4 great books for the mechanically-minded person

If you have found your way to this blog and have yet to find a gift for that mechanically-minded person in your life, here's a list of books that should solve all of your problems! Need more choices? Stay tuned for more in the coming days!

Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements: Embracing All Those Which Are Most Important in Dynamics, Hydraulics, Hydrostatics, Pneumatics, Steam Engines

Coming in as the top selling book by the readers of The Automata blog is Five Hundred and Seven Mechanical Movements is a great resource for interesting mechanical solutions. It is an affordable book that can provide a lot of education and inspiration. The left hand page of each spread shows 6 to 9 mechanisms or "contrivances" as they were called, while the page on the right side gives a short description of each of the mechanisms and what it does. The mechanisms are presented in a concise, interesting manner. There is something compelling about the vintage line drawings and old-fashioned phrasing. I love this little book as will anyone who finds mechanisms fascinating.

Making Things Move: DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists

Published in 2010, Making Things Move: DIY Mechanisms for Inventors, Hobbyists, and Artists is one of the most comprehensive, easy-to-understand, and fun books on the topic. Author Dustyn Roberts covers every aspect of making things move, from fabrication techniques, to motors, CAD, and Arduino micro-controllers. If your interest in kinetic sculpture includes more than wood and brass, this book is fantastic resource.

Number 8: Paper Automata: Four Working Models to Cut Out & Glue Together

There is no doubt that Rob Ives is a master of paper engineering. This glossy softcover book contains all of the printed color patterns needed to make four excellent paper automata: a pecking hen, a flying fish, three bounding sheep, and a bowing jester. If you or anyone in your life wants to try their hand at making an automaton -- and I mean right away -- paper is the way to go. You only need some white glue, scissors, a hobby knife, and this Paper Automata book. I've watched someone with no prior mechanical training complete one of these models in an afternoon. A gift of this book is like giving four kits. Priced at just over $10, it is a very good deal.

Creative Kinetics: Making Mechanical Marvels in Wood

In Creative Kinetics, author Rodney Frost provides a brilliant introduction to the making of kinetic art. The book does an especially good job of explaining the mechanisms that typically make up the core of a wood automaton: levers, cams, cranks, eccentrics, pulleys, and gears. The projects are fun and wildly diverse. You won't find complete plans in this book, but if you are interested in learning to make kinetic sculptures in wood, this book provides all of the fundamentals in a fun and easy-to-read way.

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Proxxon 5" disc sander, a precision device for fine sanding work

I have two Proxxon benchtop tools -- the table saw and miter saw. These tools are of excellent quality and just the right size for an automaton-maker or model maker. I have had my eye on Proxxon's bench sander for quite a while. At long last, a good Samaritan has taken the time to review it on Amazon! I'm going to quote from that review here, because it is some of the best information I've found about his tool so far:

From one Amazon review:

After looking for a disc sander for model hobby needs, I finally settled down on this disc sander. While a bit spendy, the quality more than justified the purchase. I will have this tool for decades; and I'm not having to return some other tool. This is the first product I have purchased in quite a while WITHOUT a tag saying "made in china". It's about time.

I went with this model because of significant problems I'd encounter with all the other products available:

• All the other disc sanders were too big
  
• They didn't have a slow enough "slow" speed setting, or no speed adjustment at all
  
• None in this size had a vacuum connection
  
• The other one from micromark had a foot-pedal from a sewing machine to set the speed (microlux)
  
• Low quality and difficult adjusting sanding table/gauge
  
• Overall quality factors
  

After receiving this product and trying it out, wow. This is a quality machine. It hogs out balsa and light ply at a crawl when I want, and eats it away when I want it to. The dust vacuum port is very effective (and entirely necessary). This is the perfect complement to my scroll saw. The table for resting the wood is firm, easily adjusted, precise and accurate. The variable speed control is extremely smooth. The silicone faced disc makes for easy changes of the sand paper. I am producing model parts at a very fast rate, I cant wait to get started on the next build.

The reviewer goes on to say that this sander is for specifically model and miniature makers. Don't expect it to take the place of a 10 or 16" disk sander for a full size woodworking shop. That said, the Proxxon Disc Sander is of a size and quality that no other tool in the category can match.

Here's what the sander looks like when mounted to the bench in the other orientation:

Here's a link to a lot more info on Proxxon Disc Sander.

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