I like building stuff and I've run out of ideas for stuff to build given my constraints.
I would love to build a kit car, but they're kind of impractical and upwards of $50k.

I was recently going to buy a speaker kit (www.madisoundspeakerstore.com/2-way-speaker-kits/lxmini-linkwitz-lab-speaker-kit-pair/) but they're too hard to drive for my available amps.

Requirements:
1.- Smaller than square 1m.
2.- Complicated.
3.- no requirement to machine wood or metal parts, I don't have the tools.
4.- < $2k

I've built:
dozens of drones (quads, hex and octos).
Helicopters.
RC trucks, cars, buggies, crawlers, drifters...
Class A and A/B Amps tubes and ss. Neil Pass JLH...
Robot... crap one bcos they're expensive.
Lego, LOZ... many; even built the new Chiron in 7hrs which was boring.
Nixie tube clocks... 6 of them.
Various tesla coils, measuring instruments (LCR, oscilloscopes), function generators, electronic nick nacks.
3D Printers.
100's of mods... pretty much everything electrical is now voice activated, I am greeted by Google TTS when entering the house.

I feel your pain, but you are further down the road with the kits you have built, I'm over drones and Nixies as well as the other electronics kits available online. I have built a small (250mm x 320mm) CNC router but I had the tooling to do that, it's got its uses but but it was more about the project.

My latest projects have been designing circuit boards, using other peoples schematics, because I'm no electronics engineer. The most recent was a dawn dusk switch for a mates garden lights and before that a a NixieTherm Mk3 thermometer.... Anyhow you design the board and get it made in China (JLC PCB in my case) and a 10ish days later you get the boards, for less that $20. Then you populate the board and move to the next project.

I will watch with interest what people suggest, but how lucky are we to be faced such a dilemma?!

For speakers try The loudspeaker kit
www.theloudspeakerkit.com/

I got alI my bits and pieces from them so I could set up tactile transducers on my gaming seat (car sim), then had to make up LF filters to cut out all the high pitch frequencies.

Set them up on your home theater chairs so you get all the bass running through the chairs not hard to set each chair up with stereo. Makes a hell of a difference.

Less than 2k outlay (initially), less than 1m square. Complicated and no machining.

Rebuild a Pinball machine
Doesn't tick any of your boxes though....
At first
Is an overwhelming heart palpitating mindfark,
That will turn into a multi disiplined obsession with plenty of like minded peers on the net for support.
Plus
There's a market for them when you're done

Build an e-bike, everything you need is out there, easy to find.
But I'm lazy, I got one already put together, well mostly, still had to put it together, but not the electronics.

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Mastbender said..
Build an e-bike, everything you need is out there, easy to find.
But I'm lazy, I got one already put together, well mostly, still had to put it together, but not the electronics.

I second that, You can build the whole thing from making wheels, frame through to wiring up the battery pack and controller. Lets you do both mechanical and electrical engineering and you are dealing with some scary high amps just waiting to make lots of magic smoke. Look on some of the Ebike forums for some of the builds that runs circles around any of the electric cars on the market today. Some of the electronic engineering done by home builds is astonishing with plenty of bicycle built out performing road motorcycles.
There is a great video done years ago of a guy in South America on a BMX bike doing over 100mph down a highway in thongs and a tee shirt and the look on drivers faces as he passed them was priceless.

Buy a sewing machine. Make stuff. When you get into it textile engineering is every bit as complex as any other material. Driving the sewing machine is a skill and you get the same rewards as any other skilful activity. It's a buzz being able to sew straight at full speed installing a zip on a bag or something.

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theDoctor said..

Rebuild a Pinball machine
Doesn't tick any of your boxes though....
At first
Is an overwhelming heart palpitating mindfark,
That will turn into a multi disiplined obsession with plenty of like minded peers on the net for support.
Plus
There's a market for them when you're done

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Gorgo said..
Buy a sewing machine. Make stuff. When you get into it textile engineering is every bit as complex as any other material. Driving the sewing machine is a skill and you get the same rewards as any other skilful activity. It's a buzz being able to sew straight at full speed installing a zip on a bag or something.

Plus
it's so compact
You don't even have to come out of the closet

Restoring a pinball machine would be pretty cool, i was an electrical engineer in a past life and when I look under the bonnet of our pinball machine here at home it scares me.

Maybe look at restoring an old motorbike, they don't take up a lot of space and they are worth coin when you're done (never as much as you put in though, unless you choose very carefully) and you can simply ride it if you don't want to move it on .............. or put it on display in the living room if your wife lets you

You sir need a boat

Laughing Loon North Star Baidarka. No I didn't build it but I did buy the plans!

If your looking for a challenge then this machine would keep you busy enough. Rough cost is about $70K for a fuel injected water cooled 2 stroke setup. Also available with a T62 turbine engine. Build time is around 300 hours depending on your skills.

You'll need a PPL helicopter license also which will set you back about another $30K.

mosquitohelicopters.com.au/mosquito-air.html

I was going to say an aviation project but it's out of his scope.
I had a mate buy a scondhand gyro and rebuild.
But even he says it's because his kids are adults and he's old so it doesn't matter if he dies
Also Im guessing fly has been there done that with aviation. His xray pics on here are not pretty.

OT but I say if you're going to spend that much money and time it may as well be on your retirement plan/ home
build your own world cruising catamaran rent the house and go cruising. Fusion cats have a kit that makes it easier (pre cast panels so you don't have to fair
www.fusioncats.com/kitcatamarans/fusion_the_smart_choice.php


A dude in Darwin I worked with spent years modifying a bus. had a large luggage door at the rear and when you made the area over it a queen bed base you could store a moke (literally) in there with ramps for getting around. very james bond. After years of work they set off, spent the first night at pine cr3eek just south of Darwin and are still there!

You could always join us making diy gps loggers. See my thread in the gps forum

fly as an in depth project rather than just a drain on your pocket why not use your building skills and turn it into a side business. You never know it may end up being your ticket to an early retirement and enjoyable. For example if you built a big drone and used it in farm mapping or surveying. Or made them and sold them to farmers with training on how to fly. Or real estate photos or something. I know there's a lot of competition but because you already have a lot of the equipment and aren't paying retail to start maybe you have an advantage. Perhaps there's a gap in the market or something that is very expensive that you can do much cheaper.
Another guy I knew built his own very powerful water jet blaster. I cant remember if it was just a pressure cleaner or if it was also able to cut but it was on a trailer with a 4cyl turbo diesel. He made lots of money.
Anyhow what I am trying to say is that if you find some sort of niche that is in your area of enjoyment and you can grow and fund it ads another dimension. I started selling some stuff on gumtree and ebay (worldwide is a big market)
If you start doing well you have all of the business side of things to engage you as well and when it's money for jamit's a lot more fun than it sounds.

I was expecting ridicule, but yo'all came out w/ some good ideas.

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kk said..
dawn dusk switch for a mates garden lights

I did this too... cost me $7 + 3hrs. sonoff wifi relay w/ tasmota + home assistant (running in container on NAS). Just config the lat/lon and it knows when it's sun rise/set (event) on/off (action).

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elmo said..
www.theloudspeakerkit.com

Thanks... they've got some good kits, not cheap though.
My HT is sorted... apart from the Atmos over heads but I'm still renting.

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theDoctor said..
Restore pinball machine

I looked in to this a while back when the A$ was at parity with US$, and it's still on my bucket list, thanks for the reminder... needs a fair amount of space though. Where do you get the machines? And can you get the schematics for them?

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Mastbender said..
Build an e-bike

Built one around the Bafang 48v 1000w crank motor... major pain in the but to get the hydraulic brakes to kill the motor, eventually took it apart and sold the motor kit. Got a scooter to tinker with now... 3800w, kills my 14s LiPos though.

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Gorgo said..
Buy a sewing machine.

Did that, f**ked up some clothes, gave up. Sewing ain't easy, special needles for every material, speed, and even trying to get a straight stitch.


I think I need to build a pinball machine.

to make some money, anything to do with boats is worth considering.
Especially cashed up fisho's.

Seriously though, bird electrifying zapper device would have a market.
Self contained, maybe solar charge to a capacitor on a timer, piezo ignition?, to periodically discharge across whatever they are sitting on. Can only be a small voltage, but i'm not fussy, zap the b*arstards I say.

Lots of issues, regarding currents and electrolysis in a marine environment, but concept would work.
Well, they would get a zap, ** themselves on your boat again, then fly off, but at least the'd move on, hopefully.

Good for buildings, crops

You'd have a sale for anyone with a boat on a mooring, the damage they cause is a universal pain in the arse to any boat owner.

Fly, i'd even fund you to get it started. :)

Yes I have though about this for a while..

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myusernam said..
His xray pics on here are not pretty.

Yup, just looking at the cockpit hurts my back.

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myusernam said..
fly as an in depth project rather than just a drain on your pocket why not use your building skills and turn it into a side business.

I considered electric transmission tower inspections.
Drone > go to tower > scan up/down > thermal + electromagnetic + visible > TensorFlow data analysis... but it ain't as easy as soldering a couple parts then listening to the fruits of my labour over a single malt.
If my employer used my skills (Cloud Solutions Architect), I'd have my fill of building.

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decrepit said..
You could always join us making diy gps loggers. See my thread in the gps forum

Maybe 12 years ago... now even my watch has one and the battery last over 75hrs w/ GPS tracking.

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Paddles B'mere said..
Maybe look at restoring an old motorbike

I used to delivery build and repair motorcycles in my teens; now I kind of resent even doing maintenance on my beast.
I almost talked myself in to building a totally awesome custom motorcycle... but $60k talked me out of it.

Btw anyone interested in a 2010 Yamaha XT1200Z 35k on the clock, no service book... do it all myself.

Anyone seen...

Perhaps use your skills and passion towards history and keep something alive .
It's been a personal hobby of mine for many years , to buy and restore old penny arcade machines and clockwork toys . The pre 1976 chip age. Older is usually quirkier and politically incorrect , like "shoot the jap " game . I once owned a early hand crank American toy that whipped a black man ( sic ) , but it's important history , I wish I kept it .
Before 1976 everything is mechanical switches and sequences . It's not easy but u could do it. The history and art involved is huge if that's a thing of interest . There is nothing prettier than a 1960 pinball machine . The tech involved is the same stuff that got man to the moon ! If you want smaller there are non electrical mechanical games that dispense a cigarette if you win . Very cool man cave stuff. Or how much electric shock can you take machines , even more cool. So wrong but soo right Don't get me started on antique medical electric shock therapy machines . Powered and crank . Also much fun at parties.

Hmm.. You are by the sound of it.. exceedingly talented in blokey areas...
If you can program...??
My brother has been bouncing around with AI..
His current project is a base which is mobile (electric but under 1m cubed) and can locate itself in an area with more accuracy than GPS...
First up this will carry a wipper snipper and go do the paddocks,
The next module will be a weed killer.

So autonomous, Processing power. Image detection (stereo camera) stepper motor control.. decision making, learning, and....
it is huge when you get into it...
I am gobsmacked about what processing capacity is available for $70-100.. you have to be able to use it but wow!!
if you are interested will get a list of the kit - and post

Alternately you could get into some of the Raspberry pi stuff..
or dare I say it - some musical instrument...
G8 topic --
thanks\\
Cheers
AP

Another project I did in the past and need to revisit is building a ROV, there are a few kits available but I built mine from scratch.

With the stuff you have already done you would have most of the components in your shed, my next one, the first one exploded, will have a fiber optic umbilical cord.

hit up IKEA for some work experience mate.

^^^ Yep his videos are amazing. The one with like an armoured robot body is dead set scary.....

www.wbur.org/artery/2015/08/19/strandbeests

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FlySurfer

Btw anyone interested in a 2010 Yamaha XT1200Z 35k on the clock, no service book... do it all myself.

Ooooh. Shaft drive. Nice.

adopt a child in a 3rd world country?