarsman on a galley used his arms and back but didn’t much use his legs. The legs, though, have larger muscles and are often stronger. A pedal boat or racing shell would have been much more efficient, but without mass production of strong metal parts, it would have been difficult to build and maintain such machines in ancient times.

There was a time when pedals or treadles operated lots of machines from sewing machines to lathes. There were even old radios able to transmit and receive with no external power thanks to pedals as late as the 1940s.

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From Hoverboard To Scooter

February 28, 2022 by 4 Comments

I’m sure anyone who had seen Back To The Future was more than a little disappointed when “hoverboards” started appearing on the scene. They didn’t float and they looked fairly ridiculous for anyone over 12. But they have the huge advantage of being cheap and easy to find. [Made By Madman] breaks down a hoverboard for parts to make an incredible custom electric scooter.

The first step after breaking things down for parts was to break the wheel hub motors. He pulled out the axle and started machining a new one using the lathe and a milling machine. A quick temper later, he had a sturdy steel axle. An adapter for a disc brake was milled that could attach to the wheel. The TIG welder came out to weld up a box out of some aluminum to hold the electronics. The wheel had a bracket welded on with a spring shock absorber to help smooth the ride. The fork was machined on the lathe and belt sander, but actual shocks came from an old bicycle. To attach the fork to the frame, [Madman] bends a piece of bar stock into shape; like a madman. The handlebars were taken from the bicycle and the fork was extended up to an adult height.

A quick test ride in the alley showed that the back shock wasn’t strong enough, so he swapped it with a strong one. All the parts got a powder coat. Electronics wise, it has a standard speed controller and a custom battery made from 18650 cells wired up in a 13s6p configuration and bundled together into a package. After a significant amount of wiring, he took it for a test drove and we love seeing him zip around the streets in the snow.

So many parts here are machined to press-fit tolerances and then welded on. The skill, videography, and effort that went into this were just incredible. If you’re feeling inspired and don’t have a lathe on hand, perhaps this 3d printed scooter might be a bit more your speed. Video after the break.

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Rotary Valve Engine Gets A Second Chance, Smokes The Competition

February 21, 2022 by 42 Comments

It’s a dedicated hacker who has the patience to build an engine from scratch. And it’s a borderline obsessed hacker who does it twice. [Meanwhile In the Garage] is of the second ilk, and in the video below the break, he takes a failed engine design and musters up the oomph to get it running.

The whole build began with an idea for a different kind of intake and exhaust valve. [Meanwhile In the Garage] dreamed up a design that does away with the traditional poppet valve. Instead of valves that open by being pushed away from their seat by a camshaft, this design uses a cylinder that is scooped so that as it rotates, its ports are exposed to either the intake or the exhaust.

Four Stroke Cycle with Poppet valves. Courtesy Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0

During the compression stroke, the valve cylinder becomes part of the combustion chamber, with both ports facing away from the piston. If you read the comments, you’ll find that multiple people have come up with the idea through the years. With his mill, lathe, and know-how, [Meanwhile In the Garage] made it happen. But not without some trouble.

The first iteration resisted all valiant attempts at getting it started. The hour-long video preceding this one ended up in a no-start. Despite his beautiful machine work and a well thought out design, it wasn’t to be. Fire came from the engine either through the exhaust or the carburetor, but it never ran. In this version, several parts have been re-worked and the effect is immediate! The engine fired up nicely and even seems to rev up pretty well. Being a first-generation prototype, it lacks seals and other fancy parts to keep oil out of the combustion chamber. Normal engine oil has been added to the fuel as a precaution as well. The fact that it smokes quite badly isn’t a surprise and only proves that the design will benefit from another iteration. Isn’t that true for most prototypes, though?

Home-grown engines aren’t a new thing at Hackaday, and one of This Author’s favorite jet turbines used a toilet paper holder. Yes, really.  Thanks to [Keith] for the Tip!

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