messing around in the garage
many many projects
Current project in progress: arcade cabinet. Inspired by this guy on YouTube! Since we're clearing out the guest bedroom, I had planned to sell my gaming PC for parts and we were likely just going to dump the Billy bookcase. I'm excited because I've always wanted to build an arcade cabinet but I always figured I'd wind up getting an expensive kit. It's cool that this project just landed in my lap by necessity. So instead, I bought Sanwa buttons and joysticks and a USB encoder. I set up Retrobat and it works great although I haven't actually set up the control board yet. I was stoked to see that Home Depot does offer custom cuts for certain plywood orders, so I'm just waiting for that to come in.
recently completed project: ipod refurbishment. I got an ipod for Christmas when I was 16, which I kept through college even as the battery life lessened significantly overtime. I kept it out of nostalgia and I'm glad I did, because it turns out the specific model (5th gen) is the easiest to upgrade. I popped it open with a box cutter and easily removed the battery and hard drive. I bought a replacement screen and an upgraded battery from iFixit (in a kit with some useful tools like a tiny screwdriver and tiny tongs like you use in Operation). Then I got an upgraded hard drive from iFlash and followed this guy's tutorial on YouTube. Surprisingly, the most difficult part was connecting the ipod to the computer. I tried the MacBook and the PC, and it felt like a miracle when it finally worked. It's funny, you can still have iTunes on PCs, but not on Macs! But now it's working fine. There was one hiccup when I picked it up and it just wouldn't turn on, but I just opened it up and re-attached everything. I now have like 500gb of storage and a battery that never seems to die. With an Airfly I even have Bluetooth!
Future project wish list
- screen printing (hence the merch link under construction)
- Little Free Library
- corner storage bench Ikea Kallax hack
- busy board for the baby
- 3D printing replacement parts for the antique Mario pinball machine
