Book #2

Posted on March 6, 2015 by rlankenau

I couldn’t find an empty notebook this morning, so I made threw one together from printer paper and the remnants of the box my Amazon Echo came in.

This one is a quarto with two quires, simply sewn together with waxed linen thread and no glue.

The top stitch on the cover is a bit strange, but topology wouldn’t allow the initial pattern I was planning on. I might use a small ring or a bar to secure the top stitch the next time I try this format so I can avoid the strange fifth hole in the spine.

It fits nicely in a pocket, and the cover feels pretty sturdy. I could probably have creased the spine a bit more heavily to make it close better, but I’m okay with that.

First Try at Bookbinding

Posted on March 3, 2015 by rlankenau

I’ve always been interested in bookbinding, but haven’t given it a shot until now. I followed these excellent tutorials by Sea Lemon on YouTube, and I think my book came out okay.

I made the case using black Tyvek for the cover, and 1/4″ masonite for the spine and front and back boards. I think it worked pretty well, and I like the way it looks.

I sewed the signatures together using upholstery thread, and the book opens up really well.

This is the view of the cover with the book open on the table. I cut the board for the spine about twice as wide as I should have, and I’m not entirely happy with that. I got a bit impatient once the text block was done, and just charged ahead…

Another issue with rushing ahead was that I used a bit too much glue on the endpapers, and they wrinkled a bit as they dried.

All things considered, I’m very happy with the way the book turned out, and I’ve got some different techniques to try next time.

Shapeoko 2 progress

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Jim

JustBecauseSign4988 The Workshop 88 Shapeoko 2 is coming along nicely. It recently cut this 18″ foam sign, taking advantage of the SO2′s “frontless” design that allows working on arbitrarily long pieces, even though its active work area is only about 10″x10″. Some details are here.

The Z axis auto touch-off switch, inspired by the Carvey “Smart Clamp” is now working as well. There’s a little clip of it here.

While it’s machined handles for some of its clamp bolt and even machined the scales for a knife handle replacement, its most ambitious project to date is full 3D machining of the body of a pinewood derby car. That’s still work in progress. Stay tuned!

Shop Maintenance Day

FastPlot1
With the start of the new year, we’re planning to spend some time cleaning up the space. We’ll be out at the space all afternoon on January 2nd, so if you’d like to come out and help clean up, stop by.

Linux Basics (August 2014)

This class teaches the basics of using a Linux system, starting with what Linux is, where it came from, and why you might want to use it. Continue reading →

Networking Basics (July 2014)

Come out and learn basic computer networking skills!

The topics we’ll be covering include:

Network addresses
Basic home network design
Physical interfaces
Wireless networking
Debugging basic networking problems

Continue reading →

What have we been up to this summer?

Posted on July 8, 2014 by rlankenau

It’s been a bit quiet around on the blog this summer, but that’s mostly because we’ve been pretty busy. I thought I’d put up an update on what’s been going on around the space.

Thursdays!

We’re always out at the space on Thursday nights for our public meeting, so drop on by! We had a lot of fun last week playing with some Tormach stepper drivers that Tom M. brought in, but every week brings something new and exciting.

Libraries!

We’ve been doing a lot with libraries all over the burbs. You might remember this thing that we built for Glen Ellyn Public Library back in May. In addition to that, we also do a lot of classes and DIY fairs.

This summer, we ran events at Bloomingdale, Glen Ellyn, Indian Trails, Winfield, Lisle, Addison, and at Lake Park High School. We’ve got even more events coming up in the next few months, at the libraries I mentioned before as well as Roselle and St. Charles.

Improving the space!

We’re currently updating the back room, with the front room next on the list. There’s been a lot of great discussion about what to do with the front room, and we’ve got a team working on getting it all done.

Paul R. did a bunch of work to rehab Prof. Braino’s Enco mill, and it is now up and running. We’re going to be offering a class to members this summer to get them up to speed on how to use the mill.

Classes!

We’ve been a bit lax in getting classes scheduled, and we’re trying to address that. We have a bunch of classes scheduled this summer, so check back for scheduling details once they’re announced. Next up on the list are Electronics 101 and Basic Networking, both this July.

We’ve got a bunch of other topics coming up, here’s a condensed list:

Electronics
3D Printing
CNC Machining with Shapeoko
Networking Basics
Running the Lathe
Linux Basics
Cloud Computing
HAMP (see this for more info)
Intro to Hadoop
Running the Mill
Using the RPi GPIOs
Arduino 101
Arduino Music

Let us know (info@workshop88.com) if you’ve got requests for other classes, we’ll see what we can do about getting them scheduled!

Electronics 101 (July 2014)

This is an electronics class for the absolute beginner – we will cover many basic concepts such as:

Current
Voltage
Resistance
Ohm’s Law
Power
Measurement tools
Breadboards – How to use them to prototype circuits
Circuit diagrams and circuit elements

Continue reading →

Another makerspace serving the Chicago suburbs!

Posted on July 7, 2014 by achmorrison

Our friends over at SpaceLab are running a KickStarter this month to raise funds to move into a more functional location.

SpaceLab started out as a co-working space, but they realize their members and the the south suburban community will benefit by adding the resources of a makerspace to their offerings.

Workshop 88 is thrilled to support SpaceLab’s kickstarter! We were an early backer:

I just backed SpaceLab: A South Suburban Chicago Makerspace on @Kickstarter http://t.co/DaMXxw3EUr

— Workshop 88 (@Workshop88) June 26, 2014

At Workshop 88 we believe that makerspaces and hackerspaces grow smartly by working with other like-minded people in our area. Please consider supporting SpaceLab and sharing their campaign with anyone you know! They are about 2/3 of the way to their goal as of this post. Help them get all the way there!

Introduction to Arduino class (Arduino 101) Wednesday July 2, 2014

Workshop 88 is offering our introduction to the Arduino platform at our makerspace in Glen Ellyn. This class is for anyone (member or non-member) who wants to learn how to get started with the arduino microcontroller, regardless of experience with programming or electronics. Class attendees will learn how to configure their arduino programming environment, how to design simple circuits for interfacing with the arduino and how to write simple programs to control the arduino. What is Arduino, you ask? From their home page:

Arduino is an open-source electronics prototyping platform based on flexible, easy-to-use hardware and software. It’s intended for artists, designers, hobbyists, and anyone interested in creating interactive objects or environments.

If you need to get an arduino, please see the Workshop 88 Arduino Store. Sales from that store are fulfilled by amazon.com, and help support Workshop 88. Alternatively, you can order Arduino systems from several places, including Adafruit and Sparkfun. Both companies have lots of tutorials and howtos to get you started with Arduinos. If you’re looking for a local source to get Arduinos, try Trossen Robotics.

What you’ll get from this class:

In this class you will learn how to start programming in the Arduino environment including interacting with the inputs and outputs of the Arduino.You should bring: a laptop with the Arduino environment downloaded and installed, and your Arduino supplies. Please contact us (info@workshop88.com) if you have any questions.Image credit: By Linuswiki (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons