{"id":39694,"date":"2022-01-20T09:00:52","date_gmt":"2022-01-20T16:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/?p=39694"},"modified":"2022-01-24T15:02:10","modified_gmt":"2022-01-24T22:02:10","slug":"build-a-portable-soldering-station","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/build-a-portable-soldering-station\/","title":{"rendered":"Build a Portable Soldering Station"},"content":{"rendered":"

Got a tip to share? A tool to recommend? A tall tale to tell us? Please\u00a0share with the class<\/a>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Build a Portable Soldering Station<\/strong>
\n\"g1\"
\nEver since I saw\u00a0Adam Savage<\/strong>\u00a0build a portable soldering station<\/a>, I\u2019ve been thinking about creating one for myself. I don\u2019t do enough electronics anymore to justify a dedicated electronics workbench. When I do have a need for soldering, it\u2019s a hassle to get everything set up just to do a few solder points. And, in our new house, I have two work areas on different floors. So, I know I will break down and create a portable station at some point.\u00a0Here<\/a>\u00a0is\u00a0Laura Kampf\u2019s<\/strong>\u00a0answer to such a portable, fully-powered station.<\/p>\n

Rule of Thumb for Buying Tools<\/strong>
\nIn a\u00a0fascinating video<\/a>\u00a0from\u00a0Adam Savage<\/strong>\u00a0(where he has an \u201cepiphany\u201d on the science of precise measurement) he also shares a great tip on purchasing tools: \u201cBuy the cheapest tool you can if it\u2019s a tool you don\u2019t know how to use, learn how to use it, and see if it integrates into your process and into your shop, and\u00a0then<\/em>\u00a0go and buy the best tool that you can afford. Frequently, that one will last you for the rest of your life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ten Fantastic Modeling Tips<\/strong>
\n\"g2\"
\nThis video,<\/a>\u00a0from the YouTube channel\u00a0Just for the fun of it<\/em>, has some really useful tips and jigs for working with glues, painting tiny round parts, using\u00a01-2-3 blocks<\/a>, and more. I especially love the tip on making a CA glue applicator for tiny, tight spaces by sinking a sewing needle into a small dowel (or old brush handle) with the loop of the needle protruding out. This loop will deliver more glue to where you need it.<\/p>\n

Five Hobby Tools You Didn’t Know You Needed<\/strong>
\n\"g3\"
\nOne of the cool things about a hobby, or any domain of making, is constantly learning new little tricks and techniques and hearing about new tools that you didn\u2019t know you needed. I\u2019ve been painting fantasy and sci-fi miniatures for decades and have never heard of any of the five tools suggested by miniature painter\u00a0Lyla Mev<\/strong>\u00a0in\u00a0this video<\/a>. The tools she swears by are cheap squeeze bottles,\u00a0Silly Putty<\/a>(!),\u00a0cling wrap<\/a>,\u00a0sand timers<\/a>, and trimmed brushes for \u201cerasing\u201d overpaint. See the video for more on how she applies each of these tools.<\/p>\n

Filmmaking Tips for Makers on YouTube<\/strong>
\n\"g4\"
\nWe just sent the second volume of my book,\u00a0Tips and Tales from the Workshop<\/a>, off to the printers. Yay! It will be out in early March. One of the new features in Volume 2 is a chapter of tips for maker video content. So many people are doing video these days and we could all use improvement in how we communicate our projects through the camera. In\u00a0this video<\/a>\u00a0on\u00a0Morley Kert\u2019s<\/strong>\u00a0channel, he presents ten tips for maker video production. I wish I\u2019d had these to add to my book. They include committing to a vibe and sticking with it, using establishing shots and B-rolls, mixing in handheld shots (if possible), using manual, not auto-focus, making sure your lights are the same color temperature, and more. Good stuff.<\/p>\n

Using a Caliper’s Depth Gauge to Transfer a Measurement<\/strong>
\n\"g5\"
\nHere\u2019s a little calipers trick I\u2019ve never thought of. Instead of using the outer jaws of your\u00a0calipers<\/a>\u00a0to scribe a line onto a workpiece, lock your measurement in and then use the reading on the depth gauge on the other end of the calipers. Transfer that depth to a square and then use the square to scribe your line.\u00a0Watch the Instagram video<\/a>\u00a0to make this clearer.<\/p>\n

Shop Talk<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Titmus

Titmus SW09R Livewire sealed glasses<\/p><\/div>\n

By the far, the reader who\u2019s contributed the most and best tips to this newsletter is\u00a0<\/em>Emory Kimbrough<\/em><\/strong>. Thanks, Emory! Here\u2019s his latest:<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all familiar with safety glasses and goggles, but there\u2019s a third option –\u00a0sealed<\/em>\u00a0or\u00a0hybrid<\/em>\u00a0safety glasses.\u00a0These look like ordinary safety glasses, but they have foam seals around the eyes to keep out dust.\u00a0Dust easily sneaks around the sides of safety glasses, and a minor dust irritation has some risk of growing into a serious problem.\u00a0So, sealed safety glasses should be far better known and far more popular.<\/p>\n

“You can buy sealed\/hybrid glasses for\u00a0less than $3.00 each<\/a>, affordable for a school workshop or makerspace that needs safety glasses for every student.\u00a0But my favorite new gear for 2021 was\u00a0prescription<\/em>\u00a0sealed glasses.\u00a0Prescription safety glasses are more comfortable and give better vision than putting goggles or oversized safety glasses on over your usual prescription glasses.\u00a0And less nuisance = more compliance.\u00a0I chose\u00a0Titmus SW09R Livewire<\/em>\u00a0sealed glasses, for four reasons.\u00a0First, they combine ANSI-rated impact protection with the dust seals.\u00a0Next, they have a removable head strap that creates an even better seal against sneaky dust, and keeps the glasses from slipping down or slipping off at a bad moment.\u00a0Finally, I have a very strong prescription for nearsightedness, plus I\u2019m old enough to need progressive lenses.\u00a0Many prescription safety glasses are not compatible with strong prescriptions, but these were available with progressive lenses\u00a0and<\/em>\u00a0in my strong prescription.\u00a0(You can also get the Titmus Livewires without prescription lenses.)<\/p>\n

“I got mine with good customer service and prompt shipping from\u00a0safetygearpro.com<\/a>, but they are available from other suppliers.\u00a0They came with a case that can clip to your belt \u2013 good for keeping those safety glasses handy instead of way over on the other side of the shop tempting you to ignore them.\u00a0They also came with a cleaning kit and an eyeglasses screwdriver.\u00a0Prescription safety glasses are also a\u00a0spare pair of ordinary eyeglasses<\/em>, so these will go in my suitcase as an emergency back-up whenever I travel.<\/p>\n

“Compared with ordinary safety glasses, dust-sealed hybrid glasses are\u00a0all benefit and no drawback<\/em>\u00a0– So, prescription or non-prescription, make the change.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gareth’s Tips, Tools, and Shop Tales – Issue #108<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":39695,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[2371],"tags":[2372],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39694"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39694"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39694\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39701,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39694\/revisions\/39701"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39695"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kk.org\/cooltools\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}