Want to get started with automaton-making this year? Timberkits are the way to go!

Timberkits make excellent gifts for the holidays. Here's a nifty fish automaton you can assemble. I think these kits are the single best way to get started with wood automaton-making.

From the kit description:

Making a Timberkit is to step into the whole world of automata, ingenious moving models and scenes. It is an art form in which you can appreciate the magic of mechanical action and a fascinating education and hobby for children and adults of all ages. No special knowledge or skills are needed, just a little time and patience to follow the instructions. Assemble the wooden cams, push rods, levers and cranks and understand what makes it tick. After you have made the model you can paint, varnish or customize it in your own personal way then try another!

The natural wood is sourced from sustainable forestry and fully machined with no further need for specialized tools. The minimum age recommended is 8 years. Adult supervision may be required. Timberkits come in designs of varying complexity and a wide range of themes to suit all interests.

Here is where you can get the Timberkits Fish Wood Model Kit.

Here is where you can check out all of the different Timberkits.

[ Official Timberkits Web site ]

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Behind-the-scenes tour of the mechanical wonders at the Morris Museum

The Morris Museum in Morristown, New Jersey has announced a special "Behind Locked Doors" event. The event will feature a special staff-guided tour and demonstration of instruments and automata from the famous Guinness Collection. Visitors will see mechanical marvels that are not normally heard or exhibited in the galleries. This behind the scenes tour includes a visit to the museum's incredible Viewable Storage facility where a large portion of the collection is stored.

What:
Guinness Spotlight: Behind Locked Doors

Where:
Morris Museum
6 Normandy Heights Road
Morristown, NJ  07960
publicrelations@morrismuseum.org 
http://www.morrismuseum.org

When:
Thursday, November 20, 3:00-4:30pm
Thursday, November 20, 6:30-8:00pm

How:
Tickets: Members - $7 / Non-Members - $9
Attendance will be limited. Call 973.971.3706 to reserve a seat.

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Pathfinders Leonardo DaVinci Aerial Screw Wood Kit

Check out this great kit from our friends at Pathfinders! This time they've designed a wooden kit that allows you to make a replica of Leonardo da Vinci design for the world's first helicopter.

From the kit description:

One of Leonardo's most iconic images, the Aerial Screw (also known as the Helicopter) illustrates the ingenuity of da Vinci, and indicates his obsession with flying. While this idea may never have got off the ground, for some basic technical reasons, it gave us an insight into the different ways in which Leonardo considered the challenge of human powered flying, and defines him as an inventor well ahead of his time. While it is often referred to as a helicopter, the premise of the lift to make it rise is more like archimedes screw than the rotors of a helicopter.

The kit comes complete with all pieces pre-cut and ready to assemble. Even the glue included!  Just follow the easy-to-understand instructions, and in a few hours you will have a completed kit. Mind you, it doesn't fly, but it's wonderful fun to turn the crank, watch the pinwheel gears and see the helical screw spin. A great project for young and old.

Here is where you can order the Pathfinders Leonardo DaVinci Aerial Screw Wood Kit

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Lacy Scott & Knight Toys & Models sale to be held on November 15, 2014

The Lacy Scott & Knight Auction Centre will be featuring a sale of amazing antique toys this month.

Shown here is one of the many lots included in the sale, a tin plate automaton featuring a clown an dancer.

From the description of Lot 3174:

Gunthermann, tinplate and clockwork musical automata entitled 'Clown and Dancer', comprising of tinplate clown seated upon drum whilst playing the clarinet, when in motion he nods his head back and forth whilst the opposing female dancer twirls, single fixed key mechanism in working order with 'plink-plunk' type music, later clothing has been applied to both figures

Despite its condition, the piece is estimated to bring from $900 to $1200. Toys were often well-used and many examples were eventually destroyed and discarded. They are therefore often quite rare.

To learn more about tin toys check out Pressland's Great Book of Tin Toys which features nearly 700 color illustrations of the toys that dominated the industry for a century.

[ Thanks Steve! ]

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Video showing the process of making of pinwheel gears for a kinetic sculpture

Doppio Espresso Dance from aaron kramer artist on Vimeo.

Artist Aaron Kramer created this great video in which he shows us the inner workings of one of his kinetic sculptures. Along the way, we learn a lot about how to make a set of pinwheel gears.

From Aaron Kramer:

I had always wanted to make a piece that contained a pinwheel gear made from wood and metal. These gears are the kind you would find on an old windmill. They seem pretty simple but are tough to get right. Starting with the tin can base and half an idea I first needed to make a set of working gears. I used Adobe Illustrator to generate my own templates. Transferred them to wood disks that I cut with a hole saw.

The method using Adobe Illustrator is covered in Cabaret Mechanical Movement: Understanding Movement and Making Automata.

If you don't happen to have Adobe Illustrator, you can also use an online gear template generator. I explain that process in an article on Making Pinwheels Patterns.

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German-style 3 inche jeweler's saw frame with blade assortment

Here is a 3 inch jeweler's saw that gets high marks on Amazon. These are great for cutting intricate shapes in thin sheet metals such as gold, silver, copper, and brass. The saw comes with a pack of 144 saw blades in assorted sizes (fineness of cut). If you are just getting started with one of these, you'll want two things to go with it. First, you will want a decent bench pin to use as a sawing platform. I use a wood bench pin with a metal anvil. This saves you from shifting back and forth between tools quite so often. Finally, you will want some Cut Lube or beeswax with which to lubricate the back side of the saw blade.

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Huge human figure automaton made from found objects!

automaton complete! from rob higgs on Vimeo.

You recall Rob Higgs -- the artist who created the giant wine bottle opener? Here is his latest, a large human figure with moving hands, head, eyes, and many other elements. It's a wonderful assemblage of parts. I can even spot one near to my heart and very near to the automaton's: a lyre-framed brass clock movement with its large spiral mainsprings. The video description notes that he forgot to wind clock mechanism that runs the "brain", and indeed, if you look closely you can see the winding key sticking out the back of the figure's head. It's truly incredible piece. I would expect no less from this particular artist.

Here is where you can see more sculptures by Rob Higgs.

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