# Where can I buy this wave-simulating desktop toy? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 15, 2006, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812 "2006-09-15T07:15:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/1 "2006-09-15T07:15:19Z")
A few years ago (actually, a bit more than that) I saw a desktop toy that was really cool - it was filled with the same type of liquids as one of [these](http://www.4physics.com/catalog/images/fun07.jpg), except instead of a timer it was a two-foot-long rectangular prism, that was mounted on a pivot so that it could rock back and forth. Once you set it in motion, the denser liquid would act like water in an ocean, forming waves and crashing against the opposite side, then rebounding and doing the same thing on the opposite side. The movement of the liquid would keep the thing rocking for quite a while. Anyone know where I can buy one of those these days? I’ve also seen much larger displays of the same type in museums. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/2 "2006-09-15T11:11:15Z")
Spencer’s Gifts used to carry them IIRC, the Discovery Channel stores have them. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/3 "2006-09-15T11:17:03Z")
[QUOTE=Absolute] Once you set it in motion, the denser liquid would act like water in an ocean, forming waves and crashing against the opposite side, then rebounding and doing the same thing on the opposite side. The movement of the liquid would keep the thing rocking for quite a while. [/QUOTE] All of the devices like this I have seen have actually been motorised, otherwise the movement of the liquid would just damp out the rocking pretty quickly. ---
**Author:** ![bafaa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@bafaa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bafaa)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/4 "2006-09-15T16:39:11Z")
I did a search on Google for “liquid wave toy” and found [these](http://www.officeplayground.com/liquidmotion.html). ---
**Author:** ![bafaa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@bafaa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bafaa)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/5 "2006-09-15T16:43:17Z")
Or maybe [this](http://froogle.google.com/froogle?q=Adapted+Rave+Wave+Deluxe&btnG=Search&hl=en) is more like you’re looking for? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/6 "2006-09-15T18:49:49Z")
If you get one, be careful not to place in direct sunlight. I had one with a blue liquid on the bottom, and within a couple of years, the blue had turned completely clear, just like the top liquid. Not very interesting to watch anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-this-wave-simulating-desktop-toy/372812/7 "2006-09-15T23:09:37Z")
I broke one open once (just a little one) - the coloured (heavier) liquid was water; the clear liquid on top was paraffin(kerosene).