We took A Moveable Feast on a ride through Los Angeles for CicLAvia. I decided to document this ride with a time-lapse camera. I’ll let the video tell the story:
For the past few years we’ve been dealing with buttons. Moving, storing, sorting, picking through, and generally managing a large collection of castaway buttons from a previous company. Some were usable, but many lacked the micro-switch that gives the button any functionality at all. Why do I mention this? Because having these buttons made us try and think of ways of getting rid of them using them for fun projects!
One of the ideas that we came up with was a very simple one. Put as many buttons on the wall as possible and let people press them. Of course, it’d be better if they lit up and responded. Without any particular game in mind though, we knew that people will love these things. Fact: people love to press buttons. So, we started construction on a few “Button Walls.”
It seems that my blog has been linked to by one of my favorite sites on the internet: ThisIsColossal.com. I’m just tickled pink. When I first emailed Bob I was just selfishly looking for some inspiration and tips. Since then we’ve been emailing back and forth every few months. I’ve even helped connect him with some of his cousins!
What has Bob been up to lately? Well, he’s got a show going on right now in Jakarta, Indonesia (or is it in Dubai?). http://www.artdubai.ae/2013/galleries/edwins-gallery Bob tells me that there was a scary moment when they plugged his 110V motor into a 220V socket! Luckily the docent was fast and unplugged it before the motor fried itself. Be careful with the standard voltage sources if you’re showing electrical art pieces worldwide!
Bob has also told me about a documentary that features the Old Timey folk band he was in, Highwoods String Band. There are a few snippets of interviews with Bob in this, but it’s all about his fiddle playing, not about his other amazing talents.
I pulled out an old transformer that I had been saving for probably 10 years. I don’t even remember where I got it from. According to the tag on it, it has a 110V input but the output is 6200V rated at 82mA. I ran the input through a contactor (basically a beefy relay) so I can turn the thing on and off with a simple button press. I attached the output leads to two 6′ long copper tubes that will act as my electrodes. All of the exposed stuff resides inside of an 8″ diameter acrylic tube. This is both for safety and to keep breezes from affecting the rising hot arc.
Here is the result:
The transformer is rated for 6200V * 82mA = 508W. We’re actually pulling ~80A (off my ammeter scale) at 110V = 8.8kW! The coils of the transformer felt a little warm after just a few cycles. I’m not surprised at all, but it means I need to find a good way of reducing the input current. I’m going to wind my own choke on the input to try and limit the current going in.
We decided to take the Feast out for a memorable Thanksgiving dinner. We had no real plans besides cooking up a bunch of food, and taking the Feast to the Venice boardwalk. Our policy was to have a blast, come what may, and if we needed to, split the ticket.
On Sunday, October 7th, we put the tablecloth on A Moveable Feast, hung the chandelier, and headed out for a nice pedal through the streets of LA for CicLAvia!
We set out at 10:30 or so with 6 pedalers. We had no problems crossing the LA river bridge and train tracks into downtown proper. The biggest obstacle we faced was a steep hill from Spring up to Broadway into Chinatown. We pedaled hard and with gusto and were able to mount the hill without having to get off and push. This was our first major hill since the new drivetrain, and I was definitely impressed!
CicLAvia was alive with thousands of bicycles in the streets. Everyone was waving, cheering, and smiling as we pedaled through. We must’ve raised our glasses to hundreds of cell phone cameras throughout the day. Everyone wanted to talk to us about the project and give us their complements. We were tickled pink. It’s always a great feeling to have other people truly enjoy your creation.
We had to stop a couple of times to take a break and refill our crystal and silver water containers. But, spirits were high and we weren’t as tired as I thought we’d be. We met up with Catherine who brought her magic camera. She always takes jaw dropping photos, so I’m definitely looking forward to the results. After a short stop at the Down & Out for some hydration and simple carbs, we hopped back on the Feast.
We decided to turn around once the route turned on 7th street. However far we pedaled that day we were going to have to pedal back. We didn’t want to get home late at night, so we decided to start the slow trek back home. Surprisingly all of the gearing, chains, and sprockets stayed functional without so much as a chain needing to be re-attached. This was the first time that no one had to crawl under the table to get their hands dirty re-aligning some chain. Is the Feast getting actually reliable? I couldn’t be happier.
Many people took some photos of us, but most don’t know what the thing is called. So, usually they’re lost to the anonymity of the internet. However, I was able to find a few photos online. Here are some links:
I recently took some video of a project that I’ve slowly been working on for the past few months. It’s a double pendulum made of solid brass.
I wanted to see if using proper bearings would create a nice frictionless chaotic pendulum. I wasn’t disappointed. By tightening the machine screw on the top pivot point and the acorn nuts on the bottom pivot point I’m able to squeeze on the thrust bearings. I played with the tightness till things were just tight enough, but not too tight to cause excess friction and drag. I’m very pleased with the results. Now I just need to finish a walnut cover for the shaft support and bolt this thing to a nice sturdy wall.
The brass was definitely the most expensive part of this project. But, it took a surprising number of man hours to get the finish right, the holes drilled correctly, etc. But, it was a blast making this thing.
I’m slowly adding my project portfolio to the Cargo Collective portfolio site. I’m hoping to document most of my more impressive projects until they’re all in place. It takes time to dig up those decent photos!
