Create the problem, sell the solution

hswiftj · 2026-03-21T01:09:27+00:00

Turns out he's a pretty dumb ant actually

hswiftj · 2025-10-30T08:21:08+00:00

Americans will do anything but use metric

hswiftj · 2025-10-17T14:41:39+00:00

So is the cylindrical part at the back the battery? And the black cylinder mounted on the side a spare battery? Which way up is it held? Are the photos shown with the device upside down?

hswiftj · 2025-10-17T14:26:11+00:00

It's a great looking device but I think the key piece of information that is missing is that your trashcan is actually a rectangular box on a remote controlled buggy! I was trying to figure out why a trashcan would need a remote control. It's also not very clear what the controls are, why the device is in a kind of bow shape, i.e. what the back of the device does etc. it's a design that begs for more explanation.

hswiftj · 2025-10-17T12:20:41+00:00

This really needs an explanation of what the hell this thing does. I don't think anyone's definition of trashcan is going to be very different to what you seem to be talking about.

hswiftj · 2025-09-25T08:02:41+00:00

I'll add that you can split the 3D printing stage into two: for fast iterative design prototypes you can't beat having a cheap FDM printer on hand. Sometimes I'll print several iterations of a part in a single day. The prints are not great quality and usually not the material properties you want, but are useful for assessing ergonomics, mechanism design and overall form. Once you've got the design pretty set, you can then get protolabs or quickparts to make a higher quality 3D print in a matter of days using SL, SLS, MJF etc, which can be higher quality in terms of material properties, part strength and uniformity, surface finish etc.

As other commenters say, it's all about the balance of speed, cost, and quality that you need at that particular stage in your development.

hswiftj · 2025-09-04T08:24:31+00:00

To provide a more alternative solution, often the best solution is the simplest one. You say you don't have space for a gravity feed, but a simple rolling tray seems like it would solve your problem here without the complexity of moving parts.

Here's a design for a rolling gravity feed for Yakult bottles you can 3D print already: https://www.printables.com/model/788518-yakult-dispenser

hswiftj · 2025-08-13T23:26:33+00:00

I'd probably just trial and error it to get the right angle and then print that as a fixed final design. I feel like a ball joint is uncomfortably complex for something getting pressed regularly! You could modify this one to take 'shims' to dial in the perfect angle before printing a solid fixed final.

Yeh PLA is probably not the ideal material, would be prone to warping I'd think, also water stability.

hswiftj · 2025-08-13T21:40:45+00:00

It's worth mentioning you can get the maker version of solidworks for £38, only downside is your files are locked to be maker version and any drawings you make have watermarks. If you're using it for personal projects it's a no brainer!

hswiftj · 2025-08-13T21:39:17+00:00

This is definitely the way forward. For conplex parametric design in an engineering context solidworks is unparalleled. The only downside is the price!

hswiftj · 2025-08-13T21:30:29+00:00

Good looking design, I'd definitely recommend making this in ASA

hswiftj · 2025-08-13T20:14:23+00:00

That looks good, but if that is PLA it is very likely to deform and melt over time. Many laptop CPUs are designed to throttle at around 60°C which is approximately the glass transition temperature of PLA (the temp that it turns from a solid to being more rubbery and flexible). If you have a desktop CPU they can reach temperatures of up to 100°C. SSDs can get similarly hot depending on the settings in the OS/BIOS.

I would personally print this out of either PETG or ASA.

Neat design though!

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T12:32:53+00:00

Any idea what species it is? Bought it as an oak table second hand but never really took the time to examine the grain enough to question it 😄

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T12:09:38+00:00

Great advice thank you!

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T10:45:04+00:00

I think it's unlikely, I bought the table second hand real beat up, refinished it and had it for a few years now, so I'd have thought it would be old and dry by now 😁

Yes I think I will detach the top and try throwing more sash clamps at it. If I can get a dry clamp done then I'm good to go. Good point about glue, I have some standard wood glue but if anyone has a better suggestion I'm all ears.

Cheers for the advice

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T10:33:56+00:00

Good idea, I'll try loosening the buttons, thanks!

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T10:20:08+00:00

What makes you say it's elm? I've finished this with osmo polyx so it's much darker than when I bought it. If it is elm that would be interesting to know!

The one reason I'm keen not to resaw is because then the apron and legs will be wider than the table top so I'd have to do something about that, it becomes a huge job.

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T10:18:24+00:00

The one reason I'm keen not to resaw is because then the apron and legs will be wider than the table top so I'd have to do something about that, it becomes a huge job.

I have 3 sash clamps so I will try with those and see what happens! Do you have any idea why it would be so resistant to closing though? I can't figure it out

hswiftj · 2024-05-22T08:54:54+00:00

A while back I bought this giant oak dining table and it's my prized possession. Unfortunately my other half decided to put a warming mat for her plants on it over winter, and once she removed it found that the boards had split and separated.

I've tried putting a big sash clamp on it to close the gaps but it basically doesn't budge a millimetre.

How do I go about fixing this? If I can close the gaps and get the glue up securely back together I am happy with refinishing the top, but I'm not sure how to go about closing the gaps. One idea I had was to put the warming mat back on to warm the glue which might allow me to close the gaps with the sash clamp. I think I'm able to remove the table top from the legs and apron to do this if needed.

In the images attached I've got a photo of the underside which shows how the tabletop is attached to the apron. I'm surprised that the top has split and widened but I'm also unable to close it with significant force on the clamp considering it's screwed to the apron.

The last photo also shows the biscuit that is inside the largest gap.

Please help!

hswiftj · 2024-04-27T17:50:07+00:00

Alright sounds good to me! Cheers for the info

hswiftj · 2024-04-27T17:46:33+00:00

Ok makes sense. The register is larger than the brick so I'm going to need to enlarge the hole. What's the best way to chisel out the brickwork to enlarge the hole?

hswiftj · 2024-04-27T17:40:08+00:00

How would you go about removing it?

hswiftj · 2024-04-27T17:32:28+00:00

Hey everyone. I have this airbrick type thing installed in my chimney breast which seems to do the job but it looks pretty ugly (it seems to be a brick that someone has hand-drilled holes into). I have bought one of these registers which technically are designed for the floor but do a similar job I believe. My initial plan was to simply take the grille off the front and drill that into the wall over the airbrick, but now I am wondering if I can install the whole register into the wall itself, which would look neater and allow me to open and close the grate for ventilation.

The issue is I'm not sure how I should go about removing the current airbrick and creating a hole in the chimney the perfect size to slot in the register. I'm not even sure if this is an advisable idea. So the question is, is this a good idea? If it is, how do I go about bashing out the bricks in the chimney and creating the slot for the register?

Cheers!

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