The Dublin Hackerspace
It has been a long process to bring back laser cutting to the Tog 4 space. We have an open-source laser cutter called a Lasersaur. A 100W co2 laser with a bed size of 1220mm by 610mm.
To start off with the laser itself needed a complete service. That involved a deep cleaning by removing all the bits or leftover wood, hovering it all out. Next is a srub of all the rails, lenses and parts, residue from cutting plywood sticks to everything.
The final steps were to refill the chiller with boiled water and to carry out an alignment of the lens. Check out this video of our first test fire.
You can check out other photos of the laser cutter service in our gallery.
Next up was the modification to our space. Our new unit has no inbuilt ventilation. Our walls are made up of blocks with an outer metal cladding. We used a core drill to make a hole in the wall to allow ventilation.
A fan was also installed to help with airflow and wired to auto turn on with the laser cutter.
You can see more photos of the vent installation in our gallery.
The first big job given to our laser cutter in the new space is making badges for our friends at Dublin Maker. Check out the video below. If you are interest in laser cutting keep an eye out for our upcoming CAD nights.
We wanted to share a bit of Festive Cheer, fresh from our Laser Cutter! Hand-made by Robots. Check out our gallery for all the build photos.
The year started off great with our 11th birthday. Just as we finished hosting Science Hackday weekend hackathon in March the world changed. We’ve done our best to keep making alive and our doors open when restrictions allowed. Unfortunately, it has meant our normal programme of outreach events has not happened this year. We have moved many of our regular events online and host monthly live streams showcasing our member’s projects.
We hope next year will see a return to in-person events, talks, workshops and collaborating with the wider maker/tech/STEM community.
We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
We love spreading a bit of winter cheer in Tog. This year we have gone for a two-piece star design for our annual Christmas Baubles 2019.
Check out all the happy people below on twitter or a timelapse on how they are made.
A few weeks ago we ran Ealaín Solas (Light Art) a workshop where visitors got to learn about polarisation and made their own polarisation box. It was a great workshop with lots of good feedback. People loved their little boxes. With Dublin Maker only a few weeks away Jeffrey decided to make a scaled-up version.
The box follows the same design as the one created by the phablabs project. Two polarizer sheets, one being static and the other mounted on a turntable that can spin around. In this model, the turntable comes from a lazy susan. A device used for cake displays.
Continue reading “Polarisation Box”Wave Hackers experimental music group.
Seb’s amazing experimental audio research and performance group, a place for artists, dreamers, geeks, hackers, nerds, outcasts, weirdos, rebels and scientists to experiment and create. Circuit bending, instrument design and creation. Everyone welcome, no experience necessary – learn and share but most importantly enjoy yourself. Hosted by Seb every first and third Friday of the month, 3rd and 17th May, from 7 to 10 pm. Let us know you’re coming on meetup.
Electronics and Micro Controller Night: If you hanker to harness the awesome power of electricity and light up a few LEDs or crank a dynamo, Electronics and Micro Controller night is for you. Every second Monday, Gary will guide you into the electronics room where there is a dizzying variety of electronic components to help out beginners and the more experienced alike. You can buy basic kits and we’ll show you what to do with them. Runs Monday 6th and 20th May, starting at 7 pm and finishing at 9 pm. Vital that you bring your own laptop, we don’t have a supply.
CAD Night: Krzysztof and Louise are your guides for 3D printing and laser cutting night, every second Wednesday, in May the 1st, 15th and 29th, from 7 pm to 9 pm. We have a working Prusa Mk 3 3D printer, and a Lasersaur for laser cutting. Please bring your own laptop.
Open Social: If you want to see where all these mind-bogglingly fascinating projects take place, come along to our Open Social night on Saturday 18th May from 7 pm until late or later. No need to be a member, just turn up. Food and drink contributions welcome. We will probably roll out the near-legendary pizza oven, weather permitting.
Craft Night: Lots of tools and materials here for dedicated and beginner crafters: this includes, but is not limited to, embroidery, sewing, knitting, screen printing, crochet, drawing, painting, woodwork. Bring your own project along or start one from scratch, there is a wealth of talent and experience on hand to help you get started or navigate the tricky bits. Every other Wednesday, the 1st, 15th and 29th May, starting at 7 pm.
Lock Picking: Ever-popular lock-picking night happens on Mondays, in May on the 13th and 27th, from 7 pm until 9 pm. We have a large selection of padlocks, practice locks, handcuffs and other parts, tools are supplied (and can be bought). Conor hosts and oozes enthusiasm and expertise.
Coding: Same night as Lock Picking, bring your laptop and work on your side project or ask for help with a programming problem. Alternate Mondays, the 1st, 15th and 29th May. Please bring your own laptop, we don’t provide the hardware.
The Science Fiction Book Club: This month we’re reading Fifth Head of Cerberus, by Gene Wolfe. It’s a book club, you know how they work; come along, argue, eat cake. Highly recommended that you read the book first, though. Wednesday 29th May, from 7 pm onwards.
Wikipedia Editing: Want to be part of the world’s biggest collaborative venture? Bring along a laptop, and Rebecca will show you how to become a Wikipedia editor. This all happens on the last Wednesdayof the month, May 29th starting at 7 pm.
Team Bodge Wednesday afternoons you will find Team Bodge in the space, taking broken stuff apart, shaking heads sadly and making those noises you hear from emergency plumbers before expertly restoring everything to a better-than-new working state. That’s the advertising blurb anyway. From 3.30 pm onwards, bring along your non-working components and faulty parts, and James and Brendan will be happy to help and offer advice, tools, expertise and the occasional spare part. Members only, check the mailing list for time and date confirmation.
