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Rokuhan Shorty Shinkansen Layout Part 3 -Finsished!
Posted by Chris Carpenter on

Done! I finished the layout and the box and I am really happy with it. The biggest change is that I realized I can't run both trains, the switch, the lights and a single board LCD screen on a 9v battery. Duh. The lights on the cars didn't have enough current to light. Also, when I turned on the lights the max train speed would drop in half. The switch wouldn't work reliably either as the 9v discharged. I tried using a 3s 650mah lipo and that worked. Except the current drain was pretty high and I took it down...
Rokuhan Shinkasen Train Layout Part 2
Posted by Chris Carpenter on

Continuing on from part 1, with my Rokuhan Shorty build, everything is almost done. The box is built, the layout is installed and I have all the lights working. The only thing left to do is the background image for the lid, install the train stop and tidy up the control box area. . I 3D printed a box to hold both Shinkansen trains and a cover for it. As its setup now the trains stay snug when the box is transported. I added a chain to hold the box lid vertical when its opened. The box hinges, latches and...
Rokuhan Shorty Shinkansen Layout
Posted by Chris Carpenter on

I’m working on a small (3’x2’) Rokuhan Shorty layout. I plan to put it in a suitcase sized case so it will be portable and easily stored. The layout is going to be based on a modern city. This is my first time working with Z scale and I really like it. The layout has an inner and outer track with switches and fits in a pretty small space. I have the track layout done and the mounting board. I designed a city block with an intersecting road to lay the track on. It’s printed on glossy poster paper. To...
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- Tags: box, control, layout, model train, rokuhan, Shinkansen, z scale
RC Knight Rider Car With Touchscreen Control
Posted by Chris Carpenter on

When I was a kid I loved Knight Rider. I had a plastic toy KITT car that would play sounds from the show when you pressed the license plate. It was a great toy. I recently looked it up online and was thinking about buying one. They weren't crazy expensive. But then I got to thinking, I could make that car and something better. The best thing about all of the affordable tech we have now is that you can affordably make a lot of things you dreamed of as a kid pretty easily. I figured 3D printing would be...
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- Tags: 3D print, 3D printed, 80s, arduino, DFPlayer, EdgeTx, FrSky, KITT, Knight Rider, Lua, resin, S.Port, script, X8R
LCD Buffalo Sabres Jersey
Posted by Chris Carpenter on

The Buffalo Sabres just recently brought back the famous black "goathead" jersey as a throwback. I love this jersey. What better way to celebrate its return then by making a version with an LCD screen! Yeah, I know thats exactly where your head went... Turns out to be way easier than I imagined and I think one of the coolest things I've ever made. This really just mounting an app controlled super thin 64x64 LDC screen on the front of a blank jersey. Sourcing and getting the jersey setup was actually harder than setting up the LCD screen. I just...