ProdMod ™

I haven’t written a product review in a long time, but I am compelled to write one today. At the end of the entry find out how you can earn money by making one of your own.

I have been looking for some sort of non-electronic tablet that will allow me to easily sketch out my ideas and erase them with ease. Something compact and simple. I have considered a large dry erase board but I am not good at sketching on a vertical surface. As I browsed the aisles at Container Store in NYC I decided I might buy a small dry erase board and just use it on my lap. I found a simple rectangular aluminum one that was also magnetic made by Bi-silque. I love the magnetic eraser that doubles as a holder for the marker. Looks very convenient but I am not sure how it would work sitting on my lap.

Next to it I saw another product that was specifically designed as a portable dry erase board. It is called slate and is from Cocoa, LLC. What a great idea! It isn’t magnetic but I probably wont use a magnet if its on my lap anyway. It is made of clear plastic and has a slot that accepts paper so you can change the background to a grid or a calendar etc. So it can be anything you want it to be. The body is clear and can be written on both sides. When it was still in its blister pack it seemed like it was made of two halves of very rigid heavy duty plastic riveted together. But when I removed it from the packaging Read more »

My second LED Hoop Workshop went pretty well on July 19, 2008. Thanks to everyone coming out in the hot summer afternoon. We had 10 people this time so it was very busy and I am sorry if I could not give everyone the right amount of attention, but I think we had a 95% completion rate? Three of you opted to try the rechargeable upgrade so it did add more complexity and time.

Some of the wire stripping tools also malfunctioned but I have tested all of them and have thrown own the culprits.
We also learned a thing or two about silencing the hoop that I can pass onto the next class.

Special thanks to Gustav for helping me out showing others how to finish their hoops. And he also prepared his hoop for some extra modding. Can’t wait to see what it looks like when you attach sensors to it.

I have already heard some very positive feedback from you troopers. If you have any comments to add please do so below so that future workshop goers can get an idea of what it’s like.

Most of you tell me you are very satisfied at the end of class to see your hoop working that you made yourself. And you also know it inside and out allowing you to modify or fix it at anytime.

My next class is scheduled for this Saturday July 26. I am going to try to keep is small and limit the number to about 5 or 7 so sign up quick!

Go to 3rd Ward for the sign up and material fee.

I have new instructions and a new LED Hoop Rechargeable Upgrade Kit that is easier than the first I wrote about.

This time the DC jack snaps right into a through hole on the outer diameter of the hoop between the switch and connector.

You only need to make a 3/8″ hole for it in your tube. You’ll still probably want to solder the wires to the jack but it is pretty straight forward.

Basic Specs:

Light Time : 6 hours
Charge time: ~ 1 hour

The new instructions are here.

I have been wanting to make a mini version of my LED hula hoop for a while now. I imagined it being really cute and tiny. Something you can take with you anywhere and twirl on your finger. Well I just got my thin tubing tonight and quickly hacked up a mini-hoop. It was cute, but kind of bland. So I stuck an LED with tiny batteries in the hoop and gave it a spin. The effect was mesmerizing…

the video is even cooler…

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I am selling packs of LEDs for those of you who want to customize their hoops or use them for other projects. You can see what colors are offered on the accessories page.

This includes LEDs used in the LED Camera Light Kit.