Been awhile since I’ve had a new project! I always tend to work myself into a corner. Will need to get a larger workbench someday.

I decided to replace my existing flat-pack desk  with a better, purpose built computer desk. Since I’m still limited by a lack of decent woodworking tools, the construction and planning was governed by ease of disassembly and availability of commercial parts. Click below for more.

A long while ago, I generated some ideas and settled on a derivative of a write-up that featured the Vika Inge legs and kitchen countertop from IKEA. Creating the new desk languished on my to-do list long enough where IKEA discontinued the legs that I wanted. Never fear, craigslist to the rescue. After I received the legs, I started to figure out how to make solid wood desktop rather than the veneer+particle board that is prevalent in most box store aisles. The most cost effective way about this was acquiring a custom edge-grain maple butcher block. I ordered this from AWP Butcher Block out of House Cave, KY with the following specifications: blonde color,  48 in. long x 25 in. deep x 1.5 in. thick, and a lacquer finish. I also had them put a half-bullnose round on the front edge to save my forearms. It’s a really nice product, they were great to deal with in placing my custom order, and they beat their shipping estimate by a full week.

The real goal of building a new desk was to get all of my desktop’s computer cables off of the floor, as well as reclaiming a little desk space by using a LCD arm. On to the construction. Here’s the parts that I gathered:

• Maple Butcher Block Top
• 3M Adjustable Under-desk computer mount
• Rockler Extra Large Pencil Drawer
• Tripp-Lite PS3612 12-outlet power strip
• Ergotron LX LCD Desk Arm Mount
• Flexible Wire Duct McMaster #69775K12

The legs went on first.

Then the pencil drawer, the computer mount, and the power strip:

Then the LCD arm:

I wish I could have kept the overall cost down a little bit (the pencil drawer and the LCD arm were a little more than I wanted to pay), but I expect that I’ll have this desk for a good many years to come. I’m really happy with how sturdy it is. I’m already looking at some future improvements including some mounts for my Z-5500 speakers and flush USB ports. That’s for another day.

Part II of my saga to witness a shuttle launch… In the first week of May, the launch of Endeavor STS-134 was postponed to May 10. At that time, I rescheduled with Florida Dolphin Tours (FDT) for a mere administrative fee of $25. When we scheduled the first time, we received a blue ticket and a green ticket. The blue ticket was good for getting into the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex (KSCVC) and the green ticket was for getting the “better” (but much harder to get) tickets on the causeway. This was a mere ~6 miles away from the launch pad. Click below for more… 

(Images link to nearly full resolution photos) The launch was due for at least a few more delays until May 16. I learned my lesson from the first scrub to wait to book hotel, flights, and rental car until the last few days. I also booked with jetBlue, which has a slightly cheaper fine for changing flights than US Airways (not to mention blue potato chips!). My itinerary this time was also more mindful on minimizing price and less considerate on my stamina. I also pack very light: (North Face Surge Backpack, Canon XSi, and 100-400mm lens).

I had to waste some time in Orlando until the 11PM pickup time on May 15, so I decided to check in my hotel early in the afternoon just so I had someplace to sit and not fall asleep. Catching FDT’s bus from Orlando went without a hitch, and we arrived at the KSCVC early enough that we were queuing outside the main gate for them to open. We milled about the rocket park and the exhibits waiting to board the bus for another trip to the causeway. Everyone was anxious and many had been there before, so they immediately started to line up at the bus area. There was a beautiful waxing gibbous moon that night, so I grabbed some photos of the rocket garden with the moon in the background. I’m still terrible at night shots.

Finally, we boarded the buses and hurried up to wait some more on the causeway! We arrived when it was still night around 4:30AM. If you squint, this photo is in focus (Click for the bigger one, it looks better.)

Behind us there were tents for memorabilia, food, portable toilets, and a USPS tent for mailing letters to get that unique stamp cancellation. I still had my ICOM handheld with me, but I didn’t need it since there was a loudspeaker close enough to hear updates.

Everyone was a little apprehensive of the launch throughout the morning as twilight broke. First, it was announced at 7:00AM that a tile on the hatch got chipped during closeout procedures. This was repaired in time. However, bad cloud cover was threatening until the last 10 minutes prior to the launch window. The release of the final countdown hold at 9 minutes went by in an instant. I had been waiting for this for a few months, and was working on very little sleep since 3AM the previous morning. The orbiter access arm retracts first, then the oxygen vent arm, then main engine start at t-6.6 seconds…

T-0,  Launch!

Absolutely worth the time, the money, the effort to see this. The sound is difficult to describe. It hits with a roar that has a a hundred bass drums on it. Well, I’m not a poet. It’s close to this, except you can feel it in your stomach.  We lost sight of Endeavor much too quickly into the low cloud cover, but you could still see the glow as it raced through our atmosphere.

I made the goal about two months ago that I would like to see the penultimate Shuttle launch, and the final launch of the Shuttle Shuttle Endeavour (STS-134) from as close as I possibly could. There are several options, the best of which is purchasing tickets to the causeway through a tour company. I was able to get the $169 VIP package  through Florida Dolphin Tours. I highly recommend them for the last shuttle launch if you’re able to reserve them for their great communication and professional staff. They have been helpful throughout this entire experience.

The package includes a few tickets: one blue ticket to get into Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, one Green Launch Transportation Ticket (LTT) and a wristband for our tour company’s bus. For the 3:47 PM launch on April 29, we left a mall in Orlando, FL around 6AM. Once we arrived at Kennedy, we got off the bus went through security, and had an opportunity to mill around and enjoy the displays. Meanwhile, our buses were being screened more thoroughly. The morning ended up being a little rainy, but ended up clearing up really nicely in the afternoon. 

The Orion Abort Tower on display at Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex

Once we boarded the buses and got closer to the causeway, I turned on my ICOM ICT8-1A to listen in on 146.940, which had a re-broadcast of NASA voice traffic. (I missed the call-sign of who was doing the broadcast.) Just as we were about to arrive at our final destination on the causeway, I heard the call for a scrub on my radio. I turned the radio off since I didn’t want anyone else to get upset before the official word came through our tour guide five minutes later. NASA allowed us to get off the bus on the causeway shore for 10 minutes before we had to make a U-turn and head back to Orlando. There wasn’t much time to set up my tripod with my Canon XSi (it was very windy) but I managed to get a few photos of the shuttle in launch configuration (above). Definitely a disappointing day to go home empty handed, especially at t minus three hours. It turns out there’s a problem in the Load Control Assembly (LCA) which will require a lengthy replacement. At the present time, it looks like STS-134 will be rescheduled No Earlier Than (NET) May 8, 2011 at 12:05 PM**. Florida Dolphin Tours told us that the tour can be re-booked, but we have to wait for word from NASA on the official re-scheduling which will come this afternoon on NASA TV. I’m going to do my best to attend again.

**UPDATE: As of 5/2/2011, the revised launch date is now NET 5/10/2011 at 11:17 AM. As of 5/6/2011, the revised launch date is now May 16 at 8:56AM!

I found this great 1933 vintage “Balanced Recipes by Pillsbury” in a stamped aluminum Art Deco binder. I think it’s rare to find a book that looks like an appliance, and this is definitely a collection that can take a good beating in the kitchen. The previous owner made good use of the binder by handwriting and typing their own recipes in the appendix. One of the last pages in the binder reads:

Additional copies of this ultra-modern cook book may be obtained by mailing $1.25 or you need send only $1.00 if you include a recipe slip from a sack of Pillsbury Best Flour.

Click the images for high resolution.

In May 2009, I was the mechanical engineer on the sprint drive system (as well as team captain for the school) for the ASME Solar Splash competition. I figured it was about time I get some pictures up of the event and the work that we did.

Full writeup to come this weekend.

I had a bunch of BNC right angle, straight, and T connectors, so I decided to make another lamp. Click the picture for more.

I didn’t want to purchase anything for the lamp except the polycarbonate diffuser rods, which is McMaster #8571K44. The 5/16″ diameter rods were cut to length and a 3/16″ hole was drilled through the center to fit over the LED.

The individual blue LEDs have a 68 Ω resistor soldered in series, and a 5V power supply to the entire thing with the center as the positive rail. Wiring LEDs in parallel can be a bad idea, so the resistor is out of necessity. The LEDs were sanded down to size with a dremel. Click the pictures to make them big.

Sanded LED on top

Soldering the 68 Ω resistor to the LED

Almost there…

LED origami

I came across this article on wikipedia, so I decided to make my own. A lot of Inkscape and an order through Ponoko, resulted in the following. I have to make some matching brass hardware to hold the pieces together.

I’m selling a 3.9″ diameter version on Ponoko, with a price point that’s actually very close to Ponoko’s laser cutting cost. I have to play around with their system to see if I can lower the cost. I’m working on custom date ranges. Click here for my Ponoko store.

Google’s Sketchup, which is free (as in beer), is a great tool for sharing concepts and product designs. I decided to rough out a workbench for my apartment using it, and then build it to see how well it integrates in the design process. I had a few ideas what my workbench should be: made out of 2×4′s, have a 4′x2′ top, be about 30″ tall, be built for under $50, and disassemble fairly easily. The size of the top was based on what was easily available and to minimize the cut list, and the height seemed comfortable to me.  Build time was about 2 hours working with a circular saw and would have been a great deal faster with a chop saw. Sketchup was nice to use, and a good alternative for this level of project.

This workbench isn’t meant to compete with a mortise and tenon woodworkers bench. This is held together with desk screws and made of pine. It’s good for light duty work. What’s nice about these 2″x4″ workbenches is that they’re so cheap, and easily modified. Need mount a power strip or attach a pegboard? Just get those deck screws out.

Click the link below for design files and bill of materials.

Design Files

You can download the Sketchup files here. (Please consider donating $1 using the Paypal button on the right sidebar).

Bill of Materials

• (1) 2′x4′x3/4″ table top – Hardboard or otherwise
• (4) 30″ Legs
• (3) 48″  Front and back horizontal rails
• (4) 21″ Upper and lower frame pieces
• (1) 2-1/2″ 1lb. box of deck screws
• (6) 1-1/4″ desk screws for workbench top

The total came to about $38 with materials from Lowe’s.

The holiday brings new things into library that I will quickly consume over the course of a month. This book, or should I say compendium, will not be completed in a few years for the fear that I otherwise be accused of hubris.  TASCHEN’s  “Leonardo da Vinci – The Complete Paintings and Drawings” is a 12 pound, 695 page, 15.4″x10.2″x2.4″ collection of his life’s work. Do not be led to believe that this even begins to scrape the surface of Leonardo’s 13,000 known notebook pages. To my knowledge, there is no single source for all of his works. We are still finding pieces (even underneath other works) after almost 500 years.

The collection is primarily an art book and is divided in three sections: a biography of his life and work, a catalogue raisonné of paintings, and a selection of his graphic works.

The pieces are presented as they are, with a little information on the bibliographical sources to accompany them. The paintings for the most part can be appreciated and studied as they are presented, which are sometimes duplicated in a cropped and zoomed two-page spread. One of the areas where the book shines is including the under-sketches and practice drawings hat went into the paintings. The scientific discussions and mechanical drawings leave me wanting more though. Translations and commentary would make this volume indispensable. Quote Leonardo: “Let no man who is not a Mathematician read the elements of my work.”  It does include references in the back of the book for concurrence of numbering systems between different volume, as well as a huge bibliography.

TASCHEN, overall did a great job compiling this quality book. The size, glossy pages, and ordered presentation are  appreciated for studying his work in detail.  At $45, it’s almost a steal.