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Resin 3D Printing

I recently received an Elegoo Saturn 2 resin 3d printer, so I thought I’d document my initial testing: These printers print using a 2d array of UV leds which cure a liquid resin held in a tank where UV is shone. The more/smaller the LEDs, the higher the resolution of the print. I’d assumed thatContinue reading “Resin 3D Printing”

Wood Turning Lathe!

I’ve always wanted one of these. When I was wee, we went on tour round England visiting various relations, and I remember being very impressed with a lathe. I’ve no idea which relation it was, unfortunately, but I do remember the lathe. I decided to order one from the UK rather than direct from China,Continue reading “Wood Turning Lathe!”

Enamelling Experiments

I’ve been having a busy time in general recently, but I’ve finally got back to making things. I’ve been meaning to play with enamelling for a while. I ordered some WG Ball transparent enamelling powders (clear+red+blue) a while back to play with. The firing process is pretty quick: 800-810C for about 3 minutes. Of course,Continue reading “Enamelling Experiments”

Home Made Holograms!

I somehow stumbled onto this website; they sell DIY hologram kits! So I ordered one. I’d always assumed making a hologram would be quite complicated, but it turns out it really isn’t. You basically need a laser and a photographic plate sensitive to the light from the laser. It is hard to master and getContinue reading “Home Made Holograms!”

Useful Kiln Tools + Beeper Upgrade

Kiln Beeper I installed a mini beeper in my kiln and adjusted the software to beep letters in Morse code depending on the stage of the program. I just used the same transistor+resistor+5v supply design as for the SSD control line to prevent damage to the pi. Kiln Tools Roll of cake making acetate: useContinue reading “Useful Kiln Tools + Beeper Upgrade”

Identifying a thermocouple

Next up in the riveting Thermocouple series is how to identify an unknown thermocouple as a Type K. There are loads of videos on Youtube on this, but I didn’t find them completely conclusive. Many of them advise “checking the colours of the leads”. Surprise! There are at least six different standards for colour codingContinue reading “Identifying a thermocouple”

The Perils of cheap Ebay stuff, or, why doesn’t my MAX31855 thermocouple board work?

I’ve been playing around with Type K thermocouples for a project. These are cheap, commonly available, and can read a temperature range from –270C to 1260C (though it depends on the exact thermocouple). It looks similar to this (you stick the metal pointy end in the hot thing): The above is a Type K thermocouple,Continue reading “The Perils of cheap Ebay stuff, or, why doesn’t my MAX31855 thermocouple board work?”

What’s eating my Cotyledon Orbiculata?

It’s not been looking well for a while, poor thing….. Then I spotted the underside of the leaves were covered in little black things…. to the microscope! Aphids! Bastards! Well, getting rid of them is relatively easy: blasting it in the shower removes them. I could try some isopropyl alcohol, but I’m worried it’ll harmContinue reading “What’s eating my Cotyledon Orbiculata?”

Moles, Avogadro’s Number, and Atomic Mass Units

I quite enjoyed Chemistry in Secondary School: I think I even did a CSYS course in it. However, I remember always having problems with the concept of a Mole and the calculations surrounding it. I’m not sure if I was being particularly dim, or just didn’t have enough context be able to relate to itContinue reading “Moles, Avogadro’s Number, and Atomic Mass Units”

Turn it Off and On Again

I’ve been doing a lot of interesting projects recently, so I decided to restart my blog. I wanted to keep the old articles, mainly for my own interest: However, I think things like the etched brass domino mask I made are still pretty cool. I decided to use WordPress.com, which meant I had to rescueContinue reading “Turn it Off and On Again”