Alan Parekh

Ammo Box Stereo

  When you take your portable radio to the beach are you always making sure nothing rubs against it so you keep the finish scratch free. If the kids are playing close to it you make sure they don’t have anything more dangerous than a rubber ducky since you know it will end up falling on your shiny radio.  The Ammo Box Stereo by Noah Farrington is the solution to

HP 3468A Bench Multimeter Repair

    There are a number of great older bench meters out there that would be perfect when upgrading from a hand held meter when working on the bench. The HP 3468A meter can be had for under $200 in good working condition and often around $100 for a unit that powers on but no operation confirmed. Modemhead purchased one that was DOA, have a look at the pictures he

Ball Bearing Motor - How does it work?

  Ok, this is a very interesting motor that RimstarOrg built with some scrap wood, two bearings, a bolt and some nuts. It is connected to a low voltage high current power source and can magically spin (or can it???). Watch the video to 3:20 but no further. Is this a real motor? Is there some careful camera tricks at work here? If it is real how does it work?

Name the Thing Contest – 247

  The prize this week is an Arduino Pro Mini. This contest will run for one week (January 26 – 31, 2014). Ending time is based on central standard time. To enter, identify the item above and what it can be used for. Please note the image above is a side view of the thing. Please do not give the answer in the comments. Send an email to contest @

Coke Bottle Test Cheat

  We have all been there. Cramming all the formulas for a test into your brain isn’t working, and of course this isn’t a real world scenario since in the real world you can use whatever reference materials you need to aid you in completing a task. In my opinion the real result is knowing how to solve problems with formulas, not necessarily the strict memorization of them. That being

Audi Night Vision Teardown

  Some new cars such as the Audi A8 pack some high tech electronics to enhance safety. Mike’s Electric Stuff has a look inside the Audi Night Vision System. “Located in the Driver’s Information System, between the speedometer and rev counter a camera’s eye view of the road ahead is displayed to the driver.  The system will highlight people using their heat source.  Typically a person standing by the side

Knit Bot named Agnes

  If you plan to compete in a knitting competition any time soon you need Agnes the Knit Bot in your corner. Via: Make  “DC motors drive her joints, using homemade gears. In fact, almost every part of her body was handmade, including her silicone face and her hands — latex made from plaster casts of a real person. The original plan had her knitting with needles, but after Noyes