It's Fun To Make Useful Homemade Gizmos
It's fun and satisfying to design and then make simple items that serve some purpose. I find it very rewarding to conjure up designs out of my imagination and then build them using common tools and cheap or free materials. I've made all kinds of things. Most of them performed some function that no readily available, store-bought device offered.I do a lot of text keying at a computer keyboard. After many hours of keying, day after day, my hands and fingers tell me (as in pain) that they're pushing too hard, too many times.
After going from store to store looking for a keyboard with easy to press keys, I realized that I needed something to measure the force needed to press the keys on a particular keyboard. Trying to judge the force by typing a little with each keyboard wasn't separating the Tylenol endorsed keyboards from the more finger friendly keyboards. So I rigged up a plastic tube taped to a vertical wire a few inches long. Pennies could be put in the tube. The lower end of the wire is rested on a key.
The number of pennies needed to push a key down is a measure of the key's required press force.Then there was the see through, wall hung beehive that I put on my bedroom wall. My father used to keep bees to harvest honey. One cold day in March, I discovered an abandoned hive that had fallen over exposing the bees to the elements. There was only several hundred bees left out of what was once thousands. I put a sheet of glass, about 2-foot by 2-foot, onto a wooden frame that I attached to my bedroom wall.
Then I carefully transported the faltering bee colony to their new home. A tunnel made of metal window screening provided a path for the bees to come and go under a slightly raised window. The colony's queen had not survived being exposed to the weather, so I knew no new bees would be reared. This colony would only last as long as the lifespans of its current members. But it was interesting to watch the bees doing what bees do throughout the next several months.
And the bragging rights for having a bee colony on ones bedroom wall was something to envy.Both the keyboard force-o-meter and the wall-mounted beehive were inspired by circumstances. I just saw the possibility of what could be done and wanted to do it. I try to be open to possibilites for other gadgets and gizmos that would be of value. It is well worth the effort: It is fun to make improvised gizmos, and you get a valued item. The item may suit your needs better than a purchased item because you make it the way you want it.
And it feels good to prove that your ingenuity and imagination can produce things of value.Below is a description of a couple of items you may like to make.Bootjack:
If you often find it annoying to remove boots as you enter the house, this project is for you. The bootjack makes the task easier especially if the boots are tight fitting or you are carrying something so that your hands are not free. Begin with a 3/4 inch thick board that is about 2 feet long and 6 inches wide. Cut a V shaped notch in one end. Use nails to attach a small piece of wood to keep the notched end raised above the floor.
Keep the bootjack near the door where you most often enter wearing boots. Put one foot on the jack to hold it in place. Put the heel of the other foot in the notch and pull your foot out of the boot.Wall display cubby box:Small cardboard boxes can be fastened together and hung on the wall. Small and valued objects can be placed there to be displayed and admired.Save boxes from muffin mix, artificial sweetener, rice or other often used food items. When you have enough, cut each box to an appropriate size.
I started with boxes 4-inches wide, 2-inches deep, and 6-inches tall. I cut each box to half height, so that each box was 3-inches tall. Boxes that are twice as wide as they are deep can be arranged as shown in the diagrams of this article. If you use boxes with other ratios of width to height, use a different arrangement or use pieces of corrigated cardboard to fill any gaps between boxes.Lay a piece of plastic sheeting such as a plastic grocery bag on a flat surface. The plastic will keep excess glue from sticking to your work surface.
You can use white glue to fasten the boxes together. To help keep the glue from running down the side of the boxes, use a method similar to that used by bricklayers applying mortar to bricks. Before putting a box into position, put glue on each side of that box that will be against a box already in place. That way, while applying glue, you can turn the box in any way that makes it easy to apply the glue. And the glue will quickly be between two surfaces.
That helps keep the glue in place. A good glue pattern is shown by the red lines below.
As you assemble the boxes together, use a straight edge such as a wall or a large box as a guide to align the boxes in straight rows. Set something heavy against the boxes to hold them together while the glue dries. Bricks or large books work well. Use the plastic sheeting to keep oozing glue from sticking the boxes to the books or bricks.
You can use paper clips to hold the edges of the boxes together where gaps occur.
When all the boxes are in place, let the glue dry for about 12 hours. Then use a nail to punch holes for a string that will go around the group of boxes. Two holes near each corner will keep the string in place. Tie the two ends of the string together. Hang the box display from a small nail.
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How Can Man Shoes Help Your Day To Day Activities
Man likes to do different kind of activities, beside their routine work. Therefore they usually need different shoes to help them. What kind of shoes available in the market that can help them? So many! In fact man's shoes style and design are almost as much as women's shoes.You may find man's shoes distinction as formal and casual. Well, formal and casual shoes are only two among several designs of man's shoes. Let say you go to work with leather shoes and change your attire in the afternoon to have exercise and wear your sport shoes.
After that you probably wear dress shoes to attend dinner party. Indeed, for every activity you usually wear different shoes.Here is some more information about man shoes designs:Athletic shoes, boots, casual, dress shoes, sandals, and trend shoes are actually the top man's shoes categories. Talking about athletic shoes, what you wear mostly for sport is included here. Basketball shoes, running shoes, and hiking shoes are the examples of athletic...
How Can Man Shoes Help Your Day To Day Activities
Boots > How Can Man Shoes Help Your Day To Day Activities
Plastic Shrink Tool - Provides Fully Repeatable Settings
An industrial duty plastic shrink tool for all types of boots and tubing; has an electronic temperature control system and features a digital display for set and actual values to provide exact repeatability available from Malcom Hot Air Systems of Portsmouth, Rhode Island.Malcom's Leister Triac PID Hot Air Shrink Tool is a lightweight hand-held tool that lets users dial in precise sdttings with +/- from 68 degrees F to 1,100 degrees F, with 7 CFM air flow, this versatile tool is available with over 15 nozzles for applying boots, heat shrink tubes and solder sleeves.Providing fully repeatable settings, Malcom's Leister Triac PID Hot Air Shrink Tool displays a data for control and collection for compliance with ISO and other quality assurance requirements.
Easy to handle, this tool weighs under 3lbs. and is 13" L x 2.2" dia.
Standard features include a cold shield for burn protection and automatic shut-off.For more information contact:Malcom Hot Air SystemsSheila Carpenter,...
Boots > Plastic Shrink Tool - Provides Fully Repeatable Settings
Some Fun and Helpful Dora the Explorer Games
If your child is a Dora the Explorer fan, you probably have bought, or are planning to buy, any of the available Dora the Explorer games. These games are educational in nature, just like the TV show itself, and help children develop their abilities while having fun. There is a whole line of Dora the Explorer games designed that are designed to focus specifically on certain skill sets of your children.
For children aged 3+, I recommend the fun Color Forms game. It helps your little kids recognize important concepts as color and form, and even numbers. This easy game's goal is to collect all different colored pieces and get to Abuela's house.
Children can choose between four different characters (Dora, Boots, Tico the squirrel and Isa the Iguana), and can be played in three different ways: By colors (age 3+), by numbers (age 4+) and even by both colors and numbers (recommended for age 6+). The game's cards are big enough to appeal any child, and they contain descriptions...
Some Fun and Helpful Dora the Explorer Games
Boots > Some Fun and Helpful Dora the Explorer Games
7 Things You Need For Fall/Winter 2006
What do you need to stay with fashionable throughout Fall and Winter 2006?
1. Animal prints
Animal prints may skip a year or two, but they will always be back. The hottest prints to go for are the tiger prints,
leopard and zebra prints. This season, wear them with monotones. Wear one animal
print piece with black, dark denim or neutral separates.
Pair the gorgeous
animal print dresses with opaque tights.
If you rather test the waters, go for the animal
print pumps or bags to get into the coming season's mood.
2. Wallpaper prints
The other prints to look at would be the florals, or prints that would look great on wallpaper.
Dubbed the wallpaper print dresses.
Teri Hatcher and Halle Berry looked stunning in large floral prints that we might associate with an
house proud aunt's living room wallpaper...
Boots > 7 Things You Need For Fall/Winter 2006
More People are Playing Santa Claus than Ever Before
In past years Planetsanta.com has seen people buying Santa Claus costumes on a regular basis, but this year they are seeing a huge upturn with the higher end Santa Suits.
"Customers are telling us that they want to do charity work, promote their company in a nice way, or simply to have fun with the children and their customers at Christmas" Said Richard Williamson ? President of Planetsanta.com.
People are pulling out all the stops for Santa Suits.
"We have customers buying high-end professional suits along with bells, bags, beards, and boots" said Williamson.
The typical customer is getting all the extras with the Santa suit instead of getting a lower end partial costume.
"We start selling Santa Suits in September and continue through the end of December" continued Williamson.
This year interest is definitely starting earlier than ever before.The upturn in higher end suits being sold to the average consumer indicates an increase in...
Boots > More People are Playing Santa Claus than Ever Before
New Hunting Boots Are Now Available for the Hunting Season
Boston, MA (ContentDesk) September 1, 2005 -- With the hunting season about to start, hunters around the country are checking through their hunting gear to make sure they have what they need for their next hunting trip.
Their hunting boots are one of the key parts of their gear. A good pair of boots will keep hunters comfortable, prevent injury and all the while keep them warm and dry.
However, with so many brands and styles out on the market -- it is easy to see that it is not a one-size-fits-all deal -- everyone has different needs. Depending on where they go, hunters may want a sturdy, waterproof leather boot, or a boot with a lightweight nylon upper, or a tall rubber boot or wader. In the past, finding the desired boot in the correct size was a time consuming process....
Boots > New Hunting Boots Are Now Available for the Hunting Season
How To Survive Your First Year in Business
What's the best way to create a profitable business? A business you really love that makes the kind of money you really want?Planning, planning, and more planning.Before jumping head-long into a new business, you must lay the foundation for long-term success. A good foundation is rooted in a solid plan.Many new businesses skip what is perhaps the most important part of a solid business plan... assessing individual strengths and weaknesses.But does a self-assured, go-getter such as yourself really need to do a self-analysis? Research has shown that many businesses collapse in their first year because of inadequate planning. A thorough self-assessment is the first step in planning a business which lasts well beyond the first year.What happens if you skip this first step?Picture yourself standing on a grassy knoll looking out upon a desert - a sea of sand. You must cross this desert to reach the cool, refreshing waters on the other side.You begin your journey in the brisk, night air. <...
How To Survive Your First Year in Business
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