Gizmodo Australia » instructables

DIY: When LED Throwies Meet Mouse Taxidermy

Danny Allen — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:00:00 +0000

Say your pet rat dies. Instead of trashing it, you could shove LED throwie lights into its eye-sockets in a decorative taxidermy experiment that’s as creative as it is graphically morbid. It might be what little Snowy would have wanted.

Seriously, wow. This is one of the most twisted step-by-step instructables yet. Personally, I don’t have enough balls (or serial killer instinct) to gut my former pet, and stuff it with an LED assembly, wires and magnets. But as for any ethical dilemmas? If you were only going to throw it out anyway…

…Maybe you’d like to have your little pal hang around a little longer: [Instructables]

How To Build A Snorricam, So You Can Film Your Face

Dan Nosowitz — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 01:45:08 +0000

Hey, narcissists and/or filmmakers! Instructables has a guide to making your own Snorricam, that chest-mounted camera holder that points the lens directly at your own face.

The final product looks like a term project for wood shop class, requiring mostly traditional materials as the Snorricam mount is primarily made of plywood. Not an incredibly difficult construction, for sure, but one that could be really useful for aspiring filmmakers without friends, or those who want to get that crazy angle used in so many movies (Requiem for a Dream comes to mind). [Instructables via MAKE]

Altoids Tin Catapult Will Make You Feel, And Act, 10 Years Old Again

Dan Nosowitz — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 05:00:00 +0000

Here’s an Instructables to bring back the obnoxious kid that lives not so far down in all of us: Learn how to turn one of those miniature Altoids tins into a tiny catapult. It’ll be fun for nobody but you.

We like Instructables like this one because not everyone has a damn laser cutter lying around, and this one only requires materials you’ve likely got lying around anyway (coat hanger, rubber band, spoon, etc.). The creator promises it’ll only take about 10 minutes, and we promise it’ll be fun for at least 11. [Instructables]

How To: Make A Fisheye DSLR Lens For $US16

Dan Nosowitz — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 00:00:00 +0000

Over at Instructables, user Banjomaster shows how to make a fisheye lens for his Nikon D90 for just $US16, with the help of one of those wide-angle doorway peephole lenses.
It looks like a pretty simple mod, both in materials required and construction method: It only needs a couple pieces of particle board, the aforementioned peephole lens, the spare lens shield that came with his camera, and of course some duct tape. The only possible caveat: The replacement wide-angle lens is significantly smaller than the camera’s lens, so there’s a circle around all of the shots. On the other hand, it’s sort of cool; it makes everything look like you shot it through a hotel door. Check it out, we’re sure it can be modified for other makes and models of DSLR. [Instructables]

DIY Voice Modulator Makes Everybody Do The Robot (or At Least Sound Like One)

Dan Nosowitz — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:45:00 +0000

This DIY project takes common parts, including a clock from IKEA and a fluorescent desk lamp, and turns them into this sweet robot voice modulator that makes even the most emotional, dramatic vocals seem cold and calculating.

This doesn’t look like the easiest project we’ve seen; it calls for laser cutting and a significant amount of audio tech know-how. But the results are pretty much exactly what you’d want, and it’s definitely a sweet-looking end result. This thing even features audio-in so you can plug in instruments, pre-recorded sounds, or anything else you want, and the pitch-shifting and vibrato buttons let you adjust the robot sounds on the fly. Check out the instructions for more info on how to sound like a robot. [Instructables via MAKE]

Let Your Hello Kitty Watch Be All It Can Be

Gizmodo US Edition — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:20:00 +0000

On its own, the Hello Kitty McDonalds watch is yet another landfill-bound plastic chotchke. Not very green thinking. Luckily, Instructables has put together a handy how-to for turning yours into a cool custom timepiece.

All it takes is an Xacto knife, super glue, triangular head screwdriver, and a printout of the picture you want—and of course the Hello Kitty McDonalds watch. Just remove the toddler-size watchband and get to tinkering! In much less time than it takes for that Happy Meal to pass through your small intestine, you’ll have your very own custom Domo watch! Or one with your girlfriend. Or Boba Fett. Or a different, even cuter picture of Hello Kitty. The choice is yours. [Instructables]

Guitar Hero and Rock Band Controller Mod For Finicky Fingers

Matt Hickey — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:30:00 +0000

Guitar Hero fans usually hate the Rock Band guitar controller and vice versa. Instructables has a pretty good how-to that can solve the problem for Guitar Hero fans at the cost of a Rock Band controller. It’s a way to mash up an old PS2 Guitar Hero controller with the Rock Band Fender guitar and make a perfect hybrid with raised keys a clicky strum. You could just use an Xbox 360 Guitar Hero controller for Rock Band if you’re on an, but where’s the fun in that? [Instructables]

Give a Bluetooth Handgun Handset a Shot

Gizmodo US Edition — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 23:00:00 +0000

Got an unused airsoft gun from your, guns are cool, teenage years? Why not transform it into bluetooth handset, that you’ll probably still never use. A user at Instructables did just that by rewiring an older Jabber handset inside an airsoft gun. Even though it’s probably the biggest and most absurd bluetooth handset, the workings of it are pretty cool. The trigger has been wired as the call button, the barrel as the speaker and the grip as the mic, making it perfect for taking calls with the wife when she finds out you stole her bluetooth handset and put it into a gun. Hit the jump to see iPhone lover’s reactions to such a bluetooth device called iGiveUp.

[Instructables]

DIY Sleeping Mask Puts You In Control of Your Dreams

Benny Goldman — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 23:50:00 +0000

There’s a Lucid Dream Machine sleeping mask on Instructables that pulses LEDs in your eyelids four hours after you fall asleep, waking you up just enough to notice your dreams and control their outcomes. The mask requires a fair bit of soldering and programming experience, so it isn’t for DIY luddites like me. Which is good, because my sleep is too precious and my dreams are too weird to want one of these anyway. [Instructables via Make]

Super iPod Pillow is Plusher than Plush, Plays MP3s

Addy Dugdale — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 12:42:12 +0000

Let us salute creative types who are super-brazilliant at hacking MP3 players and have a bit of time on their hands, because this is what they can come up with — a super iPod that is 50 times bigger than the real thing, and that probably won’t break when you drop it. There’s a gallery below, but you can catch all the pics and instructions at Instructables. [Instructables]