This week I’ve been scuba diving and going deep down the rabbit hole of dive computers, which hit a lot of dopamine buttons for me by being both niche and technical. It’s also pretty incredible that a $300 beginner digital device is strictly superior to a state-of-the-art $3,000 mechanical device in almost every way. If these kinds of technological upsets are interesting to you, my friend Jason writes in-depth on the history of scientific and technological progress at Roots of Progress.
The most popular post this week was actually a comment on a shit-post in which an anonymous gentleman uses a grinder from Milwaukee’s flagship M18 FUEL line to clean up a burnt pizza:
The Cursed @Cursed_warlord
Burned the bottom of your pizza? Don’t worry https://t.co/l4daHKcvIU
I’m always looking for interesting people to interview, have anyone in mind?
—Kane
The Week in Review
Other balancing systems previously posted include a cable-driven robot, a crab-like robot, a high-tech cube, and a pendulum.
Other cool examples of huge displays include the floating head at the SLS Las Vegas and the waves at SMTown Coex in Seoul.
Gotta love a high-speed, high-precision, specialized line like this. I had always assumed these were produced as rounds and cut into slices, but this makes more sense.
This is fun and handy, but I’m still looking for the machine that extracts the root balls of giant trees (or are they uprooted using an entirely different process? Send me a note if you know).
Postscript
Somehow, I had never come across a Harbor Freight brick and mortar store until this week. I had always assumed they were a distributor and online-only brand. This one unfortunately did not have a gold-plated ratchet in stock.
Yes, I know there are better tools—but Harbor Freight has saved many a project for me in the past and will always have a place in my heart.
If you enjoyed this newsletter, forward it to friends (and interesting enemies). I am always looking to connect with interesting people and learn about interesting machines—reach out.
—Kane