My Dad gave me his vintage Stripmaster a few years back. It's pretty filthy. It's been sitting in my tool box for a while but I rarely ever use it since I always feel like I have to wash my hands after using it. I decided to finally take this thing apart and give it a good cleaning. Read More...

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This is going to be cool. I’ve always wanted my own reflow oven. Read More...

I just can't sit still. I always have something in the works. I need to always have something in the works. This is especially true when I'm waiting two weeks for a board. I think most of my projects start during the lull of another. I especially like it when a project goes from concept to a PCB order in about an hour! If only every project was like this. I'd have a room full of gizmos! Read More...

Finally! After waiting 3 weeks for my ATX Breakout Board to arrive, I got to work on my DIY bench-top power supply. I really like the way it came out. It’s going to come in especially handy with all the upcoming nixie projects I have in mind. I’m going to get a lot of use out of it. Read More...

My wife came home today with her friend’s 12 year old junker of a Dell. The machine is toast. The motherboard is shot. The only thing left to do was gut it for parts. The only real gem out of the lot was this 250 watt ATX power supply. I’d love to make use of Dangerous Prototypes’ ATX Breakout Board and make a bench-top power supply for prototyping. Read More...

I had some Christmas cash that was burning a hole in my pocket. I decided to hop on SparkFun and see if there were any goodies to be had. I already needed a few things for some upcoming projects, so I figured I'd try and see if I could get my order up to $60 bucks so that I'd qualify for free shipping. Read More...

This 7490 clock has been a thorn in my side for a little over 5 years. It's never run right. It looks great, but it runs fast. Is it time for yet another rebuild, or can I just fix it with a cap or something? Read More...

Dad’s still in heavy “clean out the garage” mode and stumbled upon more tech goodies for me! This time, it’s a Tektronix TDS 1012 oscilloscope!!!! Read More...

I just had to have these SMD tweezers the minute I saw them on Adafruit. For a mere $30 bucks, I’m sure it’s not the best DMM out there at that price point, but I just could’t resist! Read More...

Check out what vintage goodie my Dad unearthed in the garage. He had no need for it, so he gave it to me. It’s a FABREX 424 vice made in England. Read More...

The MEGA MINI PCBs haven’t even shipped yet, but I’m all ready to go. I just picked up an AVR mkII programmer for $37.50 from Digi-Key. I have my FTDI programmer as well as my Atmega2560s. Once the PCBs come in, I should be all ready to burn the bootloader and upload some sketches. Read More...

Once my MEGA MINI PCBs arrive, I’m going to need a way to upload sketches to them. I plan on using the MEGA MINI as a test-bed for my GPS clock. I’ve never soldered or in-circuit programmed an Atmega2560 before. I’d hate to waste $100 worth of tech assembling the GPS clock for it to not work. So I want to make something simple as sort of a practice run. In order to program the board, I’ll need an FTDI programmer. I picked up SparkFun’s FTDI Basic Breakout board for $15 bucks. Read More...

I’ve made a few devices already that have used 0603 SMD LEDs. 0603 LEDs are beyond tiny and they’re a little trickier to work with when orientation matters. It would be so much easier if I had a quick and dirty means of testing the orientation before soldering one. Read More...

I unearthed some of my Dad’s old drafting supplies. It’s amazing I’ve had these as long as I have and I haven’t really used them. I’ll have to try my hand at drawing something with these leads. Read More...

This is the Model 8 Avo Meter. My Dad gave it to me. He’s had it forever. Another vintage goodie rescued from the garage.
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SmallRoomLabs sell some great pin sizers on Tindie. They’re only $2 bucks a pop, but if you buy both as a set you can save yourself a dollar. They’re definitely something you need to keep around. Read More...

I’ve been wanting SparkFun’s Hot Air Rework Station since last Christmas, but I had so much stuff on my list that I felt bad adding it. Now that I’m planning on doing some serious SMD work, it was time to bite the bullet and pick one up. Read More...

I’ve grown tired of those $6 Radio Shack specials. After decades of cheap soldering irons, it’s time to buy the real deal. Read More...

I’ve always wanted a Dremel Workstation. I never got around to buying one so I added it to my Amazon wish list.

My wife comes through again! She got me one for Christmas. Read More...

Woo hoo! I’m back in business. My new Dremel came today. Time to drill some holes! Read More...