Arduino RC Controlled Lawnmower Project
Using the guts from a push-mower, two wheelchair motors and a custom carriage, and some hand-built electronics, Instructables user Johndavid400 has created a radio-controlled lawnmower dubbed the Lawnbot4000. His detailed writeup is available here. Background: Most R/C equipment comes packaged for a single specific…
Make Your Own Mega-LED Bike Light
High-powered ultra bright LEDs, a series of lenses, and a home-built power supply. Aluminum heatsink and a flashlight casing, mounted to your bike for incredible night biking fun. The instructions for this DIY bike light are written in Finnish, and the translation isn’t perfect,…
Build a Six-Wheel-Drive ATV for Go Anywhere Fun
A step up from the go-kart that we all built as kids (and some of us still do…), this vintage DIY six wheeler is a great father-son project for cruising around the neighborhood and out into the trails. Uses a transaxle automatic transmission to…
Bubble Level with LED Light Mod for Gorillapod (and Other Tripods)
I love my Gorillapod – it comes with me everywhere I go, camera bag, backpack or suitcase. The versatility of it extends beyond “turn-anything-into-a-tripod” – it’s also an amazingly entertaining toy for children, and some people have even looked to hack them into “helping…
Lava Lamp MIDI Controller – Control Your Synthesizer
Brilliant project that uses a lava lamp to send randomly changing MIDI continuous controller signals. The creator uses it as a synthesizer controller on Reason and create some wonderfully unique sounds. The basis of the project is a standard lava lamp (a large one…
DIY Surfboard Rack
Growing collection of surfboards starting to clog your garage or hallway? Jeff Z solved this problem in an elegant, quick and cheap manner, with easy to find materials from your corner hardware store. Check out the full how-to and get your board collection organized! Best…
Sunnan Synth: Solar Powered Ikea Lamp Hacked to Make a Theremin Synth
Sunnan Synth. The solar powered strobe-opto-theremin-synth-thing. Made with an Ikea Sunnan solar lamp ($20, available in-store only), photoresistors, potentiometers and a cmos 556 integrated circuit ($2). Not too pricey nor complex, and it sounds awesome. Here’s the full writeup on how to build your…
Homemade Pumpkin-Launching Catapult That Shoots 2000 feet – Punkin’ Chunkin’
Looking for pumpkin catapult/trebuchet plans? Check out my roundup of online trebuchet plans here. I’m hosting the 2009 Punkin Chunkin competition alongside my Catch It Keep It pal Zach Selwyn. During the preliminary filming, we stopped to visit with “Sir Chunks A Lot” — a team…
How to Build a Temporary Wood-fired Brick Pizza Oven with Cheap, Easy to Find Materials
This is a great, low-cost project for someone who wants to test out the ins-and-outs of brick oven cooking. Super fast and easy to build, and with minor modifications, it can be assembled semi-permanently and get you through a season of baking delicious breads…
Build Your Own Camera Gyro-Stabilizer With a Spare Hard Drive
Universal, 2 Gyro Image stabilizer – More DIY How To Projects The most extreme camera operators use a gyro attachment for their camera to get smooth, steady shots. This applies to both still and motion (video) photography. The attachment works by two internal gyroscopes…
Hi, I'm Mike. I’m the executive editor of Make: magazine, and host of Discovery channel’s Punkin' Chunkin' and Catch It Keep It, TV shows where I build and explain crazy machines that crush stuff, blow things up, shoot fire, all in the name of science.
I've previously worked at Wired and ReadyMade magazines, writing about how to utilize new technology in our everyday lives.
This site is where I keep a list of instructions for fun projects I've done, am working on, or draw inspiration from. I encourage everyone to get involved — get up and do something!