# DIY and Hobby projects, small to big. Pictures of course **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** arts-crafts, tools-electric-diy\ **Created:** [January 17, 2022, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910 "2022-01-17T00:50:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 34
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2025, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/664 "2025-07-29T22:08:35Z")
> [@digs](#): > > Does it already have the stain on it, or could someone request a custom job? Who do I look like, Dali? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2025, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/665 "2025-07-29T23:13:10Z")
No, The Dude! ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2025, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/666 "2025-08-18T14:22:16Z")
The work continues on my grunge room for my home shop, here is what I accomplished in the last couple of weeks: 1. built a welding table 2. mounted my post vise to the wall 3. 3D printed some tool holders 4. added some tool storage above the vise. [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/7FdaRnq.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/7FdaRnq) [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/bcIf1aG.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/bcIf1aG) ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2025, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/667 "2025-08-24T08:13:14Z")
> [@FordPrefect](#): > > The work continues on my grunge room for my home shop Looks good! ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/668 "2025-08-25T18:15:28Z")
I had to check, and it turns out that I did post about my custom stopwatch / timer build, for my darkroom. But that was just a prototype that was a stopwatch alone. The finished product is ready and available on GitHub. It features both Stopwatch mode and Kitchen Timer mode, making it quite handy for timing all kinds of things. Made for the darkroom, but useful for timing a roast. [![](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-Gb4sxQT/0/KPsNRH2WNxHZ9Zq9JVRqjrS9jSwFDkKBLmHdhB9XT/O/i-Gb4sxQT.jpg) ](https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-Gb4sxQT/0/KPsNRH2WNxHZ9Zq9JVRqjrS9jSwFDkKBLmHdhB9XT/O/i-Gb4sxQT.jpg) Here’s a video explaining the build, showing the internal components. I don’t go into the weeds with the Arduino code, but that’s all in GitHub, link in the description. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/dLG8q_grVEU/maxresdefault.jpg "Tad’s Awesome Darkroom Timer (Built Out of Pure Frustration)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLG8q_grVEU) ---
**Author:** ![Tride](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tride/32/13907_2.png) [@Tride](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tride)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2025, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/669 "2025-08-25T20:01:53Z")
This spring I DIYed a 9.6KW solar array, which added on to the existing 7.8KW array. Had help pouring the concrete (my wife) and setting the panels. Learned a lot… [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/KTAIpXp.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/KTAIpXp) [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/uBgsAcO.jpeg "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/uBgsAcO) ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2025, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/670 "2025-08-28T14:16:39Z")
i will check out the video yet, but that’s a cool looking project! I have some esp32 projects that are percolating in my brain that I want to start designing this winter, your project is along some of those lines. ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2025, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/671 "2025-08-28T14:18:45Z")
That’s awesome! I would love to get into solar panels. Electricity is so cheap in Manitoba that it’s very hard to make an ROI argument though. One day, just for the self sufficiency of it all… ---
**Author:** ![Tride](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tride/32/13907_2.png) [@Tride](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tride)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2025, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/672 "2025-08-28T17:50:25Z")
You save a shit-ton doing it yourself. Electricity here is +/- $.15/KWH and it definitely makes sense. Nice to charge the EV without pulling from the grid! ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2025, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/673 "2025-09-15T23:07:40Z")
A month and a half mostly spent on stripping 100 years worth of paint off of the rails and posts. Did not think to get more before shots. There is also the rail and newel on the upstairs floor that I have no pictures of. Thought about stripping the spindles but that’s not good wood under all that white paint, so I just painted over it. Lemme tell ya– I’m old and broken and stripping all that doo doo brown (and under that white, and under that pastel green and under that— pink!) was not easy at all, especially since I used a non VOC stripper. And I guess if I wanted to sand some more– maybe another month or so– I could have got it down to even bare-er wood. Decided to call it ‘rustic’ and call it a month. I also scrubbed that wall but since I’m old and broken like I said, I have to touch the walls to walk down the stairs and not fall so that’s going to get filthy again pretty quickly. I do wonder how long ago that doo doo brown was painted on because, as you can see, all of it was worn away from the handrail and also, unseen, the top of the newel post. How long does it take for _that_ to happen? [[Album] imgur.com ![](https://i.imgur.com/t9XieUX.jpeg?fb "imgur.com") ](https://imgur.com/a/SKrKMcp) ---
**Author:** ![abcdefghij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/43a26b/32.png) [@abcdefghij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abcdefghij)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/674 "2025-09-16T01:10:27Z")
What are you doing in my house!? ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/675 "2025-09-16T01:22:44Z")
You live in a hundred year old tiny bungalow right outside of NYC by Belmont Racetrack? ---
**Author:** ![abcdefghij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/43a26b/32.png) [@abcdefghij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/abcdefghij)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/676 "2025-09-16T02:43:21Z")
The names have been changed to protect the innocent ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/677 "2025-09-16T07:51:18Z")
Curious that the painting is older than the house. Does not happen often. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/678 "2025-09-16T11:56:06Z")
House was built in 1924. I’m thinking the first coat went on about then. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/679 "2025-09-16T13:37:03Z")
A few years ago my sink did not drain, After trying to snake it myself I called plumbers. They snaked it and it maybe helped for a day. So they came back and replaced some metal pipe with PVC. The pipe had corroded so as to be almost completely blocked. Recently my bathtub did not drain. After trying to snake it I figured the issue was that and/or the drum trap. I decided to replace the metal pipe with PVC. The pipe wasn’t as corroded as the sink pipe, but definitely constricted. I have not examined the drum trap. Before: [![](https://i.imgur.com/LUH4C0v.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/LUH4C0v.jpeg) After: [![](https://i.imgur.com/vKz7y0l.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/vKz7y0l.jpeg) Brian ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/680 "2025-09-16T14:40:45Z")
I have one of those traps, too. Like yours, mine is also installed upside-down. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/681 "2025-09-16T21:48:39Z")
So, I’m in full production now for that class set of slide rules. For the windows, what I eventually did was printed out the pattern on ordinary paper, put the paper in a page protector, then used the image as a guide to first scratch the hairlines with a pin, then Sharpied over the line, and then wiped the line down with alcohol so only the ink in the scratch remained. Then I cut the rectangles with an Xacto knife, again using the printout as a guide. I now have five completely finished, and four more mostly finished and waiting for the glue to dry. I don’t have enough clamps to do more than that at a time. 15 to go! [![Imgur](https://i.imgur.com/FASXxU9.jpeg "Laser-cut slide rule - Album on Imgur") ](https://imgur.com/a/laser-cut-slide-rule-W7GSqyN) [![](https://i.imgur.com/hpKoC3q.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/hpKoC3q.jpeg) [![](https://i.imgur.com/jgXQ5S6.jpeg) ](https://i.imgur.com/jgXQ5S6.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/682 "2025-09-16T21:51:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > full production Do you sell them? Abroad? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2025, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910/683 "2025-09-16T21:53:54Z")
No, but I can share the design files if you have your own laser cutter and 3D printer. I’ve been meaning to get around to putting them on Thingiverse. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910.md?page=33) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-and-hobby-projects-small-to-big-pictures-of-course/957910.md?page=35)