Lets put some clothes on Red

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On this bright Sunday morning we will knock out stage two of the “Lets put some clothes on our GIANT Red Green monument”.
So far pants, shoes, undies, and a belt have been dressed on our GIANT.

Starting early at 9am members leading the build will be at the space to help with the dressing of the Red Green Giant.  Using seven foot sheets of Tyvek, duct tape will be layered to make up the tartan pattern that is seen on the common flannel shirt Red is seen wearing.

So if you’re just waking up checking your RSS feeds, head on over to the space and lend a hand.   We’ll be here most of the day.

Red Green Build Update: Tartan Test

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The Red Green build continues to make forward progress.  Tuesday we brainstormed the shirt and decided we need to use a very specific tartan for the flannel shirt.  Bonus points for all who can identify.  To the left is our test pattern.

This is all duct tape and backed by a cool material called Tyvek.  We are actually going to build a giant shirt for our giant to wear out of duct tape.

Keep checking the blog for more progress.  We will be working on the statue on Saturday and Sunday.  Please stop by to help.  Members and non-members alike are welcome.  Some back of the napkin math says we need 128 squares like this to the left.  Hope to see everyone there.

Busy weekend: Hamvention, Open Shop, Jam Session, RepRap meeting, etc!

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Been watching that Google Calendar sidebar fill up, have you? We’ve got a busy couple days coming up, so if you’ve been looking for an excuse to swing by the space, now is a great time! Bring a friend…

Starting Friday and running all weekend, Hamvention happens in Dayton, Ohio. Okay, technically it’s Trotwood, but every amateur radio operator and electronics hobbyist in the eastern US just knows the annual pilgrimage as “Dayton”. Hundreds of vendor booths, forums on a variety of topics, license exams, and thousands of hams occupy every inch of Hara Arena, but most of us actually go for the thirty-acre fleamarket in the parking lot. A handful of i3Detroit members and mi2600 regulars are headed down, and if you are too, say hi!

Saturday at Noon, Nate_LapT opens the doors for a Maker Faire work party, suspiciously similar to a regular Open Shop day. Members and non-members alike are encouraged to bring projects to work on, or just come hang out.

Saturday at 6pm, the monthly Unusual Musical Instrument Jam Session gets underway. Bring a hand-made instrument, or just bring parts and assemble it on site! Normal instruments are fine, too. As always, visitors are welcome! This event usually runs pretty late…

Sunday at 1pm, the Michigan RepRap group invades the shop with their army of clones. Or not; nobody’s actually printed a complete replica of a human yet, but that doesn’t mean they’re not trying! If you’re interested in the RepRap project, or if you just heard of it now, come in and get involved, regardless of your experience level.

Monday evening at 6:30 is another Maker Faire work party. Is your exhibit coming along? Have you submitted your application yet? Come by the shop for help, or to help others further their own efforts. Note: Even i3Detroit members exhibiting with the group must submit each project separately!

On Tuesday it’s meeting time again! The group assembles to discuss, decide, and work on issues that affect us all. We say 7pm but it’s usually more like 8. Meetings are open, though not guaranteed to be interesting.

(CC-licensed RepRap photo from CabFabLab on Flickr.)

From hackerspace to art show, lamps headed to NYC

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Where would a couple of artists/designers go for help with converting their latest lighting project over to LED illumination? Why, their friendly local hackerspace, of course!

Lisa Smith and Caroline Linder‘s “Pipette Lamps”, pictured here, got blisteringly hot when equipped with halogen bulbs. Before showing the lamps at Cite, they wanted to switch light sources. But multiwatt illumination-class LEDs are a bit tricky to drive, and that expertise proved elusive. After pursuing dead-ends with overworked grad students, local electricians, and other leads, the designers asked a geeky friend, who happened to be an i3Detroit member. The connection was instant and, in retrospect, obvious.

Smith and Linder’s request was modest — design hints, electronics help, links to parts suppliers — but shipping takes time, and the looming deadline made it clear that the arm’s-length approach wouldn’t succeed. Read more

i3 Detroit V2.0

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So we are getting closer and closer to moving into our new space in Ferndale and oh boy what a space it is. With 8000 Sq. Ft. of space and lots to look forward to we thought we would share some photos from this past weekend. All photos have been taken by our very own Brad McMahon.