Showing posts with label Cole-Bar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cole-Bar. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Kickstarter projects on the go

 I have several Kickstarter projects on the go that I thought had some relavence to the blog, and Equipedness ....

The first two, I have pulled great slabs of text from their projects, as well as pictures. I think both are very interesting, and useful.



http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mikebond/ti2-sentinel-x-aluminum-cache
18 days to go

" Sentinel X -- “form follows function” philosophy with key features: 

Water Tight -- The “X” is tested water tight and features Twin o-rings for redundancy.  The o-rings are made from food grade silicone and able to withstand temperatures required to boil water.
Strength -- The “X” is strength optimized using CAD parasolid modeling resulting in a unique ribbed/skeletonized design.  We are using aircraft grade 6061-T6 aluminum in its construction.
Lightweight -- At just 400 grams the “X” offers a minimal weight footprint.  An excellent way to safe hold 18+ cubic inches (11 fluid ounces) of critical gear.
Internal dimensions  2" diameter and 6" length (51mm x 153mm)
External dimensions 2.5" diameter and 8" length (63mm x 204mm)

Finishes -- The Sentinel X is offered in 2 versions of Type 3, hard anodized coating.  The Sentinel X1 is Type 3 Class 1 hard anodized and is food grade.  Due to the anodizing process it comes in a greyish-bronze color and your choice of regular or satin finish (check out comparison photo below).  This anodizing process is typically used for military applications where durability is critical.  Also, this coating is common on aluminum cookware such as pots and frying pans offering excellent flame resistance.  The Sentinel X2 is Type 3, Class 2, NON food grade and available in Black, Olive Drab and Brown satin finish only.  Both the X1 and X2 exhibit the same durability properties."

Secure carry of delicate items? cooking container? survival cache? yes please! I am already pondering what I can fill mine with.



http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/publiclab/infragram-the-infrared-photography-project
18 days to go

Infragram is a simple, affordable near-infrared camera
"Produced by the Public Laboratory community in a series of collaborative experiments over the last few years. We originally developed this technology to monitor wetlands damages in the wake of the BP oil spill, but its simplicity of use and easy-to-modify open-source hardware & software makes it a useful tool for home gardeners, hikers, makers, farmers, amateur scientists, teachers, artists, and anyone curious about the secret lives of plants.

Photosynthesizing plants absorb most visible light (less green than red and blue, which is why they're green to our eyes!) but reflect near-infrared. When you take a picture with the Infragram, you get two separate images -- infrared and regular light -- and a false-color composite that shows you where there are big differences. Bright spots in the composite means lots of photosynthesis!

DIY Filter Pack: This is just a piece of "infrablue" filter which you can use to turn your webcam or cheap point-and-shoot into an infrared camera. The filter allows you to take an infrared photo in the "red" channel of your camera, and a visible image in the "blue" channel. You'll also receive a white balance card and instructions on how install your filter -- it's pretty easy!
Infragram Webcam: This inexpensive but flexible reward is perfect for plugging directly into your laptop or integrating into other projects. It's also ideal for your Raspberry Pi, if you want to take it outdoors, do timelapse photography, or write scripts to control your camera. It ships as a bare circuit board with a USB cable - like an Arduino.
Infragram Point & Shoot: Just want a camera? This is a straightforward, if basic, point-and-shoot: you can simply take photos as you normally would, then upload them to our free and open-source web app to quickly and easily get a variety of composite images and analyses. To accomplish this, we're simply modifying existing cameras which we'll buy in bulk, using the "infrablue" filter. This isn't an SLR or even a particularly fully featured camera -- it likely won't have an LCD screen and may be "rebranded" with a Public Lab sticker -- but it's the new filter we've put inside which counts.
The final configuration will depend on the # of backers, but it will likely use AAA batteries and a micro SD card. We're promising a minimum of 2 megapixel resolution, but should be able to do much better, especially if we get a lot of backers. Basically, the more money we raise, the better these cameras will get! "

What a cool idea, process animal tracks and runs through undergrowth, check crop health, locate camouflage .... I already have a balloon system ready to hoist it, but would work on a kite, or a quad-rotor drone too .... Pixels from above!
Lastly....


Cole Bar Hammer
I already covered this as a wish-lust item, but the guys behind it have been constantly improving it, and are very close to adding a metric ruler to the design.


Look it up, and back them, it will be worth it!

Monday, April 29, 2013

Wish Lust: Kickstarter Cole-Bar


So, I've been hitting Kickstarter pretty hard again (there will be some more re-previews of cool projects coming up), and I struck a deal with the folks behind this bad-assed tool to see if I could drum up some more interest for them.  This is the Cole-Bar multifunction hammer.

CNC milled from a block of steel, the hammer has a serious industrial look to it, but it is a lot more than just a hard looking claw hammer.




It's a claw hammer with a full crow bar built in!

The production model includes a rubberised grip on the hammer side of the shaft.

The straight edges are inch-maked for use as a ruler (although having it in metric too would be a good addition, I'll put that out there)

Using a patented locking gear mechanism, the Cole-Bar can be opened and extended from 0 to 180 degrees and locked into place at 15 degree increments.

As well as making an angled too, this also makes the tool a protractor, and set-square for all you equipped  masons out there

The locking gear is connected by a
standard 1/2" drive which lets you use the Cole-Bar as a socket wrench.
 
Further more, that same 1/2" drive  the Cole-Bar can be separated with a button release turning it into a set of demolition tools.

I'm looking forwards to comparing this to my Stanley FUBAR and Dead-On Superhammer

Claw hammer, full sized crow bar, socket wrench, ruler, set-square and protractor this is a truly multifunction tool, that I am proud to get behind ....  Now to get it over the line, and into my paws to hammer and pry!

Get to backing, hopefully you can get one too...





edit: Brandon just sent me some renders of the finished product, which Kickstarter wouldn't allow ... get a peek here, FIRST!










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